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Arthur Miller on writing the crucible
Analysis of the film The Crucible by Arthur Miller
Characters and characterisation in the crucible
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In the Crucible, the main idea Arthur Miller is trying to get across is the thought if one should die for what they believe in or live without morals. Certain characters in the short story face the reality of death. These characters conclude that, dying for what you believe in, is better than living without morals.
Rebecca Nurse a respected character in the town of Salem. She is known to be kind to others. However, Like most characters, she is accused of witchcraft. Rebecca has an option to confess and live or be hanged. This might not be a hard decision to many but one will morals stands with them. Rebecca quotes, “... it is a lie; it is; how may I damn myself? I cannot, I cannot (Miller 237).” Rebecca's character show’s integrity and the
Moral ambiguity is lack of sense in ethical decision-making. This means morally ambiguous characters are difficult to classify as either good or evil, as they contain strong aspects of both. These types of characters generally have real problems, causing their inner conflicts, which also makes them sympathetic. Stories that have morally ambiguous characters usually create built-in tension, because there is always the question of whether their conniving nature will be able to take hold, causing them to fail in their pursuit. In the play The Crucible, an example of a morally ambiguous character is Mary Warren.
Both of them show their moral superiority though their actions. When Rebecca was convicted of witchcraft, she refuses to bear false witness against herself and others. She would rather hang than lie. John feels as though if he hangs he’ll return his goodness so he refuses confession as well(Miller, 1231). Rebecca comforts John Proctor as they are both led to the gallows. “Let you fear nothing! Another judgment waits us all”(Miller, 1232). Both show their strength through different ways, John Proctor’s strength is in his manliness which adds to the perception of a strong and truthful character. Rebecca Nurse is not physically strong, but her strength lies in Character as of goodness, caring and truth. They both share pride of their prior reputation, Rebecca of being a landowner and John from making a living for himself. The two tragic characters also share the fact that their highly respected in their own
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.
Crucible- a severe test, a hard trial or also could be define as a pot for melting metals. A severe trail could be as other then a physical it also could be mentally a severe trial like person verses self. In The Crucible, Miller reflects the theme that pressure can force people from there can force their morals. The characters in The Crucible have morals that they must up hold to be accepted into the town and church. It is a struggle to keep these values when there are moral hazards like desires, greed, hate, and obsession.
In The Crucible, Arthur Miller portrays the two main characters, John Proctor and Reverend John Hale as "good men". The term "good men" in this play is ambiguous. Reverend John Hale was a good man in the sense of being the perfect and good citizen of Massachusetts in the 1600's. He was pious, adherent to the laws and beliefs, and a good Puritan Christian. John Proctor, on the contrary would not be considered the greatest citizen. He was not so religious, nor the perfect Christian, and was not so adherent to the Puritan's laws and beliefs. However, he was still considered a "good man", as a person rather than being an ideal Puritan citizen. He was very honest, moral, loyal to his friends and family, and was generous. The two men can be contrasted as good Puritan vs. good person.
Honor, dignity, and integrity are traits that are becoming more and more rare in our society. The Crucible, a play written in 1952 by Arthur Miller, is based on the Salem witch hunts of 1692 and parallels the Red Scare and McCarthyism in the 1950s. In the play, Miller attempts to focus his themes around traits such as honor, dignity, and integrity, and as a result, the theme "is it better to die honorably or live dishonorably" becomes vital to the story and well conveyed throughout it. The characters that exemplify this idea are John Proctor and Giles Corey, both of whom die by the end of the play, and Reverend John Hale and Abigail Williams, who live through the trials.
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.
In Arthur Miller 's book “The Crucible” there is an inadequacy of honesty which is a very important trait for everyone to learn. In this essay I am writing to prove that the paucity of honesty is negative and was very prevalent in Salem and that very few people remained truthful throughout the Salem Witch Trials. The dishonesty in The Crucible would soon lead to the deaths and imprisonment of many residents in Salem. Those accused would lie and accuse other people to stay out of trouble from the authorities, but this took the life of many innocent victims. In Miller 's book Dishonesty is expressed by almost everyone included in The Crucible such as Abigail, Mary, and Elizabeth.
Rebecca Nurse was known to all as a saintly woman. She followed God with all her heart, soul, mind, and strength. The Lord was her savior and protector. But because of mass hysteria, Mrs. Nurse was incriminated of exploiting witchcraft. This aghast most people because the most religious person they knew had been a witch. This was false. Rebecca Nurse was not a witch and had not demonstrated witchcraft by any means. She was innocent. She, like John Proctor, was solicited by Reverend Hale to confess but to no avail. Rebecca Nurse had held an immaculate reputation, and she was not about to let it get defamed by some false accusation. Rebecca Nurse, again like John Proctor, was hung for her falsely accused treacherous actions. This again is a prime example of what people will go through in order to keep a reputation that is accepted by
The Crucible – Human Nature Human nature was fully to blame for the disaster which took place in Salem in 1692. Human nature is what your character is made of in trying situations, and in 1692 scientific knowledge was extremely poor by today's standards and so all reoccurring problems were blamed on an evil force, whether it be the devil or witches or anything the imagination could conjure, hence human nature was being tested regularly. The decisions people made were critical to the disaster's progression, in today's scene in would have been dismissed within minutes, but the paranoia floating around in the town kept the ball rolling. People were so terrified of the thought of evil that any suggestion of it would create a preordained judgement in the mind of anyone, especially those who made judgement of the accused. To get to the supposed
Arthur Miller’s The Crucible is a play that discusses many issues and spurs contemplation within the reader. While reading this play, because of the controversy of many issues detailed within, it is difficult for one not to take a look at one’s own morals and determine what one would do if placed in a similar situation. The key issues discussed within this play, the effects of hysteria, marital betrayal, and the murderous powers of lies, are portrayed intriguingly and effectively. The lessons that can be learned from The Crucible are still quite applicable today.
The Crucible by Arthur Miller raises many thought provoking issues throughout the play, including the importance of personal integrity, injustice in society and the rights of the community versus the rights of the individual.
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.
Integrity is having a good reputation with ethical principles and being honest no matter the circumstances. People who have integrity are very ethical with their professions. In many cases integrity may mean a lot to a person who grew up with moral principles and this have a huge influence on how they live their life. Integrity is often reflected on plays, for example in the Crucible a play by Arthur Miller. One of the main character Rebecca Nurse had the opportunity to live, by confessing that she was a witch and by making false accusations on people, but instead she disagree and died. However this character died with integrity and knowing that her election was the best for everyone on town.
Parallels between Arthur Miller’s play, The Crucible, and his article Why I wrote the Crucible, can easily support Miller’s reasons for writing this classic play. Miller’s purpose in writing both the play and the article was to emphasize the similarities between the 1692 witch hunt and the 1950’s Red Scare. Miller simply wanted to convey the message of fear over reason, express himself in a new language of old English, to warn of mass hysteria, and most importantly compare his life in the 1950’s to the irrational trial in 1692. Miller’s reasons are numerous, and while they are all stated flat out in his article, they are also clearly stated and understood in the play.