The Crucible Background

The Author: Arthur Miller Born in NYC in Awarded Pulitzer Prize in Other well-known plays of his include Death of a Salesman and A View from the Bridge. Known not only for his writing, but also his marriage to Marilyn Monroe.

The Crucible The Crucible was published in It is a play concerning the moral choices people must make under irrational community pressure, otherwise known as mob mentality. In particular, it focuses on the Salem Witch Trials in 1692 in Salem, Massachusetts. Salem, Mass. was a Puritan town at the time.

 Where did they come from and why did they come to America?  What did they believe and what were their lifestyles like?

 Puritanism began in England in the late 1500’s as a religious and political movement.  Recall: What was the Protestant Reformation and what are Protestants?  Puritans were Protestants who sought to “purify” English Protestantism. They felt the Protestant Reformation had not gone far enough in breaking away from Catholicism.

 Protestantism = branch of Christianity that had broken off from Roman Catholicism due to different interpretations of the Bible and views of church practices. The break was known as the Reformation.  Puritans were more conservative than most Protestants in England at the time, which is why they chose to relocate.

 The Puritans came from England.  Massachusetts Bay Colony, 1630 = first Puritan settlement in America.

 The Puritans are often confused with Pilgrims.  The Pilgrims came to America in 1620 (10 years earlier) and founded the Plymouth colony in the same area.  They are similar, but Puritans are still more conservative in their religion.

 The principles of Puritanism were a strong sense of sin and fear of divine vengeance. (?)  The Puritans viewed all pleasures as the temptations of Satan.  Therefore, they banned music, dancing, and the theater.  They were supposed to live simple, hardworking lives completely devoted to religion.

 How could a society filled with Puritans lend itself to accusations of witchcraft?  Why would women (and some men) be accused of being witches? What could they have done?

Reception of The Crucible Fast forward back to the 1950’s when Arthur Miller wrote the play…almost 300 years later… In 1953, the theme of the play made many people uncomfortable, causing it to close after only a few months. What was going on in the year 1953 that could cause this discomfort?

McCarthyism/2 nd Red Scare Americans were scared of communists because of the Cold War going on with Russia, so it took very little to arouse suspicion. Early 1950’s = Senator Joseph McCarthy from Wisconsin began announcing that he had lists of Americans who were suspected of being communists. The Second Red Scare = “witch-hunts” led by Senator McCarthy of Congress’ House of Un- American Activities Committee. (There was also a Red Scare in the 1920’s). What does the term “witch hunt” mean now? 1954 = Senate held hearings about these lists and the hearings were televised nationwide.

McCarthyism cont. Blacklisting = putting certain people on a list so that no company will hire these people. Communism = social/political/economic system based on controlling production in wealth in order to promote equality in society. The theory itself isn’t supposed to be negative, but it has not worked well in practice due to corrupt leaders and lack of individual accountability among citizens [Examples: Russia (Lenin, Stalin) and Cuba (Castro)].

Famous People Accused of Being Communists Langston Hughes Charlie Chaplin Burl Ives Helen Keller Orson Welles Lena Horne Arthur Miller himself, in 1957!

The Crucible as an Allegory The Crucible is considered an allegory (?) of the McCarthy witch- hunts. Therefore, it is historical fiction which draws a comparison between two very real events in American history.

What is a crucible? -A place of extreme heat, “a severe test” -AKA a symbol!

The Crucible Themes: 1. People put up facades (fronts) in order to get the public to perceive them a certain way. 2. Jealousy and greed can be very destructive. 3. There are some principles/beliefs that are worth sacrificing one’s life for. 4. Love (for others and/or for God) can redeem people.

Crucible Act 2 Group Discussion: Groups will be assigned to discuss either the John perspective or the Elizabeth perspective, and then we will share out. John Proctor Perspective Think about a time when you have wronged someone. How did you feel? What did you do to make amends? How was this received by the person you wronged? What are some similarities and differences between your experience and John and Elizabeth’s? Elizabeth Proctor Perspective Think about a time when you were wronged by someone. How did you feel? What did the person do to make amends? How did you receive this? What are some similarities and differences between your experience and John and Elizabeth’s?

Crucible Act 2 Journal Entry #2 Consider the following instances in Act 2: the descriptions of Goody Osburn and Goody Good, Proctor’s interactions with Mary, and Hale’s comments toward Elizabeth. How would you describe the way women are being treated in these instances? Then consider these other instances in the play so far: Abigail threatening the girls in Act 1, Rebecca advising Proctor to make peace with Parris, and Mary becoming an official of the court. How would you describe the way women are behaving in these instances? Why do these different portrayals of women matter?

Act 3  Act 4 Transition Journal Entry Review how Act 3 of The Crucible ended (pp ). After reviewing, address the following questions: *What do you think will happen in Act 4 and why? *Which characters do you think will be the focus of Act 4 and why?

What to look out for/annotate in “Why I Wrote The Crucible” Why did Miller write The Crucible? What fascinated him about Salem and the witch trials? What did he learn when he went to Salem? What other historical events does Miller compare the trials to? Why did he think it was important to make The Crucible a movie? Also note anything that is unfamiliar or confusing to you.