Arthur Miller's The Crucible

Fear of being arrested or put to death is the key motivation in turning others in as witches. From these three human flaws, the town of Salem falls into chaos with many innocent people paying the price. Vengeance plays a key role in causing the mass hysteria of the Salem Witch Trials. Abigail Williams, who?s probably most to blame for the trials, acts out of revenge. She and John Proctor have had an affair and when Elizabeth Proctor finds out, she throws Abigail out of their house.

If there was a wind storm and a fence was knocked down, people believed that their neighbors used witchcraft to do it. Everyone from ordinary people to the governor’s wife was accused of witchcraft. Even a pregnant woman and the most perfect puritan woman were accused. No one in the small town was safe. As one can see, the chaotic Salem Witchcraft Trials of 1692 were caused by superstition, the strict puritan lifestyle, religious beliefs, and hysteria.

Abigail lies to save herself by giving the names of others to be killed. “You drank a charm to kill Goody Proctor!” (88). Abigail also uses threats of violence and the thought of her actually knowing some real witchcraft to scare them into not speaking up about what was really going on with her. She is very evil, and throughout the novel driven t... ... middle of paper ... ...imation of irony considering the prodigious amounts of lies are told in order to “protect” the court and the people of Salem. The process of proving the guilty and finding the innocent involved with witchcraft has a lot to do with the greed, selfishness and personal grudges that the characters display throughout the trials.

The persecution of innocent souls is apparent in both Senator Joseph McCarthy's work and of 'The Crucible.' McCarthyism was when all left wing views were arraigned for un-American activiti... ... middle of paper ... ...his essay. The witchcraft trials in Salem were remarkable, mainly for the numbers involved. Before the witchcraft hysteria was over the girls had pointed the finger at hundreds of supposed witches, not only in Salem but also in places far apart such as Andover and Charleston. They even accused people they did not know e.g.

The book was about three children that had claimed that they were being tormented by a witch named Goodie Glover, who was later convicted and executed. Magistrates are appointed from Salem town to conduct the trials. These Magistrates are either merchants or prominent men of the colony with no education in Law. The trail begins with Tichiba claiming her innocents and denies being a witch, suddenly the accusers go into convulsion in the court room. After extended talks with the Magistrates and beatings from Parris, Tichiba in the end confesses to being a

Rebecca Nurse is a prime example of someone who was seen as very respectable and kind was falsely accused with little to no physical or practical evidence. Rebecca Nurse was accused by Mary Walcott, Mercy Lewis and Elizabeth Hubbard. While in court Rebecca Nurse tilted her head and the girls also followed the same motion as Rebecca Nurse and the people in court then indicted her for witchcraft. This is just one of many examples of the destruction of lives; even the people that tried to defend Rebecca were seen guilty also. Martha Corey’s live was also ruined by the unsubstantiated claims of the prosecutors.

ENG4U-Unit 5-The Crucible-Reader Response Summative By: Tharumiga The play The Crucible by Arthur Miller, takes a closer look at the Salem Witch trials. The novel sets off in Salem, MA during the 1950s when the witch trials first started. In this town the people held a strong belief on religious faith. When a young girl seeks to destroy the relationship between a husband and a wife she sets loose the belief that some people had been taken over by the devil. This belief quickly spreads throughout the village as many innocent people are falsely accused.

Many of the accusers have meddled in witchcraft themselves, and are therefore doubly to be distrusted. (Warshow 116) The court convicts the victims on the most absurd testimony, and the reader has to wonder how the judges and the townspeople could let such a charade continue. The leading character of the play is John Proctor, a man who often serves as the only voice of reason in the play. He had an affair with Abigail Williams, who later charges his wife with witchcraft. Proctor is seemingly the only person who can see through the children's accusations.

During the years of 1692 and 1693 the fear of witchcraft swept through Salem, Massachusetts like a plague. Witchcraft strongly defied Puritan beliefs, and the Puritans executed any accused witches. Throughout the hysteria in Salem, 185 people were accused of practicing witchcraft. Rumors of witchcraft put many people’s lives in danger. Witchcraft was defined as entering into a compact with the devil in exchange for certain powers to do evil.

“The Crucible” In 1692, countless innocent people were hanged, tortured, or stripped of their reputation because they were falsely accused of being a witch. They would have to falsely confess to save their lives, or else have their reputation be defaced. Arthur Miller shows the chaos of people constantly living in fear that their neighbor would become greedy, and falsely accuse them of being something that they were not. Miller does this through the book “The Crucible”. Motives of revenge, greed, and peer pressure contribute to the hysteria and hangings in the Salem Witch Trials.