I, Tituba: Black Witch of Salem

Everything about the village of Salem—the new house, the Puritan pilgrims, the Puritan children, and the news of the two previous ministers’ wives who died there—is dark and unwelcoming. Tituba enjoys Salem’s cats, having learned from Judah that they are spirits greeting her, and muses: “How childish white folks are to choose the cat as a manifestation of their powers […] We others, we prefer […] a nobler breed” (58).

Chapter 9 introduces many pilgrims with documented counterparts in Salem history: Sergeant Thomas Putnam, his wife, Anne, and his daughter, Anne Putnam, Jr.; John and Elizabeth Proctor; Mercy Lewis; Sarah Good; Sarah Osborne; and Elizabeth Booth. In hindsight, Tituba notes that while moving to Salem gave them relief, it would be fleeting.

Tituba, comforted only by her love-making encounters with John Indian, is plagued by inexplicable fear and yearns for Barbados. Samuel Parris behaves despicably; John Indian remains oblivious. Betsey becomes nervous, crying or staring into space, and Tituba tries to soothe her.

Mercy Lewis and Anne Putnam, Jr., befriend Abigail instantly, and their circle grows. Tituba dislikes the girls, sensing their violent hatred. They plague and taunt Tituba with questions about the devil, witchcraft, and who in Salem is in league with Satan.