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The Crucible Research Paper

2008 Words9 Pages

The Crucible is a play written by Arthur Miller, set during the Salem witch trials that occurred from 1692-1693. In the play, the community is consumed by hysteria, chaos, and accusations due to the rumors of witchcraft being spread. Throughout the play, the reader explores how the people and the society are destroyed with the protagonist, John Proctor, linked to the chaos trying to juggle his guilt, love, and integrity. As the hysteria spreads and innocent people’s lives are at risk, Miller uses evidence in multiple ways to successfully establish the play's themes. One of his themes proves how the spread of false rumors and selfishness causes society to slowly diminish due to the hysteria lurking. Another shows that while some people are good …show more content…

I hear the boot of Lucifer, I see his filthy face! And it is my face, and yours, Danforth![...] God damns our kind, and we will burn, we will burn together!” (Miller 876). Even after fighting for his wife, others, and himself, John is accused by Mary who says that he came upon her at night, clawing her neck. Due to the paranoia and emotions that cause him to lose control, his true thoughts come out and he begins saying that hell is rising and a fire is going to burn all liars as well as himself. Through his words and actions, he symbolizes the downfall of Salem by proving how destroyed society is and that he has given up hope. As a result, his death occurs and the hysteria continues to spread, unbalancing good from evil. When one decides to be good or evil, one takes over the other, unbalancing the society. When choosing to be good or evil, the factors can depend on many reasons, such as personal benefit or a fear of the other. Good and evil motifs repeat throughout the play, with good following those who are innocent and evil following those who accuse others of witchcraft. Due to the repetitiveness of these two ideas, some people start good and become evil, while others never …show more content…

By yelling this, John tells Danforth that his word to the village is enough and that he does not want to ruin his name for his children and for those who are previously sacrificed in the play. Even with John’s attempt, Danforth says his word is final and still chooses his reputation over his respect by telling John that if he does not give the court the paper, he will take it as a defiance of his confession and have him hanged. This causes fear in court as they try to have Danforth let John go, but he never does. Because of Danforth's reputation, he does not want to go against his word due to him being characterized to think he is the most intelligent man in Salem. As a result, John rips the confession and shortly after, loses the battle he is fighting, ending the play. Overall, I believe that The Crucible is successful in the way the themes are proven, because Miller uses different types of evidence and multiple characters to express his themes. I would recommend this play to my peers and other young adults due to the impact it has emotionally and the way it brings back a haunting story of the past. While many of the scenes are depressing, a lot of the others show strength and defiance, making this play empowering and one that should be read in high schools

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