The Witch Hunt in The Crucible and During the Time of...

In this essay, I intend to analyse the historical context of The Crucible and its relevance in today’s society. I believe that Arthur Miller’s life and his experience of McCarthyism strongly influenced the writing of The Crucible. McCarthyism, named after Joseph McCarthy was a period of intense anti-communism, which occurred in the United States from 1948 to about 1956. During this time the government of the United States persecuted the Communist party USA, its leadership, and many others suspected of being communists. The word McCarthyism now carries the suggestion of false, hysterical accusation and large scale attacks on a minority. This anticommunist crusade stumbled in 1954, when the hearings were televised allowing the press and†¦show more content†¦Both The Crucible and McCarthyism involved people being wrongly accused of actions that they did not commit. Also, if someone in The Crucible confesses to being a witch in order to save their life, then their reputation is ruined and no one will ever view them the same way. In both McCarthyism and the Salem witch trials, if the person was not convicted, their image would be ruined and they would have a hard time building their image back to the way i t was. Some cooperated but others, like Miller, refused to give in to questioning. Those who were revealed, falsely or legitimately, as Communists, and those who refused to incriminate their friends, saw their careers suffer, as they were blacklisted from potential jobs for many years afterward. The society in Salem was a theocracy, a government based on religious beliefs. Therefore any sin would be seen as an offence against the public as well as against God. Sins, especially in Salem would most likely have been hidden away from public view, and this would also explain the way Miller wrote The Crucible. Everyone seemed to know, or want to know everyone else’s business. In both McCarthyism and the Salem witch trials, there was a huge amount of pressure to reveal the secret sins of friends and neighbours. People, therefore began to take advantage of this, and began using the opportunity to take out personal grudges, for exampleShow MoreRelatedThe Witch Hunt in The Crucible and During the Time of McCarthyism2059 Words   |  9 PagesThe Themes of The Crucible and Parallels to McCarthyism  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚        Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   Set in Salem, Massachusetts in 1692, Arthur Millers The Crucible describes the witch hunt that saw harmless people hanged for crimes they did not commit. The Crucible provides an accurate historical account of the witch hunt, but its real achievement lies in the many important issues it deals with. Millers concerns with conscience, guilt and justice develop into significant and thought-provoking themes throughoutRead MoreSimilarities Between Mccarthyism And The Crucible997 Words   |  4 PagesWitch hunts have been mentioned in the times of McCarthyism and in The Crucible by Arthur Miller. Being put on the list for being a witch like in The Crucible, or being blacklisted in McCarthyism times was not a good thing. McCarthyism and The Crucible are similar in the concept of witch hunts, but the consequences are rather different. During the times of witch hunts in McCarthyism and in The Crucible, people would just assume someone is a witch or communist. The person being accused would be putRead MoreThe Crucible By Arthur Miller Essay1646 Words   |  7 PagesMiller’s The Crucible. During a time when the U.S. was worried of communism taking over, Miller released The Crucible, which helped to capture the hysteria that was occurring. The play presents itself as a metaphor for the House of Un-American Activities Committee that was created during the Cold War when communism was spreading, but Miller never actually referenced it in the play. Although Arthur Miller’s The Crucible is set in the late 1600s, it offers a fine example of allegory of McCarthyism in theRead MoreSimilarities Between The Crucible And Salem Witch Trials725 Words   |  3 Pagesloves a witch hunt as long as its someone elses witch being hunted.† this is a quote by Walter Kirn. The Crucible and the Salem Witch Trials are very similar to the time of McCarthyism and it the most likely reason the why the book was written. â€Å"It was not only the rise of McCarthyism that moved me, but something which seemed much more weird and mysterious.† (Budick 1985) a quote by the author himself proving it was a factor that made him write the book. They were both witch hunts one literallyRead MoreSimilarities Between The Crucible And Salem Witch Trials1079 Words   |  5 Pages The Crucible is a play that explains the story the Salem Witch trials. Arthur Miller, is the author of this play. McCarthyism played a big role in the creation of The Crucible. Many differences and similarities were drawn between the play and the Red Scare. The horrors of history are passed on from generation to generation in hopes that they will never happen again. People look back on these times and are surprised at how terrible the times were. Yet, in the 1950s, history repeated itself. DuringRead More McCarthyism and The Crucible contain many similarities and differences772 Words   |  4 PagesMcCarthyism and The Crucible contain many similarities and differences in their persecution and accusation of people who are identified as criminals of their societies. McCarthyism and The Crucible contain many similarities and differences in their persecution and accusation of people who are identified as criminals of their societies. Both events in history contain extremely similar circumstances, including the accusation of one person leading to a mass hysteria enveloping a society toRead MoreThe Salem Witch Trials And Mccarthyism1275 Words   |  6 Pagesthat doesn’t keep us from moving forward, but when negative actions are repeated it actually set us back from moving onward with our future. Although, many teenagers feel that history no longer matters because it is in the past, the Salem Witch Trials and McCarthyism are prime examples of how history constantly repeats itself and influence how we live today for the reason that both historic eras consist of the following: they have similar histories, connect in significant ways, and include comparableRead MoreThe Salem Witch Trials And Mccarthyism1327 Words   |  6 PagesSalem Witch Trials and McCarthyism are prime examples of how history constantly repeats itself and influence how we live today for the reason that both historic eras consist of the following: they have similar history, connect in significant ways, and include comparable situations and themes tha t are evident today effecting us on a daily bases whether or not we realize. Salem, Massachusetts was the home of a theocracy government system meaning God was the leader of their society (â€Å"The Crucible† 19)Read MoreCommunism And Communism In Arthur Millers The Crucible711 Words   |  3 Pagestitled â€Å"The Crucible†. The McCarthy hearings of the 1950s inspired the notable play. Consequently, after the hearing, McCarthyism became a vociferous campaign carried out by Senator Joseph McCarthy, which accused people of communism. To declare, Miller uses an analogy using the events of the Salem Witch Trials of 1693 to expose the ugly truth behind communism and McCarthyism. To begin, the word crucible derived from the Latin root word â€Å"crux† means cross. In explanation, a crucible is a severeRead MoreEssay about McCarthyism as Modern Witch Hunts1614 Words   |  7 PagesMcCarthyism as Modern Witch Hunts McCarthyism: The Real Witch Hunts Some people nowadays may consider the government, or some of its agencies, corrupt. Todays scenario is nothing compared to that of McCarthyism in the 1950s. During McCarthyism, the nation was being torn apart. Their loyalty to one another was crushed and common human decency went down the drain (Miller, Crucible xiv). These Communist hunts were eerily similar to the witch hunts and trials of Salem Massachusetts in