Comparing The Salem Witch Trials And The Red Scare

Salem Witch Trials were a series of prosecutions and hearings of people being accused of witchcraft, at which it took place in 1692 and in 1693. Similar to that, was the Red Scare. The Red Scare, commonly known as McCarthyism, took place from 1959-1954 and was a campaign that endorsed the use of unfair allegations and or investigations. The horrible rumors and acts in both events really made people fear what was going on around them and pushed them to act on it, which lead to if you were with us or against us, which came with punishments and or hangings. Both the themes fear and with us or against us, play huge roles and are major factors in the upsurge of the Salem Witch Trials and the Red Scare.
During the time of the Witch Trials, lots

A majority of the time, if you were being accused you either had the chance to save yourself, or save others. They would either make you give yourself up and risk being hung, or giving them names so that you can live. So many people were put on the spot and were afraid of what was going to happen, so they gave others up for themselves. Too many people did this exact thing which lead to lots of people being accused that may not have even been involved. The quote “Reproach me not with fear in the country; there is fear in the country because there is a moving plot to topple Christ in the country!” said by Governor Danforth helps show how fear is represented throughout the book. When he says “there is fear in the country because there is a moving plot to topple Christ in the country!” he’s meaning that people are starting to be afraid because their country is starting to fall apart slowly and that Christ is starting to fall as well. Fear is a strong theme and can be represented in many ways. For example, “There is a misty plot afoot so subtle we should be criminal to cling to old respects and ancient friendship. I have seen too many frightful proofs in court- the Devil is alive in Salem,

The following quote is an excellent example of the theme, are you with us or against us “There is either obedience or the church will burn like Hell is Burning!”. When Parris says this, he is meaning either do what the church is instructing you, or everyone will end up in trouble. In other words, be with us and follow what the church says, or be against us and get in trouble with the church. This brought a lot of tension between the church and the people because it was thought that if you went against the church or didn't follow what the church said, they you were to of been a witch. This threw the people who just didn't agree with what the church was doing, off the edge. Arthur Miller writes in the book “Perhaps because there are those who believe that authority is all of a piece and that to challenge it anywhere is to threaten it everywhere.”. This quote sort of ties into with us or against us because it's saying those who are against us want to challenge the authority, but at times, challenging the authority will come out threatening you and other who’ve challenged it. Thus meaning you weren't with us, rather you were against us. The most important quote that came from the Red Scare that really digs deep within are you with us or against us is “The minute we try to make the script pro-American you pull out”. The reason this gives such insight on