Themes in The Crucible

Themes in The Crucible

In the crucible Arthur Miller takes the chilling story of the Salem

witch hunt in 1692 and combines it with the issues of McCarthyism in

the 1950s. The play reflects Miller’s ideas and opinions about

McCarthyism and what he thinks are the similarities to the Salem witch

hunts. Proctor is the main character Millers uses to reflect the

unfairness of the Salem and McCarthy trials and how the truth died in

the 1950s. This makes Proctor’s role very dramatic and exciting.

Miller also uses a dramatic licence to make this even more so – adding

the love to Elizabeth and guilt about Abigail gives the story an

intriguing twist.

The whole nature of Proctor makes him an exciting and complex

character; as a result this makes him entertaining to the audience and

his complexity keeps the audience enthralled throughout the play. His

personality is not boring or simple. He has a quick temper and is

often angry, it seems he can’t control his feelings. “[turning on her,

rifle in hand] I will curse her hotter than the oldest cinder in

hell.” This has the effect of exciting the audience and adds interest

(not to mention tension with this particular line) but this line can

have the effect of making Proctor look like a bad person.

Alternatively it could suggest that Proctor is human and has his

faults, the audience would sympathise with this.

Inside Proctor lacks self confidence, he was shamed when he had an

affair with Abigail. Proctor shows this when he says, “I may blush for

my sin”, this line give the audience the impression that John realises

that the affair was wrong, that is was a sin and he regrets it. It

also implies that he hasn’t forgiven himself for what he did with

Abigail and he still ...

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... relevance to them.

John Proctor is the character which the audience relate to and have

opinions about the most. They see him fight although he stands to

loose everything and admire his courage. They see him battle against

himself to sign a confession or tell the truth about Abigail and

respect his conviction. They see him become almost a martyr or tragic

hero as he dies for his belief in the truth and his pride in his name.

These things add drama, excitement, structure and interest to the plot

of the Crucible. He has a fatal flaw, whether it be his pride,

attraction to Abigail or trust in Elizabeth, but this means the

audience can relate to him. The Crucible is a story of Proctor’s

personal tragedy but it also a story of the Salem witch hunt, and of

McCarthyism. Miller strikes a balance between these things to get the

plot which makes up the Crucible.