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Character study of the crucible by Arthur Miller
Textual analysis of The Crucible by Arthur Miller
Character study of the crucible by Arthur Miller
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Arthur Miller, in his play The Crucible, reveals certain aspects of human nature, which drive the outcry against witches in Salem. One of the biggest contributors to the commotion is the human tendency to act in self preservation, even if it is at the expense of others. The situation in Salem escalated because many people were accused and dragged into the conflict. This occurred because the characters who were initially accused acted out to protect themselves. For instance, Abigail, who Reverend Parris suspected, at first attempts to lie about what happened in the woods. When she realizes that there are too many contradictions in her own story, she claims that she was being controlled and was not acting of her own volition. She blames Tituba,
¨I have known her, sir. I have known her.¨ A crucible is a test or severe trial, and no trial is more severe than that of a man’s soul. The entire story of Salem is ridden with tests of character and the humanity of the citizens as they respond to the mass hysteria created by someone crying witch. Every single character in this play is given a trial through which they must come to achieve their greater purpose, and these trials expose the skeletons in their closets and the blackness of their sins. However, the similar message is presented in different ways by the cinematic portrayal and Miller’s original play. Lies, unsubstantiated accusations, jealousy, and self-righteousness are the main factors fueling the flame of deceit and hatred. John
During the early years of the colonies, there was a mad witch hunt striking the heart of Salem. Anger, reputation, and even religion play an important part during the play of The Crucible, written by Arthur Miller. The author allows us to witness the vivid idea of the hysteria taking place in Salem, Massachusetts, and why it was so vulnerable during the time.
Many of the characters in Arthur Miller's The Crucible have specific human flaws that cause the tragedy of the Salem Witch Trials. The Salem villagers exhibit failings, including greed, vengeance, and fear, which eventually lead to the downfall of their town. Many villagers, especially Abigail Williams, take advantage of the opportunity to seek vengeance on others through the trials. Greed for power and land often holds precedence when the hysteria takes over. Fear of being arrested or put to death is the key motivation in turning others in as witches. From these three human flaws, the town of Salem falls into chaos with many innocent people paying the price.
Life as a human is dictated by an inborn hunger or purpose, and people, in general, will act on this hunger for their own personal gain in their individual ways. This hunger, be it for wealth, land, love, power, revenge, or pride, can, and will be the undoing or failing of all mankind as Miller so clearly points out in his play 'The Crucible';. This essay will explore the motives of characters within the play and even the motives of Arthur Miller himself and therefore show how conflict stems from certain recognisable human failings including those mentioned above, fear, and hysteria.
The Crucible: Hysteria and Injustice Thesis Statement: The purpose is to educate and display to the reader the hysteria and injustice that can come from a group of people that thinks it's doing the "right" thing for society in relation to The Crucible by Arthur Miller. I. Introduction: The play is based on the real life witch hunts that occurred in the late 1600's in Salem, Massachusetts. It shows the people's fear of what they felt was the Devil's work and shows how a small group of powerful people wrongly accused and killed many people out of this fear and ignorance.
The Crucible is a play with many underlying messages and themes. One of which is the idea of power. Power is a very important term in this play in that whoever holds the power, holds the fates of others. The hysteria within Salem has directly effected society. Everything has turned upside down and has gotten distorted. Arthur Miller is telling us that all the power in Salem is given to those who are corrupt and their abuse of it is directly shown through: the actions of Abigail throughout the play, the corruption and desires of Parris, as well as the witch trials held by Judge Danforth.
Throughout history, there have been many times where we have been unable to escape the inevitable. In the play The Crucible, Arthur Miller displays a major historical event of the 17th century, the Salem Witch Trials. In the story, the antagonist, Abigail Williams, has an affair with John Proctor. When Proctor will not leave his wife, Elizabeth, for the girl, Abigail gathers her friends in the woods to wish death upon Elizabeth.
In The Crucible, the members of the Salem community accept the lies that their neighbors are taking apart of witchcraft as the truth. The lies and deceit in the community help attribute to the play’s overall theme of hysteria. The theme of hysteria is prevalent throughout the play, as the belief that witchcraft is occurring in the town enables members of the community to believe that their neighbors have committed devilish acts. As the town descends into a hysterical climate, members of the community take advantage of the situation to act upon any long-held grudges or repressed sentiment. Characters, such as Abigail, use both lies and hysteria to seek revenge and gain power. This reveals that the lies and deceit told throughout the play drive
The Crucible – The Dark Side of Man & nbsp; When does innocence change into the darker side of human imagination? Arthur Miller's, The Crucible, portrays the dark side of man that is fueled by suspicion. The setting of Puritan Massachusetts in the 17th century was a crucial part of the story, but what occurred could happen at any time in history with the same effect. Mass hysteria can break out at any time in history, no matter what progress is made through time. The Puritan ideal was broken with the Salem witchcraft scandal and nearly four hundred years later, the comfortable ideals of Americans were shattered again with McCarthyism in the 1950's.
In every conflict there always seems to be at least one person to blame. In The Crucible by Arthur Miller, many problems arise that deal with live and death. Many innocent people in this play were hanged during the Salem Witch Trials. Of course, there are many people that may be blamed. In The Crucible, one may find Abigail Williams, The Putnams, and Mary Warren to blame. Abigail was manipulative, The Putnams were very jealous, and Mary Warren was weak-willed.
Self-preservation is an underlying idea throughout the plot of The Crucible. In the society during the witch-hunt, one could only avoid being blamed falsely for non-existing crimes was to claim that others (usually a smaller group of individuals) were the ones to blame as they force the accused to carry out deeds. This led to an era of false accusations just as during McCarthyism where someone’s good name was easily diminished. Miller introduces self-preservation in Abigail’s response to harshly interrogated. Abigail realizes the error she has made in her actions in the past and sees that she will get into trouble; thus, she quickly changes her stance by shouting “She made me do it, She made Betty do it”(43). This is a great example of how people in societies being governed or manifested by hypocrisy deal with deflecting blame as they can easily without a just claim blame others for their own wrongs. As a result to Tituba’s accusation of being a witch, Parris (his master) repeatedly shouts at her “Their names, their name!”(47) in order wash away Tituba’s affiliation with witchcraft, as her confession and ...
“The crucible” written by Arthur Miller, narrates that through the accusations spread in Salem, in times of immediate danger, it becomes human nature for individuals to resort to self preservation and push their responsibilities to others in a resort to save themselves. In result, in order to live, they resort to confessing false truths and assumptions. On the contrary, although is it human nature to resort to self preservation, there are individuals who use this opportunity to benefit themselves and others who tend to sacrifice themselves to uphold their own principles and morale beliefs. Portraying the contrasts between morale conflicts within the up holdings of human behavior,
Is there any idea worth more than a human life? In The Crucible by Arthur Miller, John Proctor decides that he has nothing left to live for, and therefore becomes a martyr. The question for him or one in his position would be whether or not there exist causes worth dying for and if his position is one such case. There is no principle worth more than a person’s life and therefore principles worth dying for, only principles worth living for.
Great events, whether they are beneficial or tragic ones, bring change in a person. These scenarios can give one an entirely new perspective on life, and turn around his way of thinking. Events such as the Salem Witch Trials show the people involved what they could not see before. In Arthur Miller's The Crucible, Elizabeth Proctor, Reverend Hale, and John Proctor gain valuable insight into themselves, as well as others.
In conclusion, Abigail Williams, Thomas Putnam, and the girls of Salem deliberately perpetrate heinous actions throughout the play, The Crucible by Arthur Miller. Many of the citizens in Salem, recognized the truth behind the witch-hunt, but they chose to keep it to themselves in order to prevent being involved. As Martin Luther King, Jr. once said, “He who passively accepts evil is as much involved in it as he who helps to perpetrate it. He who accepts evil without protesting against it is really cooperating with it.”