The Testing Of Faith And Characters In The Crucible By Arthur Miller

The Crucible, by Arthur Miller, is a rich and enticing play set in the late 1600’s describing the epic horrors and emotions through the events of the Salem witch trials. The Crucible, focuses primarily on the inconsistencies of the Salem witch trials and the extreme behavior that can result from dark desires and hidden agendas. The play begins with the discovery of several young girls and an African American slave, Tituba, in the woods just outside of Salem, dancing and pretending to conjure spirits. The Puritans of Salem stood for complete religious intolerance and stressed the need to follow the ways of the bible literally without exception. The actions of the women in

The Crucible by Arthur Miller is an elaborate play that tells the story of the village of Salem and how the community slowly falls apart because of a strategic witch hunt ploy. The fear of witchcraft turns the once peaceful village upside down and accusations destroy the lives and reputations of so many people. Different characters’ actions have different impacts on the community, but one character stands out the most. Abigail Williams from The Crucible is a clear representation of how impactful the power of manipulation and deception is in a vulnerable society to create mass hysteria.

The Crucible by Arthur Miller is an interpretation of the Salem witch trials of 1692 in Puritan Massachusetts in which religion, justice, individuality and dignity play a vital role. These factors define the characteristics of many of the most significant characters in the play. Some of them being John Proctor, Rebecca Nurse, Reverend Hale, Danforth and many others. The Salem witch trials were a result of the lack of expression of individuality and the fact that no individual could expect justice from the majority culture as a result of the deterioration of human dignity in the Puritan society of Salem.

Purist Salem, Massachusetts in 1692 suffered from a rapidly increasing phenomenon: witchcraft accusations and trials. The Crucible is a play that recounts the times of this incident. For the most part, it follows a man known as John Proctor. He is a sensible, honest, and hardworking man who made the mistake of succumbing to lust which sets off a chain of events that leads to the witch trials, and to his own demise. Arthur Miller’s The Crucible’s protagonist John Proctor proves to be a flawed human being who struggles to make sense of his past relationship with Abigail, his love for his wife, and his pride.

The Crucible by Arthur Miller is a historical play set in 1962 in the small town of Salem, Massachusetts. As you may know, you've all placed your trust in the words and actions of someone close to you. And what do they do? They betray you! It's rarely justified, and can happen to the best of us. Based on authentic records of witchcraft trials in the seventeenth-century this play explains how a small group of girls manage to create a massive panic in their town by spreading accusations of witchcraft. These rumors in turn are the causes that many citizens are hung for. This essay will show how the lies and betrayal of a few individuals eventually leads to the downfall of Salem and its society.

The devastating Salem witch trials occurred between February 1692 and May 1693. By the end of the trials many people were accused, nineteen were executed and several more died in prison. The Crucible, by Arthur Miller, captures the hysteria that developed during the Salem witch trials. Crucible character, Abigail Williams, represents the repressed desires that many of the Puritans possess. Abigail’s readiness to abandon Puritan social restrictions sets her apart from the other characters, and eventually leads to her downfall. Abigail Williams uses manipulation and cruelty to create an atmosphere of terror and intimidation in her town. In Arthur Miller’s play, The Crucible, Abigail Williams leads the hysteria in Salem by taking extreme measures to succeed in attaining John Proctor's love.

Arthur Miller writes about the tragic results of human failings in his play, The Crucible. He presents characters from the past and infuses them with renewed vitality and color. Miller demonstrates the horrifying results of succumbing to personal motives and flaws as he writes the painful story of the Salem witch trials. Not only do the trials stem from human failings but also from neglect of moral and religious considerations of that time. Characters begin to overlook Puritan values of thrift and hope for salvation. Focusing on the flawed characters, they begin to exhibit land lust, envy of the miserable and self-preservation.

In The Crucible, Arthur Miller recreates the anxiety and hysteria of the Salem witch-trials from 1692. Although the title, not once is the word “crucible” spoken in the play. However, the people and events of the Salem witch trials correspond with the definition of a “crucible”. The Merriam-Webster Dictionary defines “crucible” three ways: “A pot in which metals or other substances are heated to a very high temperature or melted”, “a difficult test or challenge”, and “a place or situation that forces people to change or make difficult decisions” (“Crucible”). The definitions metaphorically and literally align with different aspects of the play: Abigail Williams and Thomas Putnam’s acrimonity, the testing of John Proctor and Thomas Danforth’s virtues, and the change in religious outlook after Salem. Because of the crucible’s broad meaning, the title perfectly encapsulates the effects of paranoia on a rigid and volatile environment.

The Crucible by Arthur Miller is a work of historical fiction that illustrates the Salem witch trials that occurred between 1692 and 1693 in Salem, Massachusetts. In the play, several esteemed members of Salem are tried and hung for the crime of practicing witchcraft. A wave of hysteria washes over the town as people realize that nobody is safe. In the play Arthur Miller explores the potential of using the word “name” to create a system of checks and balances on the characters in the play.

The Crucible by Arthur Miller is a play about Salem’s witch-hunting history, and was written to highlight the rash accusations of Communism following the Second World War. In the play, a teenager named Abigail Williams holds the power to either prove or disprove witchcraft, and she and her friends become court officials in the resulting trials. In the play, Marry Warren, the Proctors’ servant, outwardly conforms to Abigail’s decisions but inwardly questions her actions. This tension contributes to the meaning of the work by highlighting how easy it is for an idea to snowball while many people still inwardly oppose it.

One concept is capable of more destruction than almost anything else. It can change a person’s life, or end it. The Crucible, by Arthur Miller, is a play that is set in Salem, Massachusetts in the early 1690’s. The play revolves around the infamous Salem Witch Hunts and their proceedings both within the court and outside of the court. Within this plotline, a theme of greed functions in the play, influencing the actions of certain characters, including Reverend Parris, Thomas Putnam, and Abigail.

One of the many works written and driven by Puritan influence, The Crucible by Arthur Miller has continued to influence life and thinkings. Its story tracing the 1692 Salem Witch Trials has been widely read, received and understood, along with influencing the reader and their ideals. The play has manifested into more than words on a page and has become of the greatest influences, even sixty years after its publication. Though its story has not changed and is merely a retelling of the original itself, its themes have greatly impacted its universal and enduring state.

Over 200 people were falsely accused of witchcraft from 1692 to 1693 in Salem, Massachusetts and 20 of those people were executed. Arthur Miller’s The Crucible follows a group of people in Salem and their struggle to find an answer that explains the tragedies of life through religion. Their faith plays such an influential role in their life that they use it to explain things that modern science would explain. They believe that the bad things that happen are due to the devil who is aided by witches. As the people of Salem struggle to define themselves as a town during their struggle between good and evil, they develop a sense of hysteria as waves of emotions and an alarming rate of new plot points rushes toward them every second. Arthur Miller creates an atmosphere of hysteria by constantly introducing new plot points and shifting who the reader trusts in order to accurately represent the time period.

To understand the importance of the meaning of Miller’s play The Crucible and the symbolism used within, it is crucial to comprehend not only the author’s background, but also his motivation for writing. The play is about a group of girls that become sick for no apparent reason. Rumors subsequently start and escalate that some individuals are consorting with the devil, consequently creating hysteria and fear in the town. The townsfolk turn on each other, blaming others as a way of exonerating themselves. A system of justice is set up, and the ‘success’ of the Salem Witch Trials is dependent on accusations and the singling out of individuals. It encourages a cycle of blame, which then leads to a creation of lies for individual’s own gains, and innocent people being persecuted. Writing in the early 1950’s, Miller manages with expertise to demonstrate the similarities between the Salem Witch Trials of 1692 and the victimization of communists at the time he was writing. The injustices and frenzy that he highlights in the play are a magnificent example of the turbulent times that he was living and working in, and the effects it had not only on individuals, but American society as a whole.

Between the years 1692 and 1693, over 140 people were accused of witchcraft and compacting with the devil, 19 of those people were hung, and one was tortured to death. Many people were determined that if society does not remember the past, they are bound to repeat it. Arthur Miller was one of them. When Arthur Miller was writing The Crucible, there were harsh accusations and trials about communism. People were being blacklisted and reputations were being ruined. Arthur Miller wrote The Crucible in hopes to compare what had happened in America’s history, to what could potentially happen again. A crucible is known as a pot that withstands high temperature and is used to melt iron. It is also used to describe a severe test. The meaning for this play’s title is represented among its characters. In Arthur Miller’s play, The Crucible, John Proctor could represent the meaning of the play’s title because he faces a variety of challenges, Abigail Williams best illustrates the meaning of The Crucible due to her influence on the girls and her persuasive acting in court.