The Crucible Arthur Miller
Crucible Definition A ceramic or metal container in which metals or other substances may be melted or subjected to very high temperatures. a place or occasion of severe test or trial. "the crucible of combat" a place or situation in which different elements interact to produce something new. "the crucible of the new Romantic movement"
Salem Witch Trials Versus McCarthyism
Salem Witch Trials Salem Village (now Danvers), Massachusetts 20 people executed. 12 women were previously accused in MA and CT. First “witch” who hanged was Bridget Bishop. More than 150 people were accused between February and September 1692.
Why Witches??? 1.Salem Village was the edge of the known universe for the Puritans. What was out there: evil, savages, etc. 2. The harsh realities of Puritan life: illness, starvation, recent Smallpox pandemic, British/French war that affected the colonies, rivalry with Salem Town (Salem), and fear of Native American attacks. 3. Fear of the outside. 4. Resentment of neighbors. *** Witches, according to the Puritan beliefs, were given supernatural powers by the Devil to harm others, in return for their service.
Two real causes for the “possessions”. Fungus In an effort to explain by scientific means the strange afflictions suffered by those "bewitched" Salem residents in 1692, a study published in Science magazine in 1976 cited the fungus ergot (found in rye, wheat and other cereals), which toxicologists say can cause symptoms such as delusions, vomiting and muscle spasms. Epilepsy a group of neurological diseases characterized by epileptic seizures: episodes that can vary from brief and nearly undetectable to long periods of vigorous shaking. [4] In epilepsy, seizures tend to recur, and have no immediate underlying cause while seizures that occur due to a specific cause are not deemed to represent epilepsy. [4]
Hysteria Definition: exaggerated or uncontrollable emotion or excitement, especially among a group of people.
Sexism in Puritan Society Women were considered weaker and morally feabler. The women condemned were usually single and/or did not follow Puritanism to the letter of the law. Possessed: Betty Parris (9 years old) and Abigail Williams (11 years old) - Daughter and niece of Samuel Parris, the minister of Salem Village. -Several other girls in the community exhibited similar symptoms. -Parris’ Caribbean slave, Tituba was arrested. (Fear of the unknown) - Tituba confessed.
The Results Decided later that hearsay and spectral evidence (dreams, visions, etc.) shouldn’t be treated as the same type of evidence as any other crime. “It would be better that 10 suspected witches go free than 1 innocent person be condemned.”
McCarthyism
Senator Joe McCarthy 1.Mediocre Republican Senator from Wisconsin. 2.Possibly made up accusation about Communists in the State Dept. 3.Created HUAC - The House Un-American Activities Committee - to root out all Communist sympathizers in the US. 4.HUAC was based on fear and paranoia.
McCarthy - Continued
The Communist Witch Hunt 1.“Alleged” Communists were summoned before HUAC. 1.They were asked distorted questions to link them to Russia or Communist ideology. 3. Never had any real evidence. McCarthy used old paperwork against them that didn’t prove anything, and would create “evidence” that was never allowed to be viewed by anyone but him. When he was cornered. He would resort to sayings like “it’s not my fault you are too stupid to understand.” 1.Results: Blacklisted (isolated professionally - so others won’t interact with you for fear of being linked to Communism), isolated, and/or isolated from the US for over 30 years.
Famous Blacklisted “Communists” 1.Arthur Miller 2.Humphrey Bogart 3.Katherine Hepburn 4.James Cagney 5.Dalton Trumbo 6.Charlie Chaplin 7.Lloyd Bridges 8.Langston Hughes 9.Pete Seeger 10.Orson Welles 11.Harry Belafonte
Communism in Hollywood !!!