More handpicked essays just for you.
The connection between Religion and Morality
Religion and morality
Relationship between religion and morality
Don’t take our word for it - see why 10 million students trust us with their essay needs.
Recommended: The connection between Religion and Morality
How Arthur Miller Creates and Sustains Tension in Act 4 of The Crucible In act 4 of the play 'The Crucible' Arthur Miller uses the characters as the main device for creating and sustaining tension for the audience. He first uses reverend Parris to show tension in the act. At the beginning of this act, reverend Parris is already a changed man from what he was like before throughout the play. In the acts before, he was non-hesitant with what he did "(To Danforth, instantly)" or, "(He hurries)". Reverend Parris was also forward with what he said, he would say, "Excellency, hear me" this shows that he does not worry about anything. Now, he is hesitant and worried when speaking to judge Danforth "(He dares not say it)" and "my niece - I believe she has vanished." This pause in his sentence shows that reverend Parris is panicking and worried. This in turn shocks the audience because we are not used to seeing reverend Parris in this way. Reverend Parris is scared to tell judge Danforth that his niece has run away, because he knows that if he tells judge Danforth that his niece, Abigail Williams, has run away from Salem, then all the people who hated Abigail for the hangings of innocent people will turn all of their anger and hatred to reverend Parris. He says, "(in fear of him)" the word "him" is referring to judge Danforth. Reverend Parris is already very unpopular with all of the towns people, and after all this, he will be despised even more. This sudden change in character shocks the audience because the once confident Parris is now so scared that he now fears for his life, reverend Parris at one point begins to cry, "(He presses his fingers against his eyes to keep back tears)", but even though he is scared, he must show composure because of his status in the town. This makes the audience feel a sort of sympathy for him. Parris now wants to postpone the hangings of John Procter, Goodie Nurse and Martha Coury,
“No one man can terrorize a whole nation unless we are all his accomplices.” In the case of The Crucible by Arthur Miller, Edward Murrow is uncannily accurate. The Crucible, set in Salem, Massachusetts during the Salem Witch Trials, proves that when one antagonist has accomplices, they can destroy the lives of many. In this story, Abigail destroys the lives of everyone in Salem. That being said, in times of stress or panic, people's’ true traits and personalities can be discovered, as shown in the cases of John Proctor and his damning indiscretion, Rev. Hale’s panicked realization, and Mary Warren’s naive and fearful indecision; all of which develop throughout the play in response to different stimuli.
In the play, Puritanism and their beliefs and values ruled Salem. Puritanism are a close community that follow a strict set of rules; there is little freedom for individuals. Individuals who are independent or do not conform to their values are immediately seen as threats to the community. The character of John Proctor is an example of a non-conformist as he believes in justice. Proctor’s sarcastic remark against Reverend Parris: “I like not the smell of this ‘authority,’” highlights his disagreement with Parris’s power and values. The sensory imagery emphasises Proctor’s non-conformist attitude and shows his deviance towards Parris, who is considered the highest power in society as he is the man closest to God. Proctor’s blasphemous exclaim: “I say God is dead!,” is a subversion of the Puritan society and theocratic values. The high modality emphasises his rebellion against Puritanism and emphasises his nonconforming nature. His refusal to conform to the Puritan values ultimately ends in his demise. The ripping of his confession and death symbolises his refusal to conform and his integrity; he does not want to be used to justify the witch hunt and the injustices the court has done. He does not want the other people to be seen as guilty for their crimes, when they weren’t; he does not want to be seen by others as a symbol of falseness
Though he does make some mistakes, John Proctor is essentially a good man. In act one, Proctor exchanges angry words with Reverend Parris and says, "I may speak my heart, I think!" (30). Parris is more concerned with money than God, and John honestly speaks of how wrong that is even though it would get him into trouble. When Reverend Hale asks him why his third son is not baptized, John tells him, "I like it not that Mr.
Parris is only the part of a whole when it comes to what he embodies-- Parris ultimately embodies the nature of Salem, Although Salem is ruled by God, the events of The Crucible prove otherwise. Throughout the play, characters are either egotistical in their own regard or are shown committing impious acts to safeguard their reputation among Salem residents. This is not a town ruled by God; it is a town ruled by deceptive people who have no remorse for the effects caused by their ruthless
Confessions within the play The Crucible are driven essentially by fear and are not based on the truth. Arthur Miller uses the concept of self-benefiting confession to show the dark side of Salem, creating a sense of dramatic tension and suspense. The confessions are used to drive the play towards the objective of Miller’s story, the crumbling of the Salem community and continuous hangings. Within the play The Crucible confessions are seen as a sign of purity as admitting guilt suggests personally extricating the devil. However, the confessions create a climate of frenzy and cause Salem community members to accuse others of witchcraft to save themselves. The confessions bring the case of witchery from the court to the homes of the villagers. Tituba, Reverend Parris’ slave, is one of the first characters to confess, after being falsely accused by Abigail Williams. Tituba ‘is in her forties, from Barbados’ (Act Ι, pg. 6), she is an intelligent woman who observes that if she were to confess to being an agent of the devil, the village, Reverend Hale and members of the church would forgive her and try to find other agents of the devil within the community. Abigail ‘a strikingly beautiful girl, aged seventeen and an orphan with an endless capacity for dissembling’ (Act Ι, pg.6) notices this and decides to follow Tituba. As she sees this as an escape, Abigail commences to falsely accuse female villagers of Salem, such as; Goody Proctor. In this case, her accusations and confessions are purely for her benefit, her life and to re-ignite her love affair wi...
Arthur Miller’s dramatic play The Crucible, takes place during 1692 in Salem, Massachusetts. The setting is important because it takes place during the time of the Salem Witch Trials. The play begins with the town’s girls, led by Abigail Williams, gathering in the forest and starting to dance around a fire, chanting. Reverend Parris catches them dancing, sending the girls into a panic and causing two of the girls to go into a coma-like state. The townspeople spread rumors that there are witches lurking throughout the the town that have put the girls under their spells. This causes Reverend Parris to send for Reverend Hale, an expert in witchcraft and the devil's work, who hopes to rid the town of all witchcraft. John Proctor, a local farmer, asks Abigail to stop accusing innocent people and start telling the truth about what happened in the forest. Elizabeth Proctor, John Proctor's wife, excused Abigail from their house because she found out about an affair between Abigail and John. She lies to the court when she is asked about John’s affair to save him from any punishment. In doing so, they were both sent to jail for witchcraft because they knew she had lied. Abigail and the girls continued to lie about people in the town being witches, causing many innocent people to be killed, including John Proctor. Miller shows the dangers of scapegoating when lies that are regarded as the truth, and can kill innocent characters.
Authors often have underlying reasons for giving their stories certain themes or settings. Arthur Miller’s masterpiece, The Crucible, is a work of art inspired by actual events as a response to political and moral issues. Set in Salem, Massachusetts in 1692, The Crucible proves to have its roots in events of the 1950’s and 1960’s, such as the activities of the House Un-American Committee and the “Red Scare.” Though the play provides an accurate account of the Salem witch trials, its real achievement lies in the many important issues of Miller’s time that it dealswith.
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 Puritans of Salem, Massachusetts in the late seventeenth century believed lies to be deadly sin. They were of the opinion that the smallest false-telling could turn a person from a path to Heaven to one straight into the arms of the Devil. However, during the Salem Witch Trials in the spring and summer of 1692; lies, deceit, and false accusations became common currency. The character of Abigail Williams in Arthur Miller’s 1952 play, The Crucible, illustrates this type of behavior. Abigail Williams’s lust for John Proctor and her desire for attention motivate her to falsely accuse innocent women of witchcraft, resulting in the regret and desperation she feels in regard to the choices she made, and subsequently her decision to run away from Salem to escape the pain she has caused for herself and for others.
Arthur Miller's "The Crucible" 'The Crucible' was written in 1952 by the twentieth century American playwright Arthur Miller (1915-.) Miller was born in New York and educated at the University of Michigan where he began to write plays. Most of Miller's plays are set in contemporary America and on the whole offer a realistic portrayal of life and society and the theme of self-realization is re-current e.g. John Proctor in 'The Crucible'. 'The Crucible' was the third play Miller wrote. It is a play about the Salem Witchcraft Trials of 1692 in Salem, Massachusetts.
Arthur Miller’s play, The Crucible, renders the horrific events of the Salem witch trial through a crew of many fantastic characters. Fear pedals the citizens of Salem Massachusetts to reveal their true character while facing the judgment of a bias court before barbarous judges. While the whole town of Salem is filled up with this madness, two particular women stand out above the rest. Shame and revenge lives in the mind and heart of an adulteress teenager Abigail Williams, while truth and righteousness lives in the soul of Elizabeth Proctor, a faithful wife to John Proctor. Abigail and Elizabeth both heighten the suspense and tension of the play along with their differences leading to turmoil due to both of their desire for one man’s love.
The devil is defined as being a spirit or power of evil. In the play The Crucible, by Arthur Miller, numerous citizens of Salem Village are prosecuted and convicted for having made contact with the devil. While historically, the Salem Witch Trials were an effect of greed and vengeance and are said to be false, the devil was indeed present in the town of Salem; he takes the shape of a young girl named Abigail Williams. Abigail depicts her evil spirit and coalition with the devil though her deception of anyone willing to listen, her irrational behavior, and her immoral actions, which directly defy the Puritan church.
During the courtroom scene, hysteria and mayhem break out, as accusations begin flying around , Mary Warrens ‘spirit’ begins to do the same, as she sends out a ‘bird’ in order to taunt Abigail. This sends the courtroom into a downwards spiral, as a hysterical outburst between Abigail and ‘the girls’ erupts. The room fills with fear and tension as the hysteria begins to build; as it reaches its climax as John Proctor blurts out “I have known her” which allows the courtroom to fall into complete silence. Miller uses John Proctor- a known, well respected man within the community- as a way to illustrate how fear and hysteria can suddenly alter our personality and force us to admit to things we never would under normal circumstances. John’s confession of having known Abigail, is his first confession during the play, but is used by Miller to illustrate how easily hysteria affects us. John’s outburst along with the silence that follows allows the audience to understand the impact of what John is confessing to; the hushed tones of voice that trail after John’s hefty confession further reiterate the weight held by John’s confession, which is purposeful on Millers behalf, to help the audience to understand the impact of John’s words. Miller’s use of fear and hysteria in the play, The Crucible, was to illustrate how easily and quickly people will change during stressful moments, as well as the way these confessions or altering of personality can go on to affect you and the way others perceive
A group of teenage girls were secretly dancing in the woods with a black slave, named Tituba. When they were discovered of what they were doing, the girls started accusing certain individuals in the village of dealing with witchcraft. Within a blink of an eye, the entire village is controlled by a devil that exists within the fear of each person. A drama of suspense and impact, Arthur Miller's The Crucible, explores through the individuals' vengeance, fear, reputation, and quest for power.
The Crucible provides us with an example of a masterpiece of dramatic writing. In this play Arthur Miller gives us a stimulating example of the use of a variety of theatrical techniques. His most powerful scenes in "The Crucible" have common characteristics: very effective use of stage actions, long build-ups of suspense that come crashing down in thundering climaxes, intense displays of emotion and an abundance of dramatic irony. These are my three chosen scenes: p46-50: "Tituba........Devil!", p98-100: "She thinks.......Oh God" and p101-105: "You will.....Mr Hale!". Because of the importance of these scenes as key moments in the play Miller makes them dramatically superb so that the "No,sir" by Elizabeth that decides the outcome of dozens of lives and of her own and her husband’s, John Proctor is also the climax of the most effective build-up of suspense in the play. The effectivness of these scenes is also enhanced by powerful characters such as John Proctor and Danforth who display such intensity in their emotions and actions that the audience can not help but be moved. But most of all, these scenes show Miller’s theatrical qualities so that by the end of each of these scenes we not only understand his message but also find ourself convinced by his arguments .