The Trial of Anne Hutchinson
In November 1637 Anne Hutchinson was brought to trial by the leaders of the Massachusetts Bay Colony for preaching against the teachings of the colony’s ministers. Hutchison had broken no law, but was seen as a danger to the existing theocracy because she was a woman who held opposing Antinomian views and, more significantly, had the ability to influence others in their community.
The motivation for her accuser, Governor Winthrop’s actions was rooted in his belief in Hutchinson’s inferiority as a woman. Indeed, in the transcript of her trial reveals the prejudice of her questioners readily enough. Winthrop vaguely describes Hutchinson’s crimes as “a thing not tolerable nor comely in the sight of God nor fitting for your sex” (Wheeler, Becker, and Glover 43). He is referring to the frequent and popular meetings Hutchinson hosted that were controversially attended by men and women. Hutchinson and her followers challenged the preaching of “a covenant of works” and these meetings offered further opportunity to discuss the topic. Winthrop diminishes and pollutes Hutchinson’s influence by calling it seduction (46). Winthrop’s word choice suggests that she employed trickery rather than reason. However, his admittance that community members consulted her in religious matters, condescending though it was, reveals his fear of her influence.
The most startling revelation in Hutchinson’s testimony came when she declared to the court that she had experienced a revelation provided by “the voice of his spirit” in her soul (51). She explains that this was able to, “give me see that those which did not teach the new covenant had the spirit of the antichrist….He hath let me see which was the clear ministry and which the wrong” (51). Her proclamation shocked the judges in that it declared that God had singled her out to give the power to decide which doctrine was God’s will (51). Perhaps not surprisingly, the extreme majority of the judges believed she had been “deluded by the devil” (53) Even her friend Reverend Cotton, when asked whether her “revelations” were true, could do no better than say that he could not confirm or deny it (52).
In the end, Anne Hutchinson was found guilty (53). Governor Winthrop declared the verdict, declaring her to be, “a woman not fit for our society, and are to be imprisoned till the court shall send you away” (53). Hutchinson was singled out because she represented a multifaceted and unique threat. She was an influential and vocal woman who held strong opposing views. The leaders of the community were convinced of her inferiority as a woman and eventually of corruption by the devil. Yet, she earned the respect of others in their community for her intelligence and spirituality, not her childbearing skills.
Works Cited
Wheeler, William B., Susan D. Becker, and Lorri Glover. Discovering the American Past: A Look at the Evidence. 7th ed. Vol. 1: To 1877. Boston: Wadsworth, 2012.
The Cave 