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##ition, Vengeance, And Criticism In The Crucible By Arthur Miller

Good Essays

The Crucible by Arthur Miller is a fantastic representation of events that occurred in 1692 in Salem, Massachusetts. These events were infamous for a variety of reasons, one being that many citizens were executed on the charge of being a witch. Another reason the Salem Witch Trials were so infuriating and ridiculous is because witches don’t actually exist. The play represents the fear of the unknown and was very relevant the time in which it was written. However the fear of the unknown wasn’t the only reason for the start of the Salem Witch Trials. Superstition, Vengeance, and Theocracy are some of the driving forces behind many hateful and outlandish acts portrayed in The Crucible. These themes were much more prevalent back then than they are now, but they still had a heavy impact on puritan society at the time. However these themes will exist as long as humans exist, because actions like the ones taken in the story only portray human instincts that will never go away. The Crucible was not only about the Salem Witch Trials, but human behavior as a whole. One of these human instincts that heavily impacts the course of the trials is superstition. Although many accusations in Salem happened because of personal vendettas, the trial would not have happened if it wasn’t for superstition. Superstition has a way of controlling people without needing very much reason to do it. One example of how superstition controls people in the story is when Giles voices his concerns

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