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Puritans In The Crucible

Decent Essays

The setting in The Crucible is Salem, and it was populated with Puritans. Puritans saw the world as a simple matter of “Good Vs. Evil” because of their strict policies, which stated that any action taken against God counted as being aligned with the “Devil,” which spelled out evil. The Salem Witch Trials symbolized the intolerance of McCarthyism, the practice of making arguments without substantial evidence, which may also be connected to the 21st century, as unfair court procedures occur frequently. Abigail Williams was portrayed as the central antagonist in The Crucible. She was the driving force behind the girls meeting at night, committing treason and dancing. Unlike most Puritan women, she had in her all the Puritan qualities, sexual and desire, that most Puritans repressed. However, Abigail Williams did not repress her desires. She was independent, free-minded, and persistent in chasing after what she wanted, who was John …show more content…

Arthur Miller has also made use of sarcasm as well, symbolizing hypocrisy, when John Proctor declared, “You are pulling Heaven down and raising up a whore!” Finally, Arthur Miller used symbolism as Salem represented a very restricted, intolerant, and terrifying world where claims, not evidence rule, and where the line between good and bad, black and white is blurred. Abigail was definitely to blame for the executions of the many, however through the evidence, it can be determined that it was not only Abigail to blame, and after looking at the bigger picture, it can be seen was one in many who was a victim of a restricted society, an orphan without warn parental figures to guide her, and was affected by bad models all around

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