“Evil is not... Puritanical judges or McCarthy; evil is human.” (Lewis Livesay). The Crucible by Arthur Miller is known for having aspects of the Red Scare to point out the flaws and the madness of the 1950s. However, Arthur Miller’s choice of Salem as the setting is an important factor of the play as well; the terror and corruption in Salem are already deeply connected to the 1950s. The constant fear of being accused for being a communist or a witch created tension and animosity between the citizens of Salem in the 1600s and the United States in the fifties. Fear is a powerful motivator that can easily be manipulated or cause people to do terrible and evil things. The Crucible reflects the Red Scare in the 1950s to show the flaws of the people
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When faced with conflict, people will use someone of less prominence to blame their problems on. Tituba’s status as a slave and an African American woman have significance when she is the first accused of being a witch. The promptness in which the townspeople, “[exercised] a right to accuse and punish others for being different and contaminating their social order” (Livesay) shows how the citizens of Salem force another to bear their burdens to relieve their distress. Goody Osburn is easy to blame because of her lack of wealth and the apprehension between her and the Putnams. John Proctor even acknowledges that Tituba and and Goody Good are of lower status and used for people 's’ problems when he tells Danforth, “I am no Sarah Good or Tituba, I am John Proctor! You will not use me!” …show more content…
Abigail and the other young girls quickly took the chance to blame others to become the victims of their own actions. Once Betty realized she could accuse others for her actions she started to “[call] out hysterically and with great relief” while the others called out with “ecstatic cries” (Miller, 1263). The girls were eager and relieved to seem faultless to the townspeople so as not to be punished, thus damning innocent people to questioning. Humans’ pride to be an impeccable being will cause them to push their sins to another so as to appear perfect (Levin). The infamous question “Do you know anyone in the communist party” directly parallels Danforth’s question “Have you seen the Devil” (Miller, 1330). This shows how Miller purposefully directs attention to how people will “confess falsely if [they want] to live” (Levin). “It also openly encouraged citizens to spy on and accuse fellow citizens suspected of anti-American activity, even when they had no concrete evidence.” (“McCarthyism and Literature”), and in most cases, people will list random names, like the names of the people Abigail and the girls claimed and many Americans in the fifties, in fear the authority figure will claim they lied about being innocent. The fear of being mistaken as an outsider led people to list names of innocents with no true
When faced with conflict, people will use someone of less prominence to blame their problems on. Tituba’s status as a slave and an African American woman have significance when she is the first accused of being a witch. The promptness in which the townspeople, “[exercised] a right to accuse and punish others for being different and contaminating their social order” (Livesay) shows how the citizens of Salem force another to bear their burdens to relieve their distress. Goody Osburn is easy to blame because of her lack of wealth and the apprehension between her and the Putnams. John Proctor even acknowledges that Tituba and and Goody Good are of lower status and used for people 's’ problems when he tells Danforth, “I am no Sarah Good or Tituba, I am John Proctor! You will not use me!” …show more content…
Abigail and the other young girls quickly took the chance to blame others to become the victims of their own actions. Once Betty realized she could accuse others for her actions she started to “[call] out hysterically and with great relief” while the others called out with “ecstatic cries” (Miller, 1263). The girls were eager and relieved to seem faultless to the townspeople so as not to be punished, thus damning innocent people to questioning. Humans’ pride to be an impeccable being will cause them to push their sins to another so as to appear perfect (Levin). The infamous question “Do you know anyone in the communist party” directly parallels Danforth’s question “Have you seen the Devil” (Miller, 1330). This shows how Miller purposefully directs attention to how people will “confess falsely if [they want] to live” (Levin). “It also openly encouraged citizens to spy on and accuse fellow citizens suspected of anti-American activity, even when they had no concrete evidence.” (“McCarthyism and Literature”), and in most cases, people will list random names, like the names of the people Abigail and the girls claimed and many Americans in the fifties, in fear the authority figure will claim they lied about being innocent. The fear of being mistaken as an outsider led people to list names of innocents with no true