The Flame Of Hysteria In The Crucible

In the dramatic play, The Crucible, written by Arthur Miller, townspeople experience the drastic effects of the endemic belief of witches. Many use the accusation of witches for their own prosperity. Miller uses Tituba as the initiator of the trials, Abigail as the opportunist, and Mary Warren as a possible threat to the situation in order to demonstrate how false fear can kindle the inferno of hysteria.
Tituba ignites the flame of hysteria by accusing others of working with witchcraft. She, while under accusations from Abigail and others, sees a viable solution to the problem, confession. She does this whilst encompassed with fear from the false accusation of witchcraft. This falsity invokes fear, since she does not posses any excuse testable by the court she resorts to indicting others as witches. The realization of the only opportunity given

This notion resides in Abigail’s role in the development of hysteria. Abigail acts as the tinder or fuel to the hysterical flame. She allows the hysteria to grow and flourish in her guiding hands, made possible through her "endless capacity for dissembling… she is all worry and apprehension and propriety” (Miller 9). Abigail’s dissembling manner allows her to not only follow Tituba’s actions, but to take her actions to extreme measures to ensure her safety and overall merit. Although Miller, through his characters, never states that witches do not exist, through chapters such as Abigail, establishes that the people accused do not partake in witchcraft. The consequence of witches consists of executions, typically via hangings, and torture. The rampant false belief of witches and the effect build fear of punishment and allegation. Once someone introduces the dismay to abigail, she resorts to spreading more fear, thus the false belief of black magic invokes actions resulting in fear, seen in Abigail’s harboring of the situation, made possible by her dissimulative manner and conformity to others’