The power in Salem has changed dramatically by the end of Act I. By the end of Act I the girls have taken control of the power in the Puritan society of Salem, MA in 1692. A Puritan town such as Salem was strongly based patriarchal society. This is very important because the newly acquired sense of power that the girls have gained from the town on the beliefs of witchcraft may lead to trouble in the future. At the beginning of Act 1 Reverend Parris holds the power in the town. However, because of the strong belief in witchery and support of the devil one can slowly see the power shifting to the girls by the end of Act I. Because good Christians do not lie the town believes the children's stories and fall ill to their accusations. On page 48 Abigail says, "I want to open myself! I want the light of God; I want the sweet love of Jesus! I danced for the Devil; I saw him; I wrote in his book; I go back to Jesus; I kiss His hand. I saw Sara Good with the Devil! I saw Goody Osburn with the Devil! I saw Bridget Bishop with the Devil!" This line shows the significance of the power that Abigail and the girls have discovered. They realized that accusing witches is a affective way to gain power.
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