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Symbolism And Metaphors In Arthur Miller's The Crucible

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In Arthur Miller’s play, The Crucible, it takes place in 1962 in Salem, Massachusetts. The main conflict the characters face throughout the play is identifying who is the one to blame for the witchcraft. While figuring out who is behind all the witchcraft, there is a lot of reactions towards the methods the characters use to figure out who it is. The title, The Crucible, has a figurative and literal meaning that goes along with the play. The literal meaning of the crucible is that it is a piece of laboratory equipment used to heat chemical compounds to very high temperatures or to melt metal, and is full of violent reactions. Meanwhile, the figurative meaning of it is that it is a test or trial. Miller’s title, The Crucible, is significant to play since both the literal and figurative definitions is portrayed throughout the play. The literal meaning of the crucible may not seem significant to the play since its definition has to deal with science. But, the context of the play helps to serve the definition of the crucible as a metaphor for the chaos that characters undergo. The literal definition that the crucible is a container that holds chemicals to heat them and encloses all the reactions inside of it is used metaphorically since during the witch trials there is a lot of turmoil. The crucible also refers to the purification of something. In this play, there are several characters who are able to be purified. For instance, Elizabeth is able to purify herself when she

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