The Salem Witch Trials were a result of mass hysteria fueled by the accusations of Abigail Williams and her friends. During the Salem Witch Trials those suspected of witchcraft were jailed and given a trial. During the trial the accused was dogged for a confession and even names of other wishes. The incentive was if they confessed, God would forgive them and they could live, but of course no one was really a witch so most plead innocent and were hung anyways, simply because of a suspicion. The whole event of the Salem Witch Trials is viewed as unjust because after the accusations spread, many townspeople simply accused their neighbors of being a witch to gain revenge, money, land, or something similar.
Moreover, when Reverend Parris confronts Abigail about being fired by Elizabeth Proctor, Abigail denies any wrongdoings. She accuses Elizabeth as “a lying, cold, sniveling women” who spreads rumor about to degrade her social status. Abigail’s motivation in the witchcraft is thus revealed, which is jealousy towards Elizabeth. As Abigail successfully frames other people for being responsible about the witchcraft, she further imposes her domination over the other girls. Her domination is demonstrated physically and verbally.
The unwarranted accusations that Joseph McCarthy and the citizens of Salem made are what fueled the widespread hysteria in both situations. According to Miller “It seemed that the hysteria in Salem had a certain inner procedure, or several, which were duplicating once again and that perhaps by revealing the nature of that procedure some light could be thrown on what we were doing ourselves. "(Miller) He made this statement in comparison to the present day witch hunts; which were at the time of the McCarthy trials. The people of Salem accused others of witchcraft to protect their own lives. In both eras, they struck fear in citizens due to the "guilty until you confess" attitude which were in favor of the court.
Arthur Miller wrote “The Crucible”, during the age of McCarthyism; because he felt like during that time they were going through the same motions as the Salem Witch Trials. Senator Joseph McCarthy coined the name McCarthyism. McCarthyism was the post-medieval witch-hunt. “The Crucible” can be compared with McCarthyism because of the fact that each was accusing others of crimes, witchcraft and communism, both of which are very hard to prove. Abigail Williams (Miller) and Joseph McCarthy can also be compared, due to the fact that they too would accuse people of crimes; based on what they heard or thought that they had heard.
Both events emanated from false accusations, gained momentum from the influence of public leaders, and ceased after the accusations proved to be inaccurate. The witch-hunts created two of America’s most infamous periods as they instilled fear into the public and wrongfully punished innocent people. Both affairs would not have originated were it not for the spread of harsh and unjust accusations. Unsubstantiated rumors led to the outbreak of accusations within the two witch-hunts. In the Salem Witch Trials, Sarah Good, Sarah Osbourne and Tituba were the first three women to be accused of witchcraft for allegedly afflicting Betty Paris and Abigail Williams, two young girls, with a demonic disease.
Up to now in this story it seems like half of the town has been accused of witchcraft, but it gets worse. Martha Corey was accused because she thought the town and everyone in the church was insane blaming all the innocent people for things that were out of their control. She also thought the girls they were listening to were fools and she thought they were even bigger fools for listening to children. She told the court that she was innocent; she didn’t know what a witch was. They simply told her that how could she not know if she was one if she didn’t know what a witch is.
The historical significance of Susannah Martin’s trial is in communion with each other convicted witch, in that an idea can lead to destruction, not only destruction of the lives that were taken due to this idea, but almost to the colony itself. In order to explain the life of Susanna Martin it is first necessary to explain the life of the Salem witch trials. The era of the witch trials lasted less than a year, from the first arrests on March 1, 1692 to the final hanging on September 22, 1692. In 17th century New England, witchcraft under British law was seen as a felony and a crime committed against their government, and the punishment for the crime was hanging. There is often a
The whole story is about a group of girls who were telling lies and accusing people of witchcraft. The cause for this whole thing was personal grudges and rivalries between certain people. The Salem witch trials were all about jealousy, grudges & rivalries. People in the town had bad information on other people in the town and that lead to the town being destroyed. Innocent people died because of
Who weeps for these, weeps for corruption.” says Danforth to the crowd because John Proctor was standing up to him and he ripped up he confession and speaking of the truth. The vindictive trait that is present in McCarthy, who distorted evidence and manipulated people. An example of a person who was innocently accused is Rebecca Nurse from “The Crucible” who represents Lillian Hellmann. Rebecca was as woman with up holding morals, which is evident when she refused to confess the names of other “witches”. She does not want to get caught in a web of lies.
It is about a town, after accusations from a few girls, which begins a mad hunt for witches that did not exist. Many townspeople were hung on charges of witchcraft. Miller brings out the absurdity of the incident with the theme of truth and righteousness. The theme is conveyed through the struggles of Miller’s main character, John Proctor. The main characters are Reverend Hale, John Proctor, and Elizabeth Proctor.