Massachusetts, McCarthyism, and Mass Hysteria Humankind has expressed throughout time how easy and destructive it can be to accuse others without proper evidence or a truly reliable investigation. First occurring in Salem, Massachusetts in 1692, innocent individuals were unjustly persecuted as a result of their seemingly abnormal actions or personal affiliations. Behavior such as this was rekindled, witnessed during McCarthyism in the early 1950’s and the treatment of homosexuals during the subsequent Lavender Scare. Many lost their jobs, relationships, and lives due to uninformed people with a substantial amount of power and influence. As the newly Westernized American land provided a home for the residents of Salem, Massachusetts,
…show more content…
Town leaders, court officials, and influential members of the population were persuaded by the intimidating air that surrounded the confounded society. Families were separated and relationships were strained after many struggled with betrayal and internal conflicts. This hysteria led to a superfluous quantity of hangings, and subsequent lamentation. The poignant experiences of the settlers in Salem, Massachusetts became an example of government corruption and inspired Arthur Miller in the 1950’s to write The Crucible.
During the 1950’s, America was making advances with the inventions of new technologies such as color broadcasting and commercial computers. Despite this, fear mongering was rampant throughout American media and societies. McCarthyism, the prominent ideology at the time, is defined as “the period of time in American history [when]... Sen. Joseph McCarthy produce[d] a series of investigations...to expose supposed communist infiltration of various areas of the U.S. government” (Encyclopedia Britannica). This was a result of the Red Scare, when the Russian power was viewed as a great threat to the American population. A subset of the House of Representatives,
Town leaders, court officials, and influential members of the population were persuaded by the intimidating air that surrounded the confounded society. Families were separated and relationships were strained after many struggled with betrayal and internal conflicts. This hysteria led to a superfluous quantity of hangings, and subsequent lamentation. The poignant experiences of the settlers in Salem, Massachusetts became an example of government corruption and inspired Arthur Miller in the 1950’s to write The Crucible.
During the 1950’s, America was making advances with the inventions of new technologies such as color broadcasting and commercial computers. Despite this, fear mongering was rampant throughout American media and societies. McCarthyism, the prominent ideology at the time, is defined as “the period of time in American history [when]... Sen. Joseph McCarthy produce[d] a series of investigations...to expose supposed communist infiltration of various areas of the U.S. government” (Encyclopedia Britannica). This was a result of the Red Scare, when the Russian power was viewed as a great threat to the American population. A subset of the House of Representatives,