Ann Foster

Ann Foster admitted to doing many things in her confessions at the Salem Witch Trials. Many of her confessions followed the similar themes. Several times she confessed to meeting directly with the Devil himself. He appeared to her in the form of a man and in the form of a bird. Each meeting with the Devil resulted in him explaining to her that she was to help establish his power on earth and that she would receive prosperity in return for her help. Ann Foster admitted that she made these covenants with the Devil, but that he never delivered on his end of the agreement.

Ann Foster also named other people that were in league with the Devil. Her main accomplice and the person that introduced her to the Devil and witchcraft was Goody Carrier. She describes meeting with Goody Carrier and some other men in the forest near Salem so they could meet with the Devil and have their witches meetings. At some of these meetings, supernatural things would happen. Ann relates that she and Goody Carrier were able to ride a stick high above the treetops, but the stick broke and they came crashing to the earth.

A final theme that seems to run through Ann Foster’s confession is her ability to hurt people by looking at them or by using her witchy powers to cause illness and death. She confesses that she and Goody Carrier would put spells on children and the children would sometimes die within twenty four hours. They did this to several families in Salem village.

One interesting thing about Ann Foster’s confession is the lack of rational motive. She says the devil promised her prosperity in exchange for her evil deeds, but he never paid so why did she continue to do it? Her confession is not very convincing, if you ask me.