Fear Exposed In The Crucible By Arthur Miller

The Crucible by Arthur Miller is play with strong social commentary. Through the events of the story, Miller draws parallels between the McCarthy communist persecution and the Salem witch trails of the 17th century. Both situations were founded in an abstract fear, then proliferated by unjust persecutions and sustained by the efforts of officials to stifle criticism. The playwright cleverly expresses his concern of present issues through the events of the play to remind the audience of the horrors of extremism and condemning based on heresy. Fear is one of the oldest and strongest emotions. In the events portrayed in the play and in 1950’s America, show that the paranoia that was abundant in the societies motivated people to condemn. In Salem, the puritan society struggled to feel protected in colonial America because “the wilderness … stood dark and threatening over their shoulders night and day” (Miller 5). They feared the natives because they appeared to them to …show more content…
In the play, word of witches swarmed through the town. Those who accused were forced to confess to witchcraft, other wise they would be punished. The first to be accused was the slave Tituba. She originally defended herself and said, “[she] don’t pact with no Devil” (44). However, out of desperation, she confessed to the crime and named two others to clear her name. Based on puritan belief, confessing to witchcraft means you wish to return to god. Likewise, the House of Un-American Activities Committee subpoenaed many people in the film industry to testify. Those who refused to cooperate often charged with contempt of court, jailed, publicly humiliated or lost their jobs. Unfortunately, in both systems, individuals were rewarded for false confessions. The propagation of these punitive trials led to fear, not only of the convicted, but also of being