I am here today to defend my client, Thomas Putnam, who has allegedly been sending his daughter, Ruth, out to falsely accuse neighbors of witchcraft. The reason, as declared by Giles Corey, is to buy off his convicted neighbor’s land in order to expand his estate. However, I am here to refute these inadequate claims with the clear and defined truth. Nevertheless, I will not claim that my client, Mr. Putnam, is a complete saint as he (and with numerous others) has his flaws. Yet, with Mr. Corey raising these erroneous claims, I will not stand here and let his faulty and inaccurate logic falsely persuade the jury.
Thomas Putnam is a greedy man who is bitter and use to getting his own way, which motivates him to falsely accuse his neighbors of witchcraft. He is a rich man who can afford to buy any land forfeited by a witch. To him the, Salem witchcraft trials, is an opportunity to get rid of his neighbors and take land away from them. He does this to a man named George
In the Crucible by Arthur Miller, a prominent conflict that ensues is the community versus power seekers. The story takes place at a time when people are living in a very closely knit community based on Puritan principles, and, consequently, prone to intolerance towards opposition or dissent. Not to mention, the whole town is involved, not simply one family whose drama might be representative of the plight of the community. In addition, such a rigid society implies that any form of individuality is considered dangerous. With a society this controlling, community members are more likely to act out and pursue personal interests.
Throughout history the fear of corruption and change has compelled people to go to drastic measures to prevent it. The Crucible, a play by arthur Miller, is set in an environment of religious citizens who fear that the devil and witchcraft will corrupt their society. Much like The Crucible, McCarthyism caused the citizens in America to fear corruption of the government by communism. Arthur Miller used his play the crucible as a direct response to McCarthyism and through this play Miller writes about the Salem witch trials during the McCarthy period to comment on how history repeats itself. The social and political factors in The Crucible resemble those in America during the red scare and McCarthyism.
There are many points in our lives in which we may be forced to make decisions that may prove to define us as a person. In some cases, these choices can impact those around us as well as ourselves, though not always for their benefit. When ones moral integrity is brought into question by others in exchange for their life, they must then make a decision upon whether they value their personal and social honour or their own life more, which may cause them to succumb to hasty decision making, which could lead to their demise, or the possible harming of others. This reality of life is evident in Arthur Miller’s The Crucible and comes to light in a multitude of situations, and in both aspects of the hypothetical decision; with characters choosing
As a French Proverb states, “greedy eaters dig their graves with their teeth”. People are consumed with wanting more and more rather than knowing what they need in life. The human race constantly carries on this pattern of greed. A theme of greed is shown in Arthur Miller’s The Crucible.
Back in the late sixteen hundreds the people during that time are very strict on religion. During the time a colony in the Americas called the puritans believed in witchcraft. People that are accused are guilty till proven innocent. In the Crucible it portrays injustice by how Danforth is not following court that is ruled by religion, Abigail intimidating the court, and the accused not having proper court rights. The following reasons will explain why the crucible is injustice.
In Arthur Miller's “The Crucible” (1953), it is shown that people seem to forget basic morals when dealing with mass hysteria. Puritans in the play do not want the devil or any other demonic figures such as witches in their community, they will go to great lengths, as far as turning their back on their own people to get rid of these demonic figures as shown in “The Crucible”. This idea of witches in the community caused chaos in the village which led to the deaths of 20 people in the village. Do people in the play not care about the consequences other people face because of their actions? In the play, loyalty falls far below self selfishness in the face of mass hysteria.
Do the concepts of good and evil exist? Many people would say yes. In late 17th-century Salem, Massachusetts, these concepts were truly put to the test. In the Puritan culture that was descended from the arrival of the Pilgrims in 1620, the people of New England were expected to live a life that was strictly devoted to Biblical dictates and ideals. Unfortunately, the Puritan mindset of the time period evolved in such a way that a belief in the possibility of the devil's interference in people's lives, in evil spirits, witches and warlocks, became a part of everyday life.
People’s thoughts, when expressed as words, have lots of power. When many people have the same or similar thoughts; those thoughts can lead to large numbers of people making very poor decisions and can affect the lives of many people. In the play The Crucible and during the era of McCarthyism in the 1950’s; thoughts of a few became the thoughts of many and led to some people being treated unfairly and punished for no reason. In the The Crucible, Abigail Williams began accusing other people of witchcraft.
“It must come out-my enemies will bring it out. Let me know what you have done there. Abigail, do you understand that I have many enemies?” (Miller 10)(direct characterization).
Goodness and nobility is determined by an individual’s morality and their willingness to follow a virtuous path in their life. It is also determined by the ability of an individual to acknowledge their shortcomings and become more self-aware. In The Crucible by Arthur Miller, John Proctor is a good man as he showcases righteous morals and principles. This is shown, as he ends his affair with Abigail, protects his wife and his friends’ wives, and dies to preserve his integrity and honour. First, John Proctor shows his goodness, by refusing the physical advances of Abigail, who wishes to continue their love affair.
Many countries have been corrupted by a singular emotion, greed. The leaders of those countries wanted everything to themselves. During the Cold War, Joseph McCarthy was full of greed in the sense that he accused people of being Communist. The desire of freeing America from the threat of Communism urged McCarthy to accuse everybody, who defied him, of being a Communist. One such person who was accused was Arthur Miller.
Power, by definition, is one's authority or influence over others. Arthur Miller’s play The Crucible, follows the town of Salem, Massachusetts as it experiences a witchcraft epidemic in the year of 1693. Salem, a very religious town with Puritan ideals, where the amount of land one owns dictates power within the society. The eldest son of the wealthiest man in Salem, Thomas Putnam, is a sinister, and selfish man who manipulates the townsfolk in his favor. Generally if one has a soiled reputation, they will not have much power in the Puritan society, yet, Thomas Putnam’s wealth overrides this determining factor, granting him power and the ability to beguile others.
Greed for power has always been evil and even made a saint turn into a demon. As the quote goes “All power tends to corrupt and an absolute power corrupts absolutely” (unquote), which is true not only in the fictitious stories but also in real life and Shakespeare, th9e greatest writer ever known, has always been in habit of making fictitious character come alive and Macbeth is no exception to the rule. The character of Macbeth has two sides, one which is wholesome while other been dubious. He symbolized great ambition but went overboard and in the process not only became corrupt but also became a killer. Macbeth reflects great strength but within he has his own weakness and thus good over took evil resulting in its downfall and finally his own death.
