Ignorance In The Crucible

Ignorance. When the young and so called “innocent” have the power over the wise and old, they conspire to do all in their power to disrupt life, forget all moral codes, and use imagination to achieve the end goals that they so desire. In the play by Arthur Miller, The Crucible, a chaotic disruption occurs in the peaceful Puritan town of Salem, Massachusetts. The play commences when a group of girls were found dancing in the forest in the dark of night around a fire. In the morning a few younger children had been found to have a strange coma or“spell-like” quality that came over them. However, as the story unfolds, the town cries witchcraft, a popular belief at the time, which results in an opportunity for many people to take a chance at covering

Being driven by passion, love, and the fear of having secrets exposed, Abigail took things into her own hands. She strived to control every aspect of the situation she could, which in the end, lead to her running from the mistakes, the fraud, and the destructive actions that she had. When finally realizing that John Proctor intended to mend his ways and reestablish a relationship with his wife, even sacrifice himself to protect his family and his dignity, Abigail concluded too late that by getting rid of Elizabeth wouldn’t bring him to her. Thus the force that drove her, consuming all rational thought, lead to her downfall. By forsaking her religion, the rules of the town, and her dignity, Abigail turned friends, her closest allies, into foes, convinced by the council, to hang for witchcraft. The selfishness and the want of a forbidden love drove Abigail mad, which is a significant part of the the meaning and the theme of the movie, The Crucible. In general, one small idea can create the most chaos. Witchcraft was a fear in the new world, which was used by so many people seeking revenge or wanting to eliminate an opponent. The council who delegated who was or was not a witch believed that crimes of a witch could not be proven by concrete evidence, thus, the council took the word of the accuser, if it seemed plausible or believable to the council. This system allowed for someone to seize power, and control emotions, actions, and overall interactions of those around him or her. Abigail used these resources to her advantage, which resulted in 19 deaths, and many claiming she was a villain of Salem. She corrupted and mislead the girls, who in unison proclaimed fable stories to accuse and convict members of the