Hysteria In The Crucible Analysis

Imagine being so wrapped up in a lie that you yourself begin to genuinely believe that the lie is really the truth. In Arthur Miller’s play, The Crucible, there is a character named Abigail Williams who is stuck in the middle of a questionable situation. To try to get out of any punishment for her acts, she starts blaming people for being witches that make her do evil things and physically harm her. In spite of the obvious theory that Abigail was at the root of the witch hunt in Salem, Massachusetts, there are many other beliefs as to who was really the start of the frenzied delirium. The three people most responsible for creating this mass hysteria in Salem, Massachusetts are Thomas Putnam, Reverend Parris, and John Proctor.

In today's society there are many cases of mass hysteria just like long ago. In the book John Proctor says a quote that hits big time for mass hysteria, he says “God is dead” while laughing insanely, and if that does not cause mass hysteria then nothing does.

Abigail Williams already needs a way to reinforce her status as not only was she a woman, but she also has an affair with John Proctor. Initially Abigail needs to save herself from accusation; she does this by deflecting the blame on others. She says, “I want to open myself…I want the light of God, I want the sweet love of Jesus! I danced for the Devil; I saw him; I wrote in his book; I go back to Jesus; I kiss His hand. I saw Sarah Good with the Devil! I saw Goody Osburn with the Devil! I saw Bridget Bishop with the Devil!” (Miller 45). In this quote Abigail realizes the she must deflect the blame or she may suffer the punishment of witchcraft. This foreshadows the coming of mass hysteria as the other girls realize that they too need to deflect the blame or risk death. Abigail shows that she is even willing to remove anyone out of her way of gaining authority. She blames Marry Warren when she explains, “Oh, Mary, this is a black art to change your shape. No, I cannot, I cannot top my mouth; it’s God’s work I do” (107). Abigail accuses Mary Warren for trying to help Proctor stop them. Abigail begins to use her new found power to maintain her authority. Before these trials, Abigail cannot do anything as she is a woman. However, the Salem witch trials change everything; now the whole town treats Abigail well because she provides them a scapegoat.

“The Crucible” displays hysteria in many ways throughout the play, but the main act of hysteria was that it wrecked the people of Salem. Hysteria is an exaggerated or uncontrollable emotion, which is mainly demonstrated by divisions of society. Hysteria takes a main part of the play because it caused the people of Salem to do such unreasonable acts. One hysterical act in “The Crucible” was during the Salem Witch Trials, one hundred fifth people were accused for practicing

Mass hysteria is a phenomenon that transmits collective illusions of threats through a population in society as a result of rumors and fear. In a play called The Crucible by Arthur Miller, mass hysteria breaks out in Salem when children start acting weird and accusing people of being witches. There are multiple scenes and characters throughout the play that show how hysteria was affecting the town and the people in it. If accused, a person will be hung unless they confess to be being a witch, and even then they would have the entire village against them. Hysteria itself grows when people begin to accuse others because people do not want to be called a witch. The only reason why someone would confess is to save themselves from being hung. Arthur Miller uses powerful characters and scenes to create an atmosphere of hysteria in Salem.

In The Crucible, Arthur Miller shows us that misinformation and lack of leadership can drive masses to hysteria and he shows how important an appearance is in a community. Hysteria can drive people to do horrific things that they normally wouldn’t do. It could also push people to accuse others that they might not like for personal gains. The story features characters that are lower on the social ladder at the time rise to importance. For example Abigail and other girls were given more importance than the average woman at the time. People in Salem also use this hysteria to rid themselves of beggars and homeless citizens. In my opinion there were two types people in this book, those who wanted to follow religion blindly and kill heretics and, those who wanted to gain from the panic within the town.

What is hysteria? By definition, hysteria is a state of intense agitation, anxiety, or excitement, especially as manifested by large groups or segments of society. In a broader sense however, hysteria is a killer, the delitescent devil. More specifically, hysteria was the main cause of nineteen deaths in the Salem Witch Trials of 1692, and countless ruined reputations on account of Joe McCarthy. Hysteria does not just appear out of nowhere though. There are driving forces such as revenge and abuse of power that bring about the irrational fear that can take over society. These are the issues expressed in Arthur Miller's The Crucible.

In 1962, Salem Massachusetts found itself in a panic for the hanging of twenty people’s

The theme of Hysteria was evident throughout all scenes of The Crucible and tension of relationship was apparent with a number of characters, particularly with Abigail Williams, John Proctor and Mary Warren. Within the town of ‘Salem’ hysteria made its mark in the very beginning of the play, and it stayed consistent right throughout the entirety of the show. In scene two of the play, witchcraft is already mentioned when referring to Betty who laid unconscious. The rumour moved throughout the town quickly which created an atmosphere of chaos, this heightened the emotions and fears of the towns people. An example from the play that displayed tension of relationship was when Proctor and Abigail face the audience with the rest of the court focused on them.

When analyzing someone 's behavior and thoughts a countless number of elements can be accounted for. Hysteria is a major leader in past and present day society when it comes to how people act and think in different situations. The Crucible provides great examples with how hysteria can affect a group of people. Back in Salem, Massachusetts 1692, hysterics swept the town, creating storms of emotion. Everyone is wondering, what to do? What to think? In The Crucible, Arthur Miller uses the effects of mass hysteria to reveal his purpose of using it in his writing, how society at that time reacts to hysterics, and the consequences of these incoherences, which still appear in present-day.

The hysteria concerning the Salem Witch Trials of 1692 was caused mostly by human weaknesses and a series of events that spiraled out of control. The human weaknesses and character flaws that help to cause this mass hysteria included, jealousy, desire, greed, ignorance and intolerance.

Another great theme in the Crucible is the theme hysteria. The theme hysteria can play a big part in breaking apart a community and a society. Hysteria is set in place for logic and allows people to believe that their neighbors are doing bad crimes. Even if they really aren’t. In The Crucible, all of the towns people become a big part of the theme hysteria.

In The Crucible, Abigail Williams uses mass hysteria to exploit the people around her, in order to achieve her agenda to maintain her innocent and reputation. For instance, “ I saw Goody Hawkins with the devil. I saw Goody Booth with the devil” (Abigail, Act 1,Page 48). The names that abigail said are the people who got accused, and other girls said some of the names too. After the girls have seen Tituba “free herself” from the devil by falsely accusing others, they begin to follow abigail’s lead by naming woman who saw with the devil. This act will pull innocent women into hysteria and the pattern would be continue. Another example is about the reputation, “ My name is good in the village! I will not have it said my name is soiled! Goody Proctor is a gossiping liar!” (Abigail, Act 1, Page 12) Abigail was concerned about her reputation and her “name”. This is no doubt what motivates her, at least initially, to put the blame for the dancing in the woods on Tituba. If her name is “soiled,” Abigail could face harsh consequences in the Salem theocracy where women are already low on the totem pole – if it’s discovered that she, an unmarried orphan woman, slept with a married man, she would face huge consequences.

Hysteria is an uncontrollable emotion, usually involving a group of people. In the play The Crucible, hysteria is shown throughout many ways. The small Massachusetts Bay Colony forwent many changes over the span of a year. In this religious town, innocent people were martyred, neighbors turned against neighbors, and even the minister became corrupt and turned away from God. In Arthur Miller’s The Crucible, irony helps to depict hysteria in the town of Salem through the Theocracy of the town, the false accusations and testimonies that are told, and through children's roles in this Puritan society.

Though many may think it an action or emotion, hysteria is considered a psychological disorder that first was only diagnosed in women (“Women and Hysteria in the History of Mental Health” n.pag.). A person with hysteria may be described as being in a possessive state and having little to no control over their actions or emotions. This troubling state of mind is clearly portrayed through characters in Arthur Miller's play The Crucible. During the 1950’s when McCarthyism was causing havoc, Miller, being accused himself, decided to write The Crucible in hopes to illustrate how America was repeating its own terrible history. Similarly, the hysterical mindsets of the Salem Witch Trials carried over to modern day Jordan, Minnesota where numerous parents were arrested for allegedly abusing their children during the Jordan Sex Scandal. As demonstrated by both The Crucible and The Jordan Sex Scandal, when hysteria breaks out in a community it causes the government to ignore basic rights of the people, ultimately corrupting justice.