many similarities to the affairs that were unfolding around the author at the time of writing, the mass hysteria aroused by the communists ‘witch-hunts’ of cold war, 1950s America. As we follow the harrowing results of released repression, the hysterical accusations of Salem bears direct resemblance to communist McCarthyism as well as other similarities that unfold as the play narrates one of the most tragic periods of American history. Amidst the apparently insipid, puritanical village of Salem there was little controversy due to its populations consent to theocratic autocracy however this apparent peaceful, holy sanctuary was rife with evils that conjured the demonic hysteria throughout Salem village; these were caused by an amalgamation …show more content…
It was during his early career as a Judge that “McCarthy made the needs of children involved in contested divorces a priority.” this extract from Thomas Reeve’s biography that suggests McCarthy experienced a troubled childhood that could have lead to desire for power. During his fist election campaign, he accused his opposition, Robert La Follette, of War profiteering despite having personally profited from WWII. His early monotonous Senate career erupted in 1950 when he produced a list of 205 suspected communists exclaiming “The state department is infested with communists…this list of names were made known to the Secretary of State as being members of the Communist Party and who nevertheless are still working and shaping policy in the State Department.” The majority of accusations had little or no verification and is seen as propaganda aimed to exploit the fear of communism that had arose from the cold war. This act of inflammatory manipulation foreshadowed McCarthy’s evolution to become the chairman of the Government Committee on Operations of the Senate, and thus the Witch hunts