Representation of people and politics are often based upon past events and experiences. As authors compose political perspective that reveal their purposes and motives, an inevitable tension emerges between the individual conscience and political compliance. Hence, past events can have significant impact on the individuals and their societies. The Crucible by Arthur Miller is a political parody set in the Salem Witch Trials of 1692. It captures the tension between individual perceptions of goodness and faith against the constraint of a theocratic society. Paul Keating’s Redfern Sorry Speech (1992) also explores the impact of past events on people and politics through competing perspective of race relations. Thus, we perceive the impact of past …show more content…
events on people and politics through core thematic concerns of each text such as: society’s demand of conformity and obedience, the representation of good and evil, and the power of individual conscience. The representation of political power as it manipulates the social contract to control and impose its political motives on a society brings out the best or the worst of human nature. Authors utilises representations to indicate how the social contract is used to oppress and manipulate the individual to conform and forsake their rights. For Miller, his authorial intrusion reveals that Salem, “developed a theocracy… to keep the community together,” for the alternative was an, “American continent [that] stretched endlessly… [which] stood, dark and threatening.” As a result, Miller explores the reality that power corrupts, and that the church’s use of their theocratic political power to dictate the lives of others to further its motive of dominion. Miller’s use of the hyperbolic metaphor, “The Devil has become…a weapon designed… to whip men into a surrender to a particular church or church-state,” creates the clear impression that the Protestant Church uses the worst of human fears and self preservation to impose its political will upon the citizens. Where people and politics are involved, there is an inherent tensions between individual views and the demand by society for political compliance. Both the crucible by Miller and the Sorry Speech by P.M Keating explore the ways in which political motives are imposed upon the individual by the public compliance. For the Crucible, both the content of the New World inhabited by the protestant migrants to America in the 17th century and the McCarthy Era Communist witch-hunts demand political obedience. The metaphor, “a weapon...designed to whip men in to surrender to a particular church or church state,” exemplifies this absolutist perspective. However, thorough authorial intrusion Miller explores the perverse necessity of such modes of thinking. “The edge of wilderness was close by..and it was full of mystery...dark and threatening over their shoulders day and night…”. The accumulation of such dark motifs creates the necessity of compliance and the political narrative that Salem is “the candle that would light the world”. Therefore, through Miller’s use of powerful representation, it is clear to depict the eliciting of the best and worst of human nature to persuade individuals to abide by a society and it’s status quo. Arthur Miller’s The Crucible and Paul Keating’s Redfern Speech are two texts that highlight the importance of purging negative political and social elements in order to create a sustainable community.
Miller provides responders with two opposing perspectives: The dissenting individual who seeks to undermine the church-run theocracy, juxtaposing against the necessity of the church to use any methods to keep the ‘devil’ away. Miller’s characterisation of Proctor, as an individual, is depicted as “sinner not only against the moral fashion of the time, but against his own vision of decent conduct.” This exhibits to readers that although John Proctor is well regarded in society, he is divorced from the institutional power of the Church and the community due to his past failing act of adultery. This is further proven through Miller’s stage direction, “(As though as able to restrain this) I see no light in God in that man,” in order to create a sense of a sense that individuals such as Proctor, are dangerous to a theocracy. However, Miller allows responders to also perceive the acknowledgement that such obedience and conformity is considered a necessity, particularly in the context of Salem. A purging of such individual is essential in order for Salem to survive. This is because around the ‘light’ and ‘civilisation’ of Salem, the “edge of wilderness was close by… darkening and threatening” to suggest that Salem is a place of evil and danger as well as physical isolation. Moreover, the use of personification of the New World outside of Salem, explains the contextual representation that the process of purgation is necessary if both individuals and societies wish Salem to remain
pure. Similarly, Redfern Speech presented by Paul Keating is another text that addresses the necessity of purgation of negative history of Australia, which would ultimately result in a more sustainable community. Keating stated that in Indigenous history, Australians have completely disregarded and paid no attention to Indigenous Australians and thus, reconciliation is needed. However, reconciliation can only occur through acceptance and catharsis and is particularly emphasised through the use of anaphora and brutal nouns of, “We took… we brought… we committed… the dispossessing… the murders… the discrimination and exclusion.” Keating accentuates the violence of colonial era administrations with the aim to create pathos and guilt towards responders. Yet, Keating shifts his tone by addressing his alternative perspective in which, Keating himself as well as the Labour government, would seek to purge the negative history. Keating’s manipulation in textual forms of anecdote and simile shows that it is through the creation and transformation of policies that Australian governments are responsible for, to achieve sustainable community as a whole. “The Mabo Judgement… should be seen… as a practical building block of change.” By continually improving the policies, both Australians and Indigenous Australians are able to reconcile with one another and as a result, purging of White Australian history may occur. Henceforth, both composers, Arthur Miller and Paul Keating, are able to represent their perspective by emphasising the necessity of purgation of negative elements in order to create a healthy and sustainable community. A key tenant of the representation of people and politics is the position of ‘good’, and the opposition as the ‘malignant devil’. In this manner, the truth becomes a product of the way composers represent past events. Keating demonstrates how past receptions to Indigenous ‘Black armband’ history has shaped “outbreaks of hysteria and hostility,” resisting reconciliation to Australia’s colonial past. He points out the hypocrisy of those in opposition as having, “the bizarre conceit that this continent had no owners,” and representing Australia as ‘Terra Nullius’. In contest Keating pointed out the ‘unhappy past’ as a product of the deliberate political ignorance of Aboriginal rights. Instead, he advocates a conscience vote, “imagine that the descendants of people...fifty thousand years old...will be denied their place in modern Australia…” With the lack of contemporary political accede to the rights of Indigenous Australians, he instead asks us to engage in simple acknowledgment the impact of our colonial past. Keating initially validates the thought of many Australians who does not support the cause of Indigenous Rights movement. He outlines this particular perspective through his diplomatic tone and expression, “It might be tempting to think that reality of Aboriginal Australians are contained here (in Redfern)… the rest of us are insulated from it.” The use of analogy allows Keating to create a sense of entitlement, particularly targeting towards the apathetic Australians who believes that Australian Aboriginal history is meaningless and worthless. Furthermore, Keating emphasises this particular discriminatory viewpoint with persuasive techniques including rhetorical question in “How would I feel if this was done to me?” to make responders sympathise with Indigenous Australians as Australians must place themselves in their shoes to understand the unfairness that they have suffered. Further employment of pathos in “I think we need to open our hearts a bit,” manipulates responders to perceive the superiority of Keating’s political perspective of Indigenous plight.
Miller presents the character of John Proctor in an important way to show two sides to his character. These qualities make him have the most important role in ‘The Crucible.’ The key events that show him in this way is when the audience find out about the affair, how he tries to defend his wife, his confession in court and his hanging for the sake of others. Through the events in The Crucible, Miller then portrays John Proctor’s character with tension and suspense. This then makes the audience question whether or not he is a good man.
The Crucible was a rather strong book, it had battles both internal and external, there were also betrayals and vendettas… but a few stuck strong to their morals of what was wrong, and what was right. After the girl’s acts were, undoubtedly, in the eyes of the law, seen as entirely real, people who would not otherwise have been accused of witchcraft were now eligible to be under Satan’s spell. One John Proctor, saw himself above the nonsense, that witches could not exist in Salem, his wife, his children nor him; But, when Mary Warren said to the court that he used his spirit to drag her into court to testify against the girls, the judges deemed her word more truthful than his. After actively and repeatedly denying the claims, he was sentenced to death, for only a witch could lie in the face of god.
Arthur Miller’s The Crucible and Nathanial Hawthorne’s The Scarlet Letter share remarkable parallels not only in their examination of early Puritan America, but also in the dilemma of the two main male characters, John Proctor and Arthur Dimmesdale. Both these men had sinful relations with another member of the town, and must deal with the adversity that resulted from their sin. Although both John Proctor and Reverend Dimmesdale become hypocrites in their society, Proctor overcomes his sin and is able to redeem himself, while Dimmesdale’s pride and untimely death prevent him from fully experiencing redemption.
The Crucible is one of the most bizarre accounts of a historical event to date. The naïveté of the townspeople leads them down a road of madness and confusion, led by a shameless Puritan girl. Abigail Williams was a ruthless girl who showed no mercy upon accusing her victims of witchcraft. Knowing the entire town of Salem would believe her and the other girls, she would not hesitate at charging anyone she wished with the crime of the Devil’s work. However, a challenge arose to Abigail when she decided to accuse Elizabeth Proctor, and eventually her husband John, of witchcraft. The Proctor marriage was not just any simple marriage; it had its times of cold shoulders, heartfelt truth, and undying love.
Is a person’s beliefs and morality predetermined and rigidly adhered to by the culture they exist within, or are these fluid elements that can be shaped by one’s own being? Arthur Miller’s fictional adaptation of the Salem witch trials of 1692, The Crucible, highlights the theory of cultural relativity. Cultural relativism is the theory that customs, beliefs, and morality are constructed in relation to the culture from which they are derived. Miller explores both the pertinacity and adaptability of cultural relativity using characterisation, specifically through the development of the text’s protagonist, John Proctor, and antagonist, Abigail Williams. Miller utilises The Crucible’s omnipresent relevance to represent the significant role culture
Arthur Miller’s 1953 play The Crucible and Alfonso Cuarón’s 2006 dystopian science-fiction film Children of Men both represent people and politics through an exploration of the concept of justice and conformity and non-conformity. Both texts represent people and politics in a unique and evocative way through their differing textual forms, contexts and techniques.
Through time it can be seen that the world’s history has a nature of repeating its self. Author Miller, was aware of this as he experienced a repitition of history of society’s flawed government. In the text The Crucible, the writer, Author Miller has identified and illustrated the problems society faced during the 1950’s setting by drawing parallels with the setting of the 1962 Salem witch hunt. This setting helps readers to understand the characters of John Proctor and Giles Corey.
Traditionalism and conservatism have always threatened the “rights” and easily strengthened the “wrongs” of society. Liberal ideals allow some people to see past the norms of the time into the heart of the matter or to predict a better future. Victimized people may be forced to see things differently even if they are not naturally liberal. The Crucible shows how these people—the liberals, victims and liberal victims—fought to stand by what they knew to be right, even when all of the voices and norms of society were against them. In the Salem in the play people who were accused were urged to confess based on the testimonies of others and the traditions of severe religious consequences and
The play “The Crucible” is an allegory for the McCarthyism hysteria that occurred in the late 1940’s to the late 1950’s. Arthur Miller’s play “the crucible” and the McCarthyism era demonstrates how fear can begin conflict. The term McCarthyism has come to mean “the practice of making accusations of disloyalty”, which is the basis of the Salem witch trials presented in Arthur Miller’s play. The fear that the trials generate leads to the internal and external conflicts that some of the characters are faced with, in the play. The town’s people fear the consequences of admitting their displeasure of the trials and the character of John Proctor faces the same external conflict, but also his own internal conflict. The trials begin due to Abigail and her friends fearing the consequences of their defiance of Salem’s puritan society.
As the adolescents wail in their pretentious horror of a fictional bird, Proctor slowly realizes the conformation that Satan has entered Salem. Arthur Miller’s tragic allegory, The Crucible, shows the destruction of sinister Salem in 1692. The protagonist, John Proctor, a damnable farmer, has a lecherous affair with the antagonist, Abigail Williams, an ignorant and covetous juvenile. Satan mixes their interior motives to manufacture a catastrophic concoction. The ingredients of destruction consist of selfishness, immaturity, and corruption. The voracious desires of the natives of Salem lead to their evil and self-indulged intentions.
Parris and Danforth prioritize their reputations over John Proctor’s actual life. Hale does not care about his good name, but about the lives of the people in Salem and his guilt for partaking in the trials. Like Proctor, Parris, Hale, and Danforth are extremely flawed men. They all make unrighteous decisions that can be selfish. Unlike Proctor, though, these men place their own needs above the needs of the community. John Proctor has lived in Salem all his life and cares for the town and its citizens, whereas Reverend Hale, Reverend Parris, and Danforth are all outsiders to the town. They place themselves above the well-beings of the townspeople for the reason that they do not care if Salem is to be destroyed. Reverend Parris, Reverend Hale, and Deputy Governor Danforth’s yearn of John Proctor’s confession represents they only care for their own self-interests and not about what his confession could do for the town of
The play, set in the 1600’s during the witch hunt that sought to rid villages of presumed followers and bidders of the devil is a parallel story to the situation in the US in the 1950’s: McCarthyism, seeking the riddance of communist ideologists. Miller sets this story more particularly in a village called Salem, where the theocratic power governed by strict puritan rules require the people to be strong believers and forbid them to sin at risk of ending up in hell. However, the audience notices that despite this strong superficial belief in God, faith is not what truly motivates them, but it is rather money and reputation.
Even though The Crucible is not historically correct, nor is it a perfect allegory for anti-Communism, or as a faithful account of the Salem trials, it still stands out as a powerful and timeless depiction of how intolerance, hysteria, power and authority is able to tear a community apart. The most important of these is the nature of power, authority and its costly, and overwhelming results. “But you must understand, sir, that a person is either with this court or against it,” says Danforth conceitedly. With this antithesis, Miller sums up the attitude of the authorities towards the witch trials that if one goes against the judgement of the court they are essentially breaking their relationship with God. Like everyone else in Salem, Danforth draws a clear line to separate the world into black and white. The concurrent running of the “Crucible” image also captures the quintessence of the courtroom as Abigial stirs up trouble among the people that have good reputation and loving natures in society. In a theocratic government, everything and everyone belongs to either God or the Devil.
...l, Miller attempts to criticize societies that are governed by hypocrisies as they open the gateway for many to attain previously unreachable levels of power and are able to commit a crime without paying for it by blaming it entirely on someone else on false charges. Miller’s The Crucible does an excellent job in reflecting not only the society in its direct context of Salem but also other societies such as the society of the U.S during McCarthyism. Miller even though being accused of being a communist, is able to pass on his views about how hypocrisy is a dangerous yet immensely famous tool to which societies sometimes fall to in order to achieve almost an anarchy where people’s survival are based on their ability to blame others.
Another important work Miller wrote, The Crucible, takes place in Salem, Massachusetts, during the 17th century. It is a time when jealousy and suspicion poisoned the thinking of an entire town. Neighbor turned against neighbor when events happened that could not be explained. Accusations turned into a mad hunt for witches who did not exist. One of the main characters of the play is John Proctor, a well-respected man with a good name in the town. As the play develops, John Proctor’s moral dilemma becomes evident: he must decide whether to lie and confess to witchcraft in order to save his life, or to die an honest man, true to his beliefs.