The Crucible Theme Analysis

Good vs Evil, Reputation and Injustice, as well as fear and hysteria are all key themes in Arthur Miller’s play, The Crucible. Significant events throughout the course of the play were used to highlight and illustrate the importance of these themes within the duration of the play. The theme of Good vs Evil is portrayed in the first series of events during Act I. This is when ‘the girls’ are seen by Hale dancing in the Forrest, during events that take place before the play itself begins. This scene and the events that take place during it, later lead to widespread accusations of witchcraft. Abigail describes the dancing as “it were sport”. The forest surrounding the puritan’s town in Salem during 1692 was conveyed by Miller, as a place where

During the courtroom scene, hysteria and mayhem break out, as accusations begin flying around , Mary Warrens ‘spirit’ begins to do the same, as she sends out a ‘bird’ in order to taunt Abigail. This sends the courtroom into a downwards spiral, as a hysterical outburst between Abigail and ‘the girls’ erupts. The room fills with fear and tension as the hysteria begins to build; as it reaches its climax as John Proctor blurts out “I have known her” which allows the courtroom to fall into complete silence. Miller uses John Proctor- a known, well respected man within the community- as a way to illustrate how fear and hysteria can suddenly alter our personality and force us to admit to things we never would under normal circumstances. John’s confession of having known Abigail, is his first confession during the play, but is used by Miller to illustrate how easily hysteria affects us. John’s outburst along with the silence that follows allows the audience to understand the impact of what John is confessing to; the hushed tones of voice that trail after John’s hefty confession further reiterate the weight held by John’s confession, which is purposeful on Millers behalf, to help the audience to understand the impact of John’s words. Miller’s use of fear and hysteria in the play, The Crucible, was to illustrate how easily and quickly people will change during stressful moments, as well as the way these confessions or altering of personality can go on to affect you and the way others perceive