Manipulation And Corruption In The Crucible By Arthur Miller

Parker Lawrence

Mr.Revels

English III H

26 March 2023

Lawrence The Crucible Synthesis Essay Throughout time people have used others as scapegoats in the hope of maintaining power and gaining control over the public's favor, and a society partaking in this is no different. In Arthur Miller’s play The Crucible and his writing “Why I Wrote The Crucible” he speaks on the topics of manipulation and corruption being the result of mass hysteria within a society. The events that inspired his work and this belief system were: The Salem Witch Trials and The Second Red Scare which from history are known as events of baseless accusations from which many people were falsely accused and punished for actions that they did not commit. Despite the fact

This is a prime example of the repercussions of the numerous and baseless accusations made by The House Un-American Activities Committee reaction to the fear of the rise of the Communist Party. Since everybody was considered a suspect by their neighbors and friends, mass suspicion and mistrust arose within America and led to fragmentations in the bonds of friendship between the people. These fragmentations later evolved into accusations from which one was called to the stand in order to prove their innocence. More often than not these names would be of people who many years ago had attended an event vaguely related to Communism or had nothing connecting it at all, but since they were called to the stand the only way to save themselves would be to supply other names to the court. These actions would only continue the cycle of accusations and hysteria within society; resulting in more and more of society becoming affected by the spreading

This is just another example of the The House Un-American Activities Committee using the excuse of “hunting communists” to accuse whoever they want in order further their cause of controlling the public through the use of fear and undetected conspiracy. With the committee overseeing the hunt for communists they had the authority to call into question whoever they want, and with this power, fear was invoked within the hearts of people and businesses across America; an example of this is Hollywood. Yes, even the biggest and most influential film industry was affected by these allegations, and to maintain its credibility and status, Hollywood too listed many names of employees (actors, singers, writers, and directors) who could be communists. This act by Hollywood is once again a desperate attempt to pass on blame or focus to another to keep themselves safe from