Comparing Mccarthyism In The Crucible And The Scarlet Letter

When looking at early American History, one may find many similarities and differences. For instance, location, dates and personal accounts are all opinionated by whoever is telling the account. When looking at literature there are also many similarities and differences. The Crucible by Arthur Miller was largely influenced by the McCarthy “trials” during the time period known as the Red Scare. Britannica gives this definition when it comes to McCarthyism: “His campaign of accusations has often been compared to a witch-hunt, particularly by Arthur Miller’s 1953 play The Crucible.” The Scarlet Letter was written in 1850 by Nathaniel Hawthorne, almost one hundred years earlier (Britannica). Both can compare and contrast in many different aspects. The Crucible and The Scarlet letter can be compared in three ways and contrasted in three ways: by strong female prescence and influence, male struggle over adultery and sin, death with honesty, symbolism throughout the text, female personalities, and the love story aspect. First of …show more content…
While looking at The Scarlet Letter it is obvious that Hester holds out for Roger Chillingworth, not only because she has to, but because she is his husband. She stays loyal to him even through her affair, although, she is partially forced to keep his name secret. She does not pine over him though the way Abigail does for John. Abigail seems to have an obsession with John based on the fact she tries to cast a spell to kill Goody Proctor and make John love her, as seen in Act I of the story. On page 1137, Betty accuses Abigail of this charm by screaming, “You drank a charm to kill John Proctor’s wife!” By doing this, the girls show dramatic irony to the audience because that is something the rest of the characters in the story never find out. Clearly, those qualities separate the two women and their stories