Role of Fear in Salem Witch Trials Essay

• In a theocratic society like Salem, where public and private ethics are parallel, reputation plays an important role within this atmosphere of paranoia. Focused on maintaining public reputation, the citizens of Salem in the play “The Crucible” by Arthur Miller, fear that their own sins and the ones of their friends will soil their good names. Taking place during the Salem Witch Trials, which was the result of the Puritans’ bent moral system, the idea of interference in others’ affairs as…

events of the infamous Salem Witch Trials for centuries hoping to find answers. From February 1692 to May 1693, a series of prosecuting the accused with witchcraft took spotlight, and left many families mourning. The accused criminals may not have at all done anything wrong, but their lives were determined in the hands of a few unworthy officials. A heartbreaking 20 people were hanged, 14 of which were women having no say to begin with. Imagine being given an unjust trial due to the…

the most pivotal contributions to the development of the story are 3 particular characters: Deputy Governor Danforth, Tituba, and Abigail Williams. As we dive deeper into the story we find out that Deputy Governor Danforth, who plays the role of the judge in Salem, has put forth a drastic effort to persecute those accused and bring them to "justice" . His relentless…

their purposes for writing the different pieces and the idea that the world is God-centered. The pieces prove a God-centered world through devices and techniques that create either fear or awe of God. In both Mathers’ “The Devil in New England” and Edwards’ “Sinners in the Hands of an Angry God” the imagery evokes fear from the readers and listeners because it is violent and volatile. In contrast, John Winthrop in his piece “A Model of Christian Charity” uses gentler language but it still…

structure of a Puritan family was patriarchal. This type of structure creates very defined gender roles in a society. All of the governmental, ideological, and social values of a society must mirror the structures of each other in order for the society to function. The gender roles created at this time had a major effect on the way that a society is organized. In this paper I want to explore those gender roles and the effects they have on Puritan New England. Therefore, to explore these affects…

The Crucible, the famous and passionate play about the Salem Witch Trials during the 1690s, written by Arthur Miller is an allegory to to the McCarthy Trials of the 1950s. An allegory is a story with two levels of meaning - literal and symbolical. In an allegory, the characters, events and instances all relate to real people, events, and instances (“Definition of Allegory” R104). Characters like Abigail Williams, John Proctor and Judge Hathorne represent the historical figures: Senator Joseph…

produced by fear. Jealousy is hatred for someone else because of something that they possess that you cannot or do not have. Lastly, greed is the constant feeling of the need for more; whether it is money, power, or something else desirable, it is classified as greed. The characters in Arthur Miller’s novel, The Crucible, are examples of these destructive forces and portray their effects on individuals…

What rights do modern women have that women and girls in the 1600’s would never dream about? So think about what would happen if these girls got a taste of the power that our modern women have every day. In the 1600’s the role of women along with their treatment is extremely different from how it is now for women. Miller explores these archetypes of how women are supposed to behave but also what happens when they get their first bit of power. Young girls especially are put down, being expected…

and no two people are the same in character. One’s character and behavior reflects one’s personality to be either positive or negative. Fear is one of the basic human emotions which makes people a person weak, influencing their actions and toughening the ability to perform their desired intentions. Similarly, in Arthur Miller 's play,The Crucible, the presence of fear results in many characters accusing each other to be accompanied with the devil in the town, as means of avoiding death. Mary…

settlers were brought in, their trust in one another plummeted. In 1691-92, the Salem Witch Trials emerged from this course of events. The Crucible, by Arthur Miller, brings in a developed set of characters who exhibit this phenomenon. Reverend Parris, who has a key role in this play by going against church ideals and the court system, sets up dysfunction within the community. Both he and Hale play strong roles throughout, demonstrating their own authority to other characters by using the…