Socio Religious Power Structures: The Irony of Sinners In Power
The infinite struggle for power has existed as long as humanity, and due to their nature, it will never soon be coveted any less. The structures of power fundamentally impact society, denoting what people can and cannot do, while also finding itself a part of the stories that humanity tells, such as The Crucible, where playwright Arthur Miller provides a thrilling dramatization of the Salem Witch Trials, while also paralleling the United States’s Red Scare of the 1950s. Long before the Witch Trials, Puritans had come to North America to seek religious freedom and became much like their oppressors, creating a strict society in which religion dictated their lives, imploring them not to sin. Ironically, the theocratic society of Salem in the 17th century assigns all of the power to the town sinners: the lustful …show more content…
However, Hale gains this power from committing the sin of pride -- something that he, as a reverend, constantly strives to remove from society. Hale comes into Salem and immediately has the respect, and admiration of the townsfolk. During his first encounter with the townsfolk, Hale remarks after “setting down his books: [That] they must be [heavy]; they are weighted with authority,” (36). This demonstrates his prideful nature, as he makes remarks regarding his intellect and arrogance. Hale later entertains more power when Thomas Putnam looks “to [him] to come to [Putnam’s] house and save [Putnam’s] child.” (37). Putnam fuels Hale’s pride, by thanking him for coming to save his child, even though Hale, in reality, will not be able to help the child at all. After the cusp of the trials arrive, Hale beckons for the “marshal [to] bring irons! (48). Following his recent arrival, his unruly pride affects him to command the marshall. The prideful Reverend Hale actively sins, ironically, for sin are what he spends his entire life
The infinite struggle for power has existed as long as humanity, and due to their nature, it will never soon be coveted any less. The structures of power fundamentally impact society, denoting what people can and cannot do, while also finding itself a part of the stories that humanity tells, such as The Crucible, where playwright Arthur Miller provides a thrilling dramatization of the Salem Witch Trials, while also paralleling the United States’s Red Scare of the 1950s. Long before the Witch Trials, Puritans had come to North America to seek religious freedom and became much like their oppressors, creating a strict society in which religion dictated their lives, imploring them not to sin. Ironically, the theocratic society of Salem in the 17th century assigns all of the power to the town sinners: the lustful …show more content…
However, Hale gains this power from committing the sin of pride -- something that he, as a reverend, constantly strives to remove from society. Hale comes into Salem and immediately has the respect, and admiration of the townsfolk. During his first encounter with the townsfolk, Hale remarks after “setting down his books: [That] they must be [heavy]; they are weighted with authority,” (36). This demonstrates his prideful nature, as he makes remarks regarding his intellect and arrogance. Hale later entertains more power when Thomas Putnam looks “to [him] to come to [Putnam’s] house and save [Putnam’s] child.” (37). Putnam fuels Hale’s pride, by thanking him for coming to save his child, even though Hale, in reality, will not be able to help the child at all. After the cusp of the trials arrive, Hale beckons for the “marshal [to] bring irons! (48). Following his recent arrival, his unruly pride affects him to command the marshall. The prideful Reverend Hale actively sins, ironically, for sin are what he spends his entire life