Analysis Essay Assignment: The Crucible
It is the Puritan society of Salem, the 17th century. The infamous and tragic Salem witch trials are afoot. Many decades later, after the Salem witch trials have convicted and killed dozens, playwright Arthur Miller depicts these gruesome trials via his play: The Crucible . His play shows all the details and horrors of these trials: the accusations, the hangings, and the confessions. Salem is a Puritan village similar to any other, with it’s rules and religion. In Salem, there are wealthy landowners like the Putnams, righteous ministers like Reverend Parris, influential townspeople like Rebecca Nurse and John Proctor, and heavy handed officials like
Judge Danforth and Reverend Hale. These people and more …show more content…
Danforth verbalized this by saying, “We burn a hot fire here; it melts down all concealment.” (pg. 89, Act III) Hale had similar influence, with the signature that took the accused 's lives. On the side of the powerless, “ Giles Corey, eightythree…
He is knotted with muscle, canny, inquisitive, and still powerful.” (pg. 25, Act I) Though physically powerful,
Corey became one of many to die simply because Danforth contradicted him, though he was one of few not accused of working with the Devil. John Proctor was possibly the most influential voice of all the poorer townspeople, but in the end, his influence could not save him, as he wanted to keep his name with him. Possibly the saddest case of all though is that of Rebecca
Nurse. Rebecca Nurse had done nothing but help the people of Salem, and was accused of witchcraft simply because the Putnams accused her. This instance in and of itself shows how those with power and money in Salem reigned over those that did not.
Just in the month of September alone, police have injured and killed over 75 people and, in many of these cases, the police are not punished for their actions. Though it would be nice to say that our own society today has changed from that of Salem, the more recent police …show more content…
The accused (even if they really did not do anything) would have the choice to die or confess to what they’d done and practically rot in a cell. Many cases the victim is doing something simple, but the police officer sees it as something else entirely and hurts them anyways. Police brutality is only one of many possible similarities between Salem’s social system and now.
In the 1940’s and 1950’s, America was in constant fear of Communism invading
America. In an attempt to use this fear, senator Joseph McCarthy publicly accused that over 200
Communists had entered the U.S. and had gotten into our government. Though his accusations were proven wrong, his actions formed the idea of McCarthyism, which flared up to the point that many were jailed for not giving the names of other Communists. Arthur Miller very directly and successfully translated this into his play: The Crucible. As specific representations, the girls represented the HUAC (the House UnAmerican
Activities Committee), making accusations.
Danforth represented the enforcing side, requiring people to confess and name other people involved. Hale in the end represented how the people reacted to the accusations, being
It is the Puritan society of Salem, the 17th century. The infamous and tragic Salem witch trials are afoot. Many decades later, after the Salem witch trials have convicted and killed dozens, playwright Arthur Miller depicts these gruesome trials via his play: The Crucible . His play shows all the details and horrors of these trials: the accusations, the hangings, and the confessions. Salem is a Puritan village similar to any other, with it’s rules and religion. In Salem, there are wealthy landowners like the Putnams, righteous ministers like Reverend Parris, influential townspeople like Rebecca Nurse and John Proctor, and heavy handed officials like
Judge Danforth and Reverend Hale. These people and more …show more content…
Danforth verbalized this by saying, “We burn a hot fire here; it melts down all concealment.” (pg. 89, Act III) Hale had similar influence, with the signature that took the accused 's lives. On the side of the powerless, “ Giles Corey, eightythree…
He is knotted with muscle, canny, inquisitive, and still powerful.” (pg. 25, Act I) Though physically powerful,
Corey became one of many to die simply because Danforth contradicted him, though he was one of few not accused of working with the Devil. John Proctor was possibly the most influential voice of all the poorer townspeople, but in the end, his influence could not save him, as he wanted to keep his name with him. Possibly the saddest case of all though is that of Rebecca
Nurse. Rebecca Nurse had done nothing but help the people of Salem, and was accused of witchcraft simply because the Putnams accused her. This instance in and of itself shows how those with power and money in Salem reigned over those that did not.
Just in the month of September alone, police have injured and killed over 75 people and, in many of these cases, the police are not punished for their actions. Though it would be nice to say that our own society today has changed from that of Salem, the more recent police …show more content…
The accused (even if they really did not do anything) would have the choice to die or confess to what they’d done and practically rot in a cell. Many cases the victim is doing something simple, but the police officer sees it as something else entirely and hurts them anyways. Police brutality is only one of many possible similarities between Salem’s social system and now.
In the 1940’s and 1950’s, America was in constant fear of Communism invading
America. In an attempt to use this fear, senator Joseph McCarthy publicly accused that over 200
Communists had entered the U.S. and had gotten into our government. Though his accusations were proven wrong, his actions formed the idea of McCarthyism, which flared up to the point that many were jailed for not giving the names of other Communists. Arthur Miller very directly and successfully translated this into his play: The Crucible. As specific representations, the girls represented the HUAC (the House UnAmerican
Activities Committee), making accusations.
Danforth represented the enforcing side, requiring people to confess and name other people involved. Hale in the end represented how the people reacted to the accusations, being