Fear In The Crucible

As American satirist Henry Louis Mencken once wrote, “The one permanent emotion of the inferior man is fear--fear of the unknown, the complex, the inexplicable. What he wants above everything else is safety.” Mencken’s skeptical view on fear can be influenced by the fact that individuals lose a sense of logic when fear is present. Fear, an unpleasant feeling, is caused in order to avoid the consequences of a situation because one is afraid; therefore, fear often takes control of one’s mind as individuals choose to be fearful rather than realizing logical knowledge can change the outcome of a situation. This ideology is illustrated throughout the events in The Crucible as playwright Arthur Miller suggests through contrasting characters that

the power of fear and human frailty can ultimately destroy communities for fear often overpowers an individual’s thoughts, causing one to act irrationally as they are put to a test of faith and morality.
Miller demonstrates through Abigail and Betty, that individuals often respond to the frightening changes around them by scapegoating in order to escape the burden inside themselves. In the beginning of the play, a group of girls are found dancing and singing in the forest with a slave named Tituba by Reverend Parris. One of the girls, Betty, falls unconscious, leading to speculation that witchcraft is among Salem. When questioned by Parris, Abigail states that the girls and her were just dancing. However, when Abigail is continuously under suspicion from her confession that a frog jumped into the soup as they were dancing, Abigail, in an effort to save her reputation, says, “I never sold myself! I’m a good girl! I’m a proper girl!... [Tituba] made me do it! She made Betty do it!” (49). Here, Miller emphasizes how fear can control one’s thought process; Abigail, in order to escape punishment, quickly points to Tituba as a scapegoat for Tituba is at a disadvantage for being both black and a slave in Puritan society. Miller highlights Abigail’s selfish nature for Abigail falls to fear only to benefit herself and her “good” reputation, not worrying about who she hurts in order to get her way. After Tituba is named for being associated with the Devil, Betty suddenly wakes up, and the group of girls begin to falsely accuse other people of being connected with the Devil. Betty says, “I saw George Jacobs with the Devil! I saw Goody Howe with the Devil!...I saw Martha Bellows with the Devil!” (54). Here, Miller highlights that the hysteria created prevails throughout Salem due to individuals following the lead of others, leaving one’s qualm of conscience behind. By falsely accusing people of witchcraft, the group of girls blindly follow Abigail's lead, which ultimately leads to the hanging of 20 people. In short, Miller emphasizes that certain individuals will respond to fear by resorting to self-preservation, in order to escape punishment and leave one’s reputation untarnished.
Miller, by contrasting Rebecca with Mary, expresses how one does not need to resort to fear in order to benefit their community or themselves.

Rebecca Nurse is portrayed to have a sense of what is right and wrong as her moral compass remains untainted throughout the play. When Betty lay unconscious, people of Salem quickly led to the conclusion that witchcraft was prevalent in their community. However, Rebecca says, “Pray calm yourselves. I have eleven children, and I am twenty-six times a grandma...and when it come on them they will run the Devil bowlegged keeping up with their mischief,” (33). Rebecca believes that the girls are just in another one of their “silly seasons” and ultimately tries to calm the people of Salem. In contrast to many of the other characters in the play, Rebecca and her actions are not influenced by a need for an increase in social image or reputation; Rebecca is merely portrayed as a saint for she remains to have a pure mindset and reputation. When Rebecca is arrested for witchcraft, Reverend Parris is shocked and ultimately doubts the court’s decision. Parris tells Judge Hathorne that if Rebecca were to be accused and killed, she will “stand upon the gibbet and send up some righteous prayer, and I fear she’ll wake a vengeance on you,” (129). Here, Miller emphasizes by showing Rebecca’s impact on the Salem community. By stating how she’ll “wake a vengeance on you,” Miller indicates that Rebecca’s holiness remains untouched for even Reverend Parris

believes that if Rebecca is to be unjustly accused and killed, God will bring an uproar of anger among the citizens of Salem. In addition, when asked to confess about her association with the Devil, Rebecca says, “Why, it is a lie, it is a lie; now may I damn myself? I cannot, I cannot,” (141). Miller emphasizes Rebecca’s internal sense of right and wrong for he contrasts Rebecca with one character, Mary Warren. In Act 2, Mary says “I cannot, I cannot,” explaining why she can not tell the truth about Abigail and her accusations. On the other hand, Rebecca Nurse reaffirms that she merely can not tell a lie for she will then “damn myself.” Even when she is at the face of the trials, Rebecca’s morality is never shaken; she remains to have a pure mindset and integrity for she never lies or falsely accuses other women of being with the Devil. Miller illustrates, through Rebecca, that one does not need to be fearful but rather utilize one’s integrity and moral compass to change society and its values.
As Mencken stated, the power of fear is only able to prevail when an individual allows these frightening changes to take over one’s society because one only cares for his or her’s own safety.

In The Crucible, Miller demonstrates through the characters, that those who are concerned with self-preservation, ultimately respond to these frightening changes around them by allowing the fear of the unknown to take control over their own moral goodness. However, some characters keep their integrity intact by remaining skeptical and critical over the accusations made, as they refuse to accept the power that fear and mass hysteria holds in Salem. In short, in The Crucible, the dominating fear component, due to the false accusations made, eventually led the people of Salem to act irrationally, and essentially putting individuals to a test to see how far one will go to protect themselves or their loved

ones.