They deemed The Crucible was an allegory to McCarthyism. The book follows the events that occurred in Salem, Massachusetts. It portrays from the view point of the girl who started the witch hunt to townsfolk being victimized by the horrible acts of fearful people. The person most responsible for the epidemic of fear is Abigail Williams, a manipulative teenager trying to connect with her lover. Abigail Williams
"Young Goodman Brown" and "The Birthmark" by Nathaniel Hawthorne Nathaniel Hawthorne was born in 1804 in the town of Salem, in Massachusetts. His works have been written while the Puritan views were shaping literature. Aspects of the Puritan beliefs and lifestyle are present in Hawthorne's works, such as in "Young Goodman Brown." Various themes which Hawthorne uses in his writing include the reference to dreams and how this helps to reveal the true personality of a character, and the reference to Puritan beliefs such as Calvin's Five Points. In two of Hawthorne's pieces of literature, "Young Goodman Brown" and "The Birthmark," there are many similarities and differences in the way they are written and the messages they convey to the reader.
The Crucible is Based originally on the Salem Witch Trials that took place in the late 1600’s in Massachusetts. Hysteria is one of the main themes that stirr up the community. Three girls Abigail ,Tituba, and Mary Warren caused mass hysteria in Salem through their alleged wrong doings. Most of the hysteria causing trouble revolves around Abigail because of her violent untrustworthy vengeful behavior while Tituba is mostly intimidated by authority, she makes a lot of bad judgments as a result but she is smart enough to know how to save herself. Marry Warren is more submissive and nieve and at times unreliable.
Due to the fact that Elizabethans were afraid of evil, the odd people in communities started being accused of witchcraft. Witchcraft had a great impact of the daily and social lives of the Elizabethans. Soon neighbors slung accusations at each other and started ruckus all over England. Children rolled on the floor having convulsions and blaming random people for hexing or possessing them (Saintives). Anyone with odd names, weird looks, or were found mumbling chants, were accused of witchcraft and were put to death.
“How does The Crucible show us the power of fear in human society?” In the text The Crucible, Arthur Miller uses the events of the Salem Witch Trials to portray the power of fear in human society. Fear is an instinct humans need to survive, which strongly affects how people act and often results in horrible consequences. Throughout the play the theme of fear affects the outcomes and characters of Abigail Williams, Mary Warren, Reverend Parris, Reverend Hale and John Proctor. The character of seventeen year old Abigail Williams uses intimidation to show the power of fear in human society. Abigail first demonstrates her fondness of terrorising those around her in her threat to the girls of the town: “Let either of you breather a word, or the edge of a word, about the other things, and I will come to you in the black of some terrible night and I will bring a pointy reckoning that will shudder you...I can make you wish you had never seen the sun go down!” This threat foreshadows Abigail’s accusations of witchcraft against others.
Taking Sides The Salem witch trials were studied on different levels. It was studied from a religious stand point and a medical and an economic standing. The focus of my paper will be on the roles of women during this time and how it affected women and also, what the puritans thought about this hysteria. In my opinion the Salem witch trials were a way for men to demonize, humiliate and to strip women of any sense of power they could obtain. During this era women were considered subornments to men.
Towards the end of Act II he starts to have some suspicion on what is going on because now Elizabeth Proctor is accused of witchcraft. During the middle and end of Act III when John Proctor is testifying and Abigail is doing her hallucination. Hale begins to join John, Giles, and Francis against the court. He sees the truth on why the trials are happening and he tries to help them out. “I beg you, stop now before another is condemned!
Because Arthur Miller wants to depict the dangers of the development and progression of hysteria, “The Crucible” illustrates this through the antagonist Reverend Paris, a closed-minded Puritan society, and the persecuted group of young women on trial. Arthur Miller’s play The Crucible shows the hysteria that took place in Salem in 1692. Although the play is fiction, Miller based the plot of his play on historical events and his characters show how paranoia and fear can escalate. A number of characters used this fear to benefit and they showed
A radical religion called Puritanism was vitally important to the people of Salem, and they were extraordinarily paranoid of the Devil. Two characters in the book The Crucible demonstrate how Puritanism affected the society. Judge Danforth is an example of religious ignorance and ends up being the person who condemns everyone, suspecting they are all witches. On the other hand, John Proctor is a level headed farmer who watches as his friends and their wives are accused of witchcraft and sentenced to death, that is, until his own wife is accused. Using these foil characters, Arthur Miller exemplifies the difference between people who are weak minded and cowardly versus people who are strong-minded and brave.
From the start, Goodman Brown shows conceit, and up until the very end Brown pays the consequences for his weaknesses. Brown shows conceit when he leaves Faith, his wife, behind in order to test his own will to resist evil. Faith, of course, is a metaphor for Goodman Brown’s faith in humanity as a whole. Brown is willing to leave his faith behind for the mere test of his own will; his over-confidence is blatant at this point. Of course, Brown is able to make excuses, such as “…after this on night I’ll cling to her skirts and follow her to heaven” , yet despite his excuses, the fact still remains-Brown is willing to give up his faith to test his will to resist temptation.