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Negative Consequences Of Guilt In The Crucible By Arthur Miller

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Imagine being placed in a situation where if one does not confess to their actions or beliefs, even if they are not true, there will be negative consequences. One would either confess truthfully or not, based the consequence and if they are willing to go through it for the greater good. This theme has been demonstrated through many ways such as in books, mainstream current media, and in the history of the United States. Negative consequences can influence whether or not one chooses to rightly, or falsely, confess as evidenced by characters in the Crucible by Arthur Miller, President Clinton confessing his affair after denying it, and finally, during the McCarthy era when politicians attempted to convince many Hollywood stars to falsely confess …show more content…

This state of tension was called the Cold War and was between the United States and the Soviet Union. During this time, politicians accused and forced people to confess of being communist or “Red”. In “Ted-Ed” on McCarthyism, HUAC, and the Red Scare, it is stated people accused were asked to incriminate their friends and associates. If they retaliated or resisted, they could lose their jobs and/or go to jail if they did not confess. During the Hollywood Blacklist, 10 Screenwriters, actors, directors, etc, did not confess to being communist so they were arrested. The fact that people accused would be forced to confess to being “red” or else they would be arrested or lose their jobs, shows how the people's decisions and choices on if they should confess or not, could be influenced. The idea of losing one's job or getting arrested is a major result that could have influenced how the people thought. Continuing forward, during the Hollywood Blacklist, if people confessed to being communist, the next question asked would be about who else is a communist. People would have to falsely confess that others were communist with them others. People were forced to confess and if they did, they had to face another question of who else is communist. They would still be threatened of the punishment which would influence their decisions of if they should falsely expose other communists. The constant reminder of the punishment is the negative consequence which can influence whether people will exploit others or save people's lives and receive the

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In the 1940 's and 1950 's, an anti-Communist movement swept the United States of America. Fueled by the anti-Communist actions of Congress, particularly a Senator from Wisconsin by the name of Joseph McCarthy, the movement escalated and many people lost their jobs as a result of various blacklists. Congressional hearings, both in front of HUAC and McCarthy Senate committee were a study in organized persecution. The actions taken during the "Red Scare" were eventually given the general name McCarthyism. McCarthyism is the practice of making accusations of subversion or treason without proper regard for evidence.

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The House of Representatives voted 346 to 17 to charge the Hollywood Ten with contempt of Congress. They were then sent to prison for 1 year in prison, $1,000 fines, and they were blacklisted in front of the general public. During the beginning of the prison term Edward Dmytryk broke and gave the names of 26 communists. He was released from jail. The blacklist then slowly grew until about 500 names were on the list.

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720 Words | 3 Pages

Imagine the wicked House of Un-American Activities Committee (HUAC) arrest an innocent man. The HUAC does not arrest the man because he has committed a murder, but because he is a communist. Many communists became victims of HUAC in the Red Scare crisis of the 1950s. These communists made the right decision to speak out for their freedom and against injustice. These communists also spoke out for their freedom of different beliefs.

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1078 Words | 5 Pages

In Arthur Miller’s play, The Crucible (1953), he shows the corruptness of the courts and their influence on the decisions of Abigail Williams. Abby was just a girl, she loved to pretend. She and the other girls of Salem loved it, they danced in the woods and pretended to be witches. That is until they were found by Reverend Parris, after which two girls pretended to be bewitched because they were afraid of the consequences. This is the beginning of the chaos that would consume Salem, ending in almost 20 innocents hung.

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1039 Words | 5 Pages

In times of fear and hysteria in the U.S. it is mass chaos and it only gets worse and worse. During the time of both the witch-hunt eras, whether for communist or actual witches, they prove to have many similarities between them. Both of these times were full of confusion and lying which lead to the temporary downfall of the authority at that time. Joseph McCarthy proved to be a factor in this time and add on to the chaos that was America. Arthur Miller wrote about these times in a book called The Crucible, based on the witch trial era.

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311 Words | 2 Pages

From the story The Crucible there were a few characters that lied to get out of trouble. They lied because they did not want to get whipped or hung. Tituba, Abigail and Betty were the 3 main characters that lied to get out of trouble they were in. Tituba was the first, she was questioned after she was caught swaying in front of a fire singing her Barbados songs in the woods at night. That was a form of witchcraft so she was sentenced to be whipped or hung.

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750 Words | 3 Pages

arthur miller gave us a great example of this in his play “the crucible” by representing the pandemonium that could occur if one isn't honest through two characters, Abigail Williams, and John Proctor. the main protagonist, John proctor, always ends up in a tossed up frenzy of either situational dishonesty, or veracity to protect himself and others from being treated or tried in an unjust manner,

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462 Words | 2 Pages

The main accuser during this time was Joseph McCarthy. The people who were accused were just everyday people. Joseph McCarthy said that he knew people who are members of the communist party working for the government, he may have done this because he didn’t like those people. This scared everyone, primarily because during the years that followed WWII everyone feared communist. So after McCarthy made these statements, it almost made like a ripple effect by having everyday people, being accused of people that “suspected” that they were communists as well.

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Those who remained truthful died a respectful christian. In The Crucible by Arthur Miller, John Proctor is a main character who relies on a admirable reputation. John Proctor made a mistake with having an affair with Abigail, this can cause a major affects on his life. Mary Warren was going to tell the truth in court so that Elizabeth would

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398 Words | 2 Pages

“The Hollywood Ten, McCarthyism, and the Witches of Hollywood” Back in 1947, when the Cold War with the Soviet Union had occurred, the House of Un-American Activities Committee was checking to see if any suspicious communists’ activity was going on in Hollywood. This event caused nine screenwriters and one film director (lvah Bessie, Herbert Biberman, Lester Cole, Edward Dmytryk, Ring Lardner Jr., John Howard Lawson, Albert Maltz, Sam Ornitz, Robert Adrian Scott, and Dalton Trumbo) to get arrested, and they were known as “The Hollywood Ten”. “During the investigations, HUAC coerced prominent people from the film industry to declare their patriotism and give up large names of colleagues suspected of having politically unfriendly tendencies”.

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185 Words | 1 Pages

When people are in a group, they feel more anonymous, and less likely to be caught doing something wrong. A concept that Arthur Miller shows clearly in The Crucible. According to the article this causes people to feel superior and untouchable. As the “grouping” article states “They may also feel a diminished sense of personal responsibility for collective actions.” Because of a person’s fear of being responsible for wrong doing, indulging in such groups makes them feel as though they will not be caught or they feel seemingly invincible from penalty.

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1833 Words | 8 Pages

The Cold War is often seen as a dark time in American history, not just because of the international conflict, but because of the strife it caused within the United States itself. During the Cold War, the general culture in America was fearful and paranoid about the rise and spread of Communism within their society. One example of how this hysteria manifested is illustrated in the movie, Trumbo, which tells the story of when the Hollywood industry blacklisted famous writer Dalton Trumbo, along with other workers in the industry, who were connected to Communism. Dalton Trumbo and his associates faced bigotry and were effectively attacked for standing by their ideals, which was a reflection of how American culture had changed at that time. By

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800 Words | 4 Pages

In 1962 in Salem, a Massachusetts colony the most bizarre thing happened, the colony was struck by one of the most insane trials ever, the witch trials. These trials lasted a breath taking year, a lot longer than they should have. This catastrophe is demonstrated by the tragic play by Arthur Miller The Crucible. In Arthur Miller’s play, the main antagonist Abigale sets up the trials in order to get with her lover John proctor who was already married. In the process of her evil scheme to eliminate John 's wife, Abigail framed many others to cover up her true plot.

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1001 Words | 5 Pages

In "The Hossack Murder", the audience is faced with complex moral dilemmas, pushing us to reevaluate our understanding of right and wrong. The possibility of Margaret Hossack being a victim of domestic abuse raises ethical questions about self-defense and the limits of protection over abusive relations. The media coverage and public attention surrounding the case raise ethical questions about the responsibility of the media and the potential influence of sensationalist and biased narratives. While "The Crucible '' similarly presents moral dilemmas through characters' decisions, struggles, beliefs emphasizing the right or wrong use of influence and power. For example, John Proctor faces a moral dilemma when pressured to sign a false confession admitting to witchcraft.

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469 Words | 2 Pages

This kind of hysteria caused the Red Scare, which was a period that Americans thought communists were working to destroy America. This mass fear of communism ruined people’s lives and made them turn against their own family and friends. Joseph McCarthy played an

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