Hager Elfhil
Chris Moore
A2 English 11 L3
September 1st, 2016
Summer Assignment – Essay After researching the American Colonial period, primarily focusing on Puritan society and reading the novels, “The Crucible” and “The Scarlet Letter,” I have come to the conclusion that Puritan society was strict. The Puritans migrated from England and established colonies along the northern east coast of America. These colonies were led by rigid Puritan leaders who abided by the Bible and sought to do God’s work. They punished as they deemed fit and if you did not agree with how they ruled, they would banish you. Religion, family, and society were all closely tied together. It was expected that the father be the head of the household, work and provide for the family, and to make
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So people in Puritan society sought to express themselves in secret by engaging in such things as “witchcraft” and committing adultery. In “The Crucible” By Arthur, the narrator explains “The Salem tragedy, which is about to begin in these pages developed from a paradox. It is a paradox in whose grip we still live….One could not ordinarily speak such things in public (Act One , Pages 6-7).” Arthur Miller explains that Salem developed a theocracy in which society and religion were one, intending to keep the community united. In “the Scarlet Letter,” Nathaniel Hawthorne explains “But, in that early severity of the Puritan character…as befitted a people amongst whom religion and law were almost identical, and in whose character both were so thoroughly interfused, that the mildest and the severest acts of public discipline were alike made venerable and awful (Hawthorne51-52).” Hawthorne explains the types of crimes that people committed and how punishment was open for the public to see. He states how religion and law were almost identical and how some people’s character were the same, so often, a mild sin
Death is a major theme through both Arthur Miller’s The Crucible and Nathaniel Hawthorne’s The Scarlet Letter. In the first text, mass hysteria rips through Salem after a group of girls danced in the woods and blame everything and anything on witchcraft. The girl who could be identified as the main trouble-maker is Abigail Williams. She kicked up all of the witch suspicions because she had an affair with John Proctor, the identifiable hero. The story climaxed with the death of characters that drew affection from the readers. In the second piece of literature, the main conflict happens to be that of Hester Prynne, who committed adultery and had a child. There was a lot of public ridicule in this instance and many underlying plots within it. Again, the climax of the story could be argued to be the death of a beloved character. These two particular titles do in fact share a lot of common ideas and themes, while at the same having very
I have read the The Crucible, The Scarlet letter, and Of Mice and Men. In two of these stories, The Crucible and The Scarlet Letter, society was very much alike. They were based on a Puritan background. The Puritans had laws to live by. In the story Of Mice and Men, society showed racism and also that people took the law into their own hands.
In 1860-1960 there was lynching in the United States. When the confederates (south) lost the civil war the slaves got freedom and got rights of human beings. This was just to say because segregation wasn 't over in the South and didn 't go away for over 100 years. Any black person in the South accused but not convicted of any crime of looking at a white woman, whistling at a white woman, touching a white woman, talking back to a white person, refusing to step into the gutter when a white person passed on the sidewalk, or in some way upsetting the local people was liable to be dragged from their house or jail cell by lots of people crowds, mutilated in a terrible
In both storylines, there are characters that parallel each other and allow the viewers to see the overarching themes that permeate both movies. In Good Night and Good Luck, the main antagonist, Joseph McCarthy, is a foil for The Crucible’s Abigail Williams. They play the same role in the plot development of the movies and serve as antagonists who cause nothing but trouble. Although they differ in some aspects of their character, much of their motives and methods are quite similar.
Martin Luther King Jr. once said “The ultimate measure of a man is not where he stands in moments of comfort and convenience, but where he stands at times of challenge and controversy.” People tend to behave and deal with life differently according to the situation that they are in. In most cases when a person is in a very blissful and comfortable point of his or her life, they tend to act pleasant towards themselves and other people. This is why it is not fair-minded to judge people when they are in a contented part of their lives. It is during times of trial and suffering where the true soul of a person is revealed and judgment can be made. Readers can see the actions that are made by characters through times of hardship that reveal what they truly are in To Kill a Mockingbird by Harper Lee and The Crucible by Arthur Millar.
Through out the ages the inevitable dilemma of the balance of power is always seen where the governing super power wants to fullycontrol an individual through every aspect of their life. This description nodoubt, fully describes the Puritan belief system in Salem, where the church/court has the authority over everything or else itâˆ(tm)s of the devil. The conceptof individuality is highly resented making everyone follow the leader withoutthought. However there are those who question the authority when situation seemto surpass reason. In The Crucible by Arthur Miller, Proctor, astrong steadfast farmer resides in the small town of Salem, which is engulfedin hysteria due to the accusations of children that many of the townâˆ(tm)s peoplehad partaken in witchcraft. Among the accused is he (Proctor). Proctor is theonly individual willing to question the puritan belief system. He believes thatno man (church/court) should have control over the life of the other. Only Godhas the power to judge and condemn. Therefore, choosing the more tragic outcome by not allowing himself to lose his individuality and sense of self;conflict of ethics between what is right from wrong as well as sheer lack ofcommon sense. Through Proctor, miller shows how an individual should notallow society to divest their sense of self, Instead, hold unto onesindividuality as well as integrity and not let society have the upper hand,leading one to lose their sense of right and wrong.
The Puritans settled this colony and had strict religious beliefs and rules and harsh punishments as well. Church was mandatory and missing it could result in a fine. The church was also patrolled by a man who held a long pole; one end consisted of feathers used to tickle the chins of old men who fell asleep and the other end was a hard wooden knob to alert children who giggled or slept. The Puritans believed that God decided each person’s fate at birth and nothing could be done to change it. Hangings and whippings were common punishments in the Massachusetts Bay Colony. In addition, the church held almost all of the power. Even though ministers were not allowed to hold political office, the clergy made the majority of the important decisions. Lastly, the Massachusetts Bay Colony was truly a man’s world. Women were not included in town meetings or decision making. They were to be patient, prudent, silent, fruitful, etc. The overall attitude of the Puritans seems to be that they are better than everyone else. They considered themselves “a model of Christian Charity” and stated their purpose to be “as a city upon a hill, the eyes of all people are upon us.” These traits seem to be characteristic of the oppressive ways of England that many colonists were trying to be free from. As a woman who enjoys her rights and freedoms, I would not want to live in the Massachusetts Bay
Puritans in the colonies had established communal and family hierarchal orders to govern themselves. At the top of the power structure was the village Pastor who over saw all community grievances and disputes, being either spiritual or worldly in nature. In the family structure the power belonged to the father or the male elder of the household. David Goldfield said, women in Puritan New England were held in high regard and given great responsibilities though they were assumed to be legally and economically dependent on the men of the families. Women’s economic contributions were indeed central to the family’s success. In addition to caring for children, cooking, sewing, gardening, and cleaning, most women engaged in household p...
Nathaniel Hawthorne's The Scarlet Letter and Arthur Miller's The Crucible are both distinctly different narratives of the Salem Witch trials. The Scarlet Letter is a novel and The Crucible is a play. While The Scarlet Letter deals mainly with the sin of adultery, The Crucible mainly deals with witchcraft. Both have obvious similarities like the setting and the crime, however, one of the greatest similarities between the two is the loyalty of the Puritan people to their appointed officials. Whether they were church or court officials, the public supported them no matter what, because in their theocratic society, the eyes of the officials were those of God.
In distinction to the early eighteenth century, the small groups of integral Puritans families dominated the economic, military, and political leadership of New England. The Puritans agreed that the church composed many families and wasn’t isolated people. The Puritan family was the major unit of production in the economic system each family member expected an economically useful benefit and the older children worked in some family industries, trending gardens, forcing animals, rotating wool, and protecting their younger brothers and sisters. Wives needed to supervise servants and apprentices to keep their financial accounts, enlightened crops, and to display goods. The Puritans had faith in the larger community that had a compelling duty to secure the families and to see their functions.
Woman and family roles are considerably different today than they were back in Puritan times. Puritans thought that the public’s foundation rested on the “little commonwealth”, and not merely on the individual. The “little commonwealth” meant that a father’s rule over his family mirrored God’s rule over creation or a king over his subjects. John Winthrop believed that a “true wife” thought of herself “in [weakness] to her husband’s authority.” As ludicrous as this idea may appeal to women and others in today’s society, this idea was truly necessary for colonies to be able to thrive and maintain social order.
“No-no. There be no unnatural case here.” (Parris, The Crucible Act 1 Line 34) The Crucible is a play written by Arthur Miller about the Salem Witch Trials. Miller wrote this play as a critique of McCarthyism, but distanced it by using the Salem Witch Trials as the setting. McCarthyism is the practice of making accusations of treason without proper evidence. Using the Trials as the setting has strong suits, such as allowing him to compare McCarthyism indirectly and the events related strongly with society, and weaknesses, including the time period being so long-standing that it is not a modern example in their era and the idea of witches is farfetched compared to Communism.
Portrayal of Puritan Society in Hawthorne's The Scarlet Letter In the introductory sketch to Nathaniel Hawthorne's novel the "The Scarlet Letter", the reader is informed that one of the author's ancestors persecuted the Quakers harshly. The latter's son was a high judge in the Salem witch trials, put into literary form in Arthur Miller's "The Crucible" (Judge Hathorne appears there). We learn that Hawthorne feels ashamed for their deeds, and that he sees his ancestors and the Puritan society as a whole with critical eyes. Consequently, both open and subtle criticism of the Puritans' practices is applied throughout the novel.
The Crucible agrees with the lens because in Puritan society of 1692 in Salem, Massachusetts, hunts are being held to find those who have sinned and practice witchcraft but unfortunately innocent people are accused. The Crucible is set in Salem, Massachusetts and John Proctor, the protagonist, is a farmer who is found by his wife having an affair with a teenager. Throughout the play, John is trying to make the truth known to a court that has no interest in listening. The conflict in this story occurs when people are being falsely accused of practicing witchcraft for reasons such as revenge or the desire for another’s land. An example of this is Abigail’s desire to be with John Proctor. She wants to be with him so badly that she accuses his wife, Elizabeth Proctor, or “witchery” in order to marry John Proctor. “A man may think God sleeps, but God sees everything, I know it now. I beg you, sir, I beg you-see her what she is…She thinks to dance with me on my wife’s grave! And well she might, for I thought of her softly. God help me, I lusted, and there is promise in such sweat. But it is a whore’s vengeance…” This is a quote from Proctor when he is confessing to the court about his affair with Abigail in order to save his wife and the other innocent people who have been accused. Other examples include the part of the play where Giles tells the court that Putnam is killing his neighbors for their land. “…If Jacobs hangs for a witch he forfeit up his property-that’s law! And there is none but Putnam with the coin to buy so great a piece. This man is killing his neighbors for their land!” This is a quote from Giles Corey from when he claimed that Thomas Putnam was killing others for their land. The entire play was made to be a symbol of the anti-Communist “witch-hunts” of the 1950s, the time of the author, Arthur Miller. The themes in this play are hysteria, reputation, and intolerance.
In the novel The Crucible, by Arthur Miller, highlights a powerful drama based on the chaotic Salem Witch Trials. Salem is governed strictly where the bible is the law and anyone who doesn 't follow the law must be acquainted with the Devil. Witchcraft started by a group of girls getting caught "dancing in the woods" (Trevino). In Salem, dancing was prohibited and the girls knew they were in trouble so without thinking twice they started accusing others of being seen with the Devil. The main character in Salem is John Proctor that portrays the classic tragic hero who falls to his death. This allowed the reader to fully understand that he is a honorable, simple, virtue, and "sinner" man (Miller 19). In his lifetime, he runs into trouble with Abigail that ruined his relationship with God, his wife Elizabeth, and also damaged his self image. We see the external conflict that Miller illustrates with John and the Salem Witch Trials that is examined on his use of two tools: plot and characterization.