Comparing The Crucible And The Salem Witch Trials

In order to be accurate in accusing someone of a crime, you must have the appropriate evidence to back up your story. In The Crucible, many people were accused of practicing witchcraft. The ones who confessed, were sentenced to jail and the ones who denied it, were killed. The only way they had to prove what was being done, was spectral evidence. Therefore, the only person known to tell the truth was the victim. McCarthyism involved communists, like The Crucible, those who were accused were sentenced to jail time. The parallels between The Crucible and McCarthyism are naming names, the lack of evidence, and rebellion against the government in which they served.

The evidence of witchcraft and related works has been around for many centuries. Gradually, though, a mixture a religious, economical, and political reasons instigated different periods of fear and uncertainty among society. Witchcraft was thought of as a connection to the devil that made the victim do evil and strange deeds. (Sutter par. 1) In the sixteenth, seventeenth, and twentieth century, the hysteria over certain causes resulted in prosecution in the Salem Witch Trials, European Witchcraft Craze, and the McCarthy hearings. These three events all used uncertain and unjustly accusations to attack the accused.

Have you ever felt belittled by a certain group or been accused of a crime that you didn't commit? Throughout civilization, people were judged base on what religion they were, their nationality, skin color, and the way they look. Have you ever felt like there is no hope so you give up? Although they bear some minor similarities the differences between the Holocaust and the Salem Witch Trials of 1692 are striking. In this essay it will show the tragic events that occurred, how they compare to each other, and how diverse they are.

Have you been discriminated for your religious beliefs or actions? The Salem Witch Trials and

Oppression, Bloodshed, Sin. People search and destroy things that are considered oddities. What really is an unusual circumstance? Loving someone who is the same gender? People who are born in the wrong body? As a society people have chosen religion over common sense, since time has started turning its devious hands. Whether the the ‘devil lives’ among them, or slaughtering homosexuals for finding love in unconventional ways. When people are misunderstood, others react harshly; we can see this colorfully portrayed in both the Crucible by Arthur Miller, and the LGBT+ community.

The purpose of my paper is to compare and contrast Arthur Miller’s The Crucible with the actual witch trials that took place in Salem in the 17th Century. Although many of the characters and events in the play were non-fictional, many details were changed by the playwright to add intrigue to the story. While there isn’t one specific cause or event that led to the Salem witch trials, it was a combination of events and factors that contributed to the birth and growth of the trials. Some of these events included: a small pox outbreak that was happening at the time, the revocation of the Massachusetts Bay Colony charter by Charles II, and the constant fear of Native attacks. These helped in creating anxiety among the early Puritans that

Covered in drama and blood, the Salem Witch trial is a crucial point in American history. Because of Abigail and her acquaintances, the town of Salem experienced many hardship and betrayal. Many would argue that because of all the deaths and treachery, the Salem Witch trial brought a negative impact into the country; but in reality, it had a positive impact because it exposed the church for its hypocrisie, made people more religious, and exposed corrupt government officials. In the beginning, the Puritan church was centered in England around the sixteenth century.

Throughout history, many accusations have been made about certain events, and many people have been falsely accused for things that were not true. The Salem Witch Trials and The Holocaust were both historic events where people were killed based on things that were not true. The Salem Witch Trials were started by a group of young girls in Salem Village, Massachusetts in the spring of 1692 where many men and women were falsely accused of practicing witchcraft (“Salem Witch Trials”). One day, the daughter and niece of Reverend Samuel Parris became ill (“Salem Witch Museum”). Upon the occurrence of this, the group of girls did not want to be accused of witchcraft, and began to blame other people (“Salem Witch Trials”).

In 1962 the penalty of witchcraft was to be hung or smashed. There was a big outburst of witchcraft and spells that were going around among the people of Massachusetts in 1962. Some of the women of Salem began the witchcraft many people started to catch on and fallow them. A lot of these people were hung do to what the bible said about the wrongs of witchcraft. When these women of Salem Massachusetts started to do witchcraft and pass it on to other people they were put on trial for their actions, which at the time was, illegal. It had caught on all over England and was spreading fast. Arthur Miller made a play called the Crucible that was about the Salem witchcraft trials. Arthur miller took the historical

“All it took was a whisper.”(Winkler). Indeed, that was all it took for David Merrill and John Proctor to find themselves before a court, answering for unprovable crimes. Though neither man knew of the other, would never even have a chance of meeting each other (aside from the fact Miller is a fictional character), and were not even accused of the same crime, the situations these two protagonists find themselves in are unnervingly similar. It would be no surprise to then learn that The Crucible by Arthur Miller was written as an allegory of the very trials that David Merrill would have found himself in. Because they revolve around similar concepts and topics, The Crucible, written by Arthur Miller, and Guilty By Suspicion, written and directed by Irwin Winkler, despite being about two different looming spectres in two different settings, have strong connections and similarities to one another.

Mass hysteria is responsible for the deaths of many innocent people and altering history. Mass hysteria can be defined as an unusual outbreak of uncharacteristic behaviors, thoughts, or feelings shared among a group of people. An example of mass hysteria is the Japanese internment camps. This event displays a rhyme in history to the Salem Witch Trials. The Crucible wrote about the Salem Witch Trials and how it caused mass hysteria.

In Arthur Miller's play The Crucible, Arthur intrigues audience time and time again with the historical context, social implications, and the Salem, Massachusetts Witchcraft Trials of 1962. Most members in Salem feel the need to prove their authority in ways such as accusing those who have done nothing or hanging them without proving their innocence first. The thing is authority is not made up by an authority figure, but by society. Miller’s The Crucible, demonstrates how people misuse their authority for cruel purposes through a fascinating plot, well-crafted characters, and well-set theme. During the hysteria of witchcraft trials in Salem, there were multiple figures of authority or per say the community who abused their power, Reverend Hale, Abigail Williams, Reverend Parris and Judge Danforth.

Much like the individuals accused of witchcraft in Salem, African Americans today face unjust persecution. By examining these parallels, it becomes evident that the themes of persecution and injustice depicted in The Crucible, written by Arthur Miller, are still relevant today, serving as a reminder of the battle for equality and justice faced by marginalized communities. Like those accused in 1692 Salem, African Americans are wrongly accused at higher rates, face disparities in court, and have to meet with physical repercussions despite their lawful behavior. Since the birth of America, people have been falsely accused of crimes they didn’t commit. No group or community has been a victim of this more than African Americans.

When contemplating past societies, a subconscious critical lens is often enacted exposing the fallaciousness of their respective ideologies. The Crucible by Arthur Miller serves to provide perspective into the consequences of being confined to an ideology in a dogmatic fashion, and the fear it may inspire. The theatre piece is set during the Salem Witch Trials in late 17th century and follows the vulnerable townspeople as a syndicate of naive girls abuse the communities position as puritans to endow accusations of witchcraft. A consistent allegory between the piece and McCarthyist America, tied with context and literary techniques enables a warning against dogmatic beliefs in ideologies and the fear that can result from the unknown.

In the play The Crucible, the author Arthur Miller displays an unfair treatment of humans when it comes to justice. Characters who live in Salem, Massachusetts, receive improper punishments for their sins of witchcraft and are being accused of crimes they did not commit. The justice system in the play is based on the maxim “guilty until proven innocent” which portrays unjust human rights due to executions of individuals without evidence. The accused characters attempt to defend themselves in court but it is ineffective because the only way to survive is to confess to witchcraft. Miller presents a cruel approach in justice systems and proves them to be unjust through the characters Giles Corey, Tituba, and Rebecca Nurse, who all suffered