Mob Hysteria In The Crucible

Throughout history, there have been many instances when mob hysteria has presented itself. Some of the more prevalent events where this has erupted include the O.J Simpson trial, riots sparked by the, seemingly unfair verdict. The most prominent instances of mob hysteria are the Salem witch trials and the Red Scare; in these two examples, mob hysteria caused great misconceptions and paranoia. This phenomenon provokes people into changing their moral standpoint, instilling strong paranoia and producing political corruption. Mob Hysteria has a large effect on the way people think and the way that they go about their daily lives. Hysteria almost dictates peoples’ actions in a way that they are so frightened that they begin jumping to conclusions and making false accusations that they may believe is true. Mob hysteria showed itself during the red scare sparked by Senator Joseph McCarthy, who made shocking and daring accusations, “I have here in my hand a list of two hundred and five people that were known to the Secretary of State as being members of the Communist Party and who nevertheless are still working and shaping the policy of …show more content…
The most apparent aspects of this is when Mary Warren explains to the judge that she only thought she saw spirits, "I--I heard the other girls screaming, and you, Your Honor, you seemed to believe them, and I--It were only sport in the beginning, sir, but then the whole world cried spirits, spirits, and I--I promise you, Mr. Danforth, I only thought I saw them but I did not." (Miller 107). This quote is a prime example of mob hysteria because, as Mary Warren claimed, she only thought she saw spirits because all of the other girls were claiming to see them. In the midst of the chaos and all of the accusing girls’ screaming, Mary Warren became a victim of mob hysteria by going along and doing something just because everyone else was doing