On its surface, The Crucible is a play about the Salem witch trials of 1692. Joseph R McCarthy made false accusations about certain people in the government being communists. A fire, a fire is burning! Weba crucible is. How is the Crucible an Allegory for Mccarthyism. These fears were not entirely unfounded as there had been Soviet spies discovered in the U.S. during WWII and after. So for a brief explanation, McCarthyism was carried out under senator Joseph McCarthy during 1950-1954 against alleged communist in the US government and in other institutions. Shortly after the beginning of the Red Scare, a phenomenon which is known as McCarthyism appeared and shaped American politics. Throughout history, authors have had a tendency to write characters that can follow general roles, called archetypes. Following WWII and the rise of communism in China and Korea, Americans feared the influence of communist spies and sympathizers. Miller writes, No, I did notI did notI speak my own sins; I cannot judge another. In the beginning of the play Arthur admits to altering the play for dramatic effect., Arthur Millers The Crucible is a very wise piece that perfectly explains the story of two time periods. In salem 1692 multiple girls were out in the woods dancing and were thought to be possessed and working with the devil. The way Miller shares his views and thoughts on the play could help influence and impact the audience or the readers view on the Salem Witch Trials and on the play. 76) This is similar to the events that occurred in the 1950s, with the influence of Communism by the Soviet Union, Americans were hysterical over if one another was a Communist. The Crucible is a play written by Arthur Miller in 1953 about The Salem Witch Trials of 1692.McCarthyism was the witch hunt for the communist in 1953.the parallels between The Crucible and McCarthyism are naming names,lack of proof ,and reststance. The events that took place during the time the play was written were very similar to the Salem witch hunts. Because I am not worth the dust on the feet of them that hang! Miller even uses some of the same characters in his dramatized play that were a part of the original witch trials in Salem. So some people will do anything, by any means, to be reputable, this allows their word to be trusted and true. In conclusion, not only is The Crucible a metaphor to the McCarthy trials, but it also an allegory. He highlights how these particular themes are problematic for human nature. The state believed McCarthy and the people got treated badly because they were wrongly accused of. In McCarthyism, it was the same thing, except for with communism. Various forms of propaganda advertised fears, causing panic to spread throughout the country. Her actions begin sending the small town into a panic as they throw people into jail and hang them in an effort to try and cleanse the town from any aspect of evil. What is a theocracy. Miller saw with great clarity the similarity between the accusations of witchcraft in 1692 and the accusations of communism in the 1950s. Miller wrote The Crucible as replication of his feelings during the period of McCarthyism in the 1950s. Our summaries and analyses are written by experts, and your questions are answered by real teachers. The varying intensity of this emotion can cause people to act or react in ways that may be unusual. copyright 2003-2023 Study.com. Those people who were accused of witchcraft or communism were promised that they would be treated mercifully if they revealed others who were guilty. In the 1940s to the 1950s, America was extremely concerned about the rise of Communism throughout Europe and China. An error occurred trying to load this video. Arthur Miller published the play during McCarthyism, so when he went to Salem and read the transcripts, he knew something could be made from the transcripts because of its similarity to McCarthyism. Miller wrote his drama during the brief reign of the American senator Joseph McCarthy whose bitter criticized anti- communism sparkled the need for the United States to be a dramatic anti- communist society during the early tense years of the cold war. McCarthyism significantly impacted Arthur Millers thoughts when he wrote the play. We also saw this type of chaos during the Salem witch trials of 1693. The children were often accused if you were related to the person being accused then you were tried as a witch. WebThe Crucible As An Allegory Analysis. Miller, creator of The Crucible was blacklisted, and accused of being a communist along with many other entertainers (Arthur Miller). One of his most well-known works being The Crucible, addressed McCarthyism and its absurd purpose. why is the crucible an appropriate title for the play. The Crucible by Arthur Miller and The Red Scare share many characteristics. Whereas great pieces of fictional literaturesuch as satirewere written to draw attention to political injustices or ineptitude, as seen in Jonathan Swift's Gulliver's Travels (which is a fantastical account of a giant in the land of tiny people, among other situtations), The Crucible is factually-based on witch trials that took place in this country, where close to 20 people were hung or pressed to death based on the hysterical ravings of mostlypre-adolescent oradolescent girls. Their reputations allow their judgment to be perceived as correct. WebThe Crucible is a play written by Arthur Miller in 1952. Includes allegory, mccarthyism, biographical info and character lists. Similar to Arthur Millers book, the Red Scare was a period of time in the late 40s and 50s in which United States citizens were intensely paranoid of an opposing threat of communism in Eastern Europe and Asia and ultimately communists infiltrating the United States. In the early 1950s, Senator Joseph R. McCarthy from Wisconsin began leading the crusade to find any and all communists in America. Miller's Crucible was written in the early 1950s. Plus, get practice tests, quizzes, and personalized coaching to help you Examples of rhetorical elements in The Crucible are tone, authors purpose, and the overall mood. By comparing McCarthyism to the Salem Witch Trials, Miller is able to communicate that people should not conform to societal trends because these trends may be misleading and cause innocent people to get hurt. The Crucible Study Guide 2022-10-26. your personal assistant! As mentioned in the Background page of the test, since, Judge Danforths aforementioned quote on page 1324 shows his concern for himself and his reputation rather than the lives of the multitude of innocent Salem civilians whose lives depend on his verdict. Evidence suggests that Miller contributed articles to American Communist Party publications and some of his political beliefs were evident in his plays. After World War II, the United States and the Soviet Union became embroiled in the Cold War. Through all this ignorance and delusional fear, Arthur Miller was inspired to explore the similarities and parallels of the Salem Witch Trials and McCarthyism. Give me your paper requirements and I connect you to an academic expert. She has a Master of Education degree. The Cold War caused people to question the United States governments reliability and strength, which negatively affected Americas domestic affairs and foreign policies. Miller explains the McCarthy trials through The Crucible by teaching peoples fears, faults, and politics, making the text both a metaphor to the trials and an allegory. In The Crucible by Arthur Miller, many rhetorical elements illuminate the meaning behind the text. So john proctor the hero of Arthur Millers story is the equivalent of a suspected communist and at the time was a cold war. The new decision led to a cyclone of accusations because people realized the possibility of their condemnation regardless they were guilty or innocent. And it is my face, and yours, Danforth! The first reason they are parallel is because of naming names. There are two ways that stick out to me that The Crucible is an allegory for McCarthyism. In his criticism, Phillip Walker questions the purpose of Millers writing and is, Red scare allegory for the crucible How may I live without my name? By definition, an allegory is a something that has a hidden or symbolic meaning. I'm Amy, The kids that were hanged didnt really understand why the were being hung because they do anything wrong. 73) This quote elaborates on why the accusers were not suspected, Reverend Parris has a reputation of being a holy man of the church which makes him improbable to witchcraft and Abigail who has kept her reputation clean amidst of all the misdeeds she has done. In the play, The Crucible, Salem, Massachusetts, along with the United States during McCarthyism, is engulfed with paranoia. He was drawn to the story of the Salem witch trials, and the more he learned about the trials, the hysteria, and the unfounded accusations made by the young women in Salem, the more parallels he saw between the contemporary events of the Red Scare and McCarthyism. When Abby tries to tell her to never say that, Betty replies by saying, "You did, you did! Many helped that system by untrue confessions to save their lives. In the play, The Crucible, written by Arthur Miller, Miller uses allegory to recreate the events occurring in real life. The basis for The Crucible came from the witch trials which occurred in Salem, Massachusetts during the puritan era. The similarities were greed and self-preservation. Allegory: a story that is used to represent specific ideas or principles. Perhaps Miller was particularly sensitive to this modern-day "witch hunt" because he had some fleeting associations with the American Communist Party. We witness the lives of people she impacts, what happens to them, and how many times she lies to get her way. Our writers will help you fix any mistakes and get an A+! McCarthy and his committee saw communist plots where there were none. To begin with, The Crucible is an allegory because the plot of the book closely resembles the events that occurred during the Red Scare. In the play, Abigail, the main culprit of accusations benefits from hysteria in a situation where naming those guilty will save themselves, I saw Sarah Good with the Devil! 7 chapters | Another example of allegory in the play is the lives ruined in the book by the trails are similar to the people whose lives were also ruined due to McCarthyism. A Major Role in the Crucible John Proctor, John Proctors Pride in the Play the Crucible, The Crucible as an Allegory to McCarthyism, The Crucible as an Allegory of the Witch Trial, Differences between the Crucible Movie and the Play, The Crucible by Arthur Miller: how Abigail Williams Abused her Power, One of the Main Characters in the Play The Crucible. In an allegory the character,events, and instances(Definition of Allegory R104). She has a Bachelor of Arts in Secondary Education and English and a Master of Arts in Literature from Abilene Christian University. There was deceit, pain, greed, and more. 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