Passion Play Sarah Ruhl

The situations and informal diction or vernacular in the play create an atmosphere of familiarity with the audience, and this familiarity helps the audience to realize that Troy, Rose, and Cory are just like them. Wilson’s technique of drawing the audience in is a method of breaking down social and racial barriers that existed during the time depicted in

Firstly let us consider conflict. In each act of the play, we see the overpowering desire to belong leading to a climax of conflict

In a society where the thoughts and opinions of people are meant to blend in, a division actually occurs where they are usually separated because of their opinions. The play and the event, The Crucible and the “Red Scare” respectively, supply greatly to the difference of opinion because it shows that people are willing to do anything to not only oust the people that they dislike, but try and obtain the attention that they are seeking. During the “Red Scare,” McCarthy targets the issue of communism in the United States of America in order to become the favorable candidate for re-election as well as obtaining the attention that he desired. This event parallels with Abigail Williams, from Arthur Miller’s

A Delusional Government Throughout Arthur Miller’s play, The Crucible, we see multiple examples of how government functions in the late 17th century and the Puritan’s lives. In these instances, the characteristics shown are heavily affected by the Puritans’ religion, Protestantism, in a very negative way. The Crucible overall; however, provides reinforcement as to why church and state should be separate. One example of The Crucible’s religious idealism is that of one being an unlawful citizen if one does not reach the churches expectations of a “good person”. Such as John Proctor and his wife, Elizabeth Proctor, being questioned and eventually prosecuted in Act II.

A government that is totalitarian controls the ideas and actions of its own citizens. In the book the High authority the demands of the citizens go to church every single day and work and pray and everything else is bad, similarity, in the US during the 1950s government controlled all the views of communism. In the crucible, those who oppose the government were also opposing God, this is because then living by the government own rules and those who went against the rules were sometimes whip or punished. For example when coney and the other speak out about the trials no one was allowed to have the freedom of speech. Another example is when women were initially accused that they are witches and they didn't have a voice to speak for themselves

American playwright, Arthur Miller, in his play The Crucible (1952), suggests that witch hunts still exist in American society. Miller supports this claim by drawing parallels between the Salem Witch Trials and the Senator Joseph McCarthy Trials. His purpose is to warn his readers of the dangers of mass hysteria. He uses emotional appeals (pathos) and logic (logos) to convince the reader that mass “hunts” are still a danger to Americans today. The main way, however, that Miller achieves his ultimate goal of demonstrating the dangers of individuality vs. ideology is through the vivid characterization of Mary Warren. Mary Warren is an example of an outwardly conforming character because in the play she tells Abigail that she wants to tell

A number of important themes are paralleled within both the play and Miller’s reality, including McCarthyism, which in contemporary times is generally referred to as, “reckless and unsubstantiated accusations, as well as public attacks, on political opponents”. McCarthy shares similarities with Abigail and the girls, who use their newfound political power to falsely accuse others and harness the power of fear as a means of control. Ultimately Miller draws a disturbing comparison – that despite almost two hundred years passes, the Salem Witch Trials in 1692 were no different to Miller’s trial in 1953, with fear and public hysteria ultimately the catalyst that drives American politics. This is eerily reflected once again in David Rothkopf’s TED Talk entitled How Fear Drives America Politics, released in 2015. Rothkopf’s focus on terrorism, resulting in hysteria and ultimately society’s civil liberties coming under attack draws similarities to both the power of the girls and their claims of witchcraft. “They posed an existential threat to no one.”, Rothkopf argues in reference to Al-Qaeda in the early 21st century, just as witchcraft did in Salem

Within Arthur Miller’s award-winning play, The Crucible, there is a constant trend that flows through time. As the tale persists, Salem, Massachusetts gets wound up in the witch hunt of 1692, creating an infectious hysteria on all the villagers. City-wide fear overtakes individual thought and reasoning as well as it can today in America’s “trivial” matters.

The tendency for the Salem community to believe “that a person is either with this court or he must be counted against it, there be no road between” (87) clearly mirrors the persecution of “communist sympathisers” in the McCarthy era, and Miller draws this parallel to emphasise the importance of acknowledging moral ambiguity. In addition, Miller also raises the issue of “social compliance”, a phenomenon that often occurs when there is fear brewing within a community. As demonstrated with the Puritans’ willingness to persecute villagers even without any evidence, “is the accuser always holy now?” (73), as well as the lack of characters who dared to question the legitimacy of the witch trials, Miller successfully highlights the catastrophic effects of conforming to a society driven by fear. Hence, the play is able to raise ideas that are relevant not only to the Salem witch trials and the McCarthy era, but also to many historical events that involved the persecution of a group of people without adequate

THESIS: Fear is the primary emotion and the central motivating factor that influenced the outcome of the play as it dominated and controlled the nature of multiple characters.

creates a play that illustrates not only the struggle of growing up in a prejudiced world but also

1980. A recurring theme in literature is the classic war between a passion and responsibility. For instance, a personal cause, a love, a desire for revenge, a determination to redress a wrong, or some other emotion or drive may conflict with moral duty. Choose a literary work in which a character confronts the demands of a private passion that conflicts with his or her responsibilities. In a well-written essay show clearly the nature of the conflict, its effects upon the character, and its significance to the work.

Reading A Canticle for Leibowitz reminds me greatly of government and political affairs. Given the nature of the novel revolving around religious topics, I felt this article related being it’s focus in on American secularism. The separation of church and state has continuously been an on going conversation because so many people have opinionated views on this topic. In the article by Matthew Scherer The New Religious Freedom: Secular Fictions and Church Autonomy, the issue of secularism is demonstrated within Hosanna-Tabor. Sphere examine how the separation of church and state effect both parties, “If one takes the fiction of modern secularism at face value, taking secularism to mean the separation of church and state, the priority of the state

The tragic events of the Salem witch trials tested the morality of several individuals, who abided to a government based on religious intolerance and limitation. Arthur Miller’s “The Crucible” highlights the detrimental effects of the religious court, and the impact Puritan societal norms had on its citizens. Reverend Hale, a protagonist in the play serves as a balance between morality versus and the religious conformity that took place within society. His transformation throughout the play demonstrates his true intention in doing what is right and abiding by the correct ideals, instead of following the damaging priorities enrooted in the theocratic system. Throughout “The Crucible,” Reverend Hale transfers from adhering to a theocracy to prioritizing the true value of life, revealing his maintenance of a strong moral code.

Both Arthur Miller and Geraldine Brooks use the texts to explore and ultimately condemn the role of religion in a changing society. The climactic events in The Crucible and Year of Wonders involve religion playing a large part in advancing the crisis and enhancing the severity of the consequences. In The Crucible the protestant views shared by the town of Salem are criticized by Miller as the townspeople fail to make a distinction between church and state. Their theocratic society is the cause for much of the unhappiness in the play, beginning with its restrictive rules which guide the people of Salem that cause first the desire to rebel from the young girls who go dancing in the forest, then the