A quote by Edward R. Murrow states, No one man can terrorize a whole nation unless we are all his accomplices. During the Red Scare, Senator McCarthy did terrorize a whole nation, and Arthur Miller became a victim of McCarthyism. The community around has always been a place where secrets and grudges are held against someone. This act, written by Senator Pat McCarren, one of McCarthy's supporters, required that any organization that was determined to be communist had to register with the Justice Department, made it a felony to try and establish a dictatorship in the United States, and gave the government the ability to arrest anyone whom the president believed to be a spy or a saboteur. During the McCarthy era people accused would start accusing other people in order to get the attention off of them, because the only way to prove you are not a communist was to name a communist. WebThe Crucible is an allegory for what happened during the "red scare" in American in the 1950's. The Crubible is an allegory to McCarthyism, how people were accused, in this case people accused for whichcraft and lacked knowledge to believe they were true. This is similar to a time in the 1950s when Joseph McCarthy accuses government officials of communism and that ultimately leads to hundreds of citizens losing their jobs. This all happened during the Salem Witch Miller, creator of The Crucible was blacklisted, and accused of being a communist along with many other entertainers (Arthur Miller). In the 1940s to the 1950s, America was extremely concerned about the rise of Communism throughout Europe and China. For any subject. Parts of this act have been repealed over the years, and most of it is no longer applicable as of the 1990s. An allegory is a story with two levels of meaning- literal and symbolic. As people in Salem were accused of witchcraft and brought before the tribunal, they were asked to confess their guilt and name the other people in town who also participated with them in dark rituals. In the beginning of the play Arthur admits to altering the play for dramatic effect., Arthur Millers The Crucible is a very wise piece that perfectly explains the story of two time periods. This allowed people to get rid of a person and take their job or property. When people think of the play, The Crucible, they usually picture the witch trials and women being hanged, but Arthur Miller depicts the witch trials in a completely new light. WebAn allegory is an extended metaphor in which the characters or objects in the story represent an outside meaning. While most people use the book to study the Witch Trials, with closer examination it is easy to conclude that it is a direct allegory to the Red Scare and the McCarthy era of 1950s America. flashcard sets. What is the main purpose of The Crucible? The main purpose of The Crucible is to draw parallels between the events of the Salem witch craze and what was happening in America at the time of the play's writing, during McCarthyism. The events that took place during the time the play was written were very similar to the Salem witch hunts. The play's author, Arthur Miller, was himself a victim of I saw Goody Osburn with the Devil! So Arthur Miller uses this character as a spokesman of his own beliefs about these but uses the book of The Crucible as an allegory for what happened in the USA during the red scare and uses his beliefs in this world In The Crucible by using hidden undertones in it. Similarly, americans were being blacklisted by McCarthy because they believed these people may have. The witch-hunt was a perverse manifestation of the panic which set in among all classes when the balance began to turn toward greater individual freedom (Miller, 16). Russias gain of power throughout Eurasia showed off the USSRs strength and abilities, threatening the Western Powers. Due to his refusal to answer, the committee charged him with contempt of Congress and sentenced him to a $500 fine or a 30-day stint in jail. WebThe Crucible is an allegory to the Red Scare and the McCarthy era drastically by its plot, characters, and the flow and outcome of the court trials. On the surface, The Crucible is an allegory ,or extended metaphor, using the story of the Salem witch trials to critique Joseph McCarthy and the Red Scare. This was a time during which the fear for the growth in power of the Soviet Union was spreading in America. In an allegory the character,events, and instances (Definition of Allegory R104). The period in which this anti-communist hysteria occurred was known as the Red Scare. Arthur Miller, disgusted and inspired by these events, wrote The Crucible as an allegory for McCarthyism and the Red Scare. Abigail Williams was John Proctor's niece and worked as a servant in John and Elizabeth Proctor's home. Eventually, the fear of communism faded, and President Eisenhower shut McCarthy and his communist witch hunt down. In one account Arthur Miller read, written by the minister Samuel Parris, who was one of the leaders of the witch hunt in Salem, Abigail accuses Elizabeth of witchcraft by gently touching Elizabeth and then screaming that her fingers were burning. The Crucible, a play written by Arthur Miller in 1953, is a dramatized and partially fictionalized story of the Salem witch The Crucible by Arthur Miller is an allegory for the Red Scare in the McCarthy Era because, The Crucible and McCarthyism 73) This quote elaborates on why the accusers were not suspected, Reverend Parris has a reputation of being a holy man of the church which makes him improbable to witchcraft and Abigail who has kept her reputation clean amidst of all the misdeeds she has done. An allegory is defined as a story, poem, character in a story, or picture with a hidden connotation. Danforth s statement of a person is either with this court or he must be counted against it , there be no road between clearly demonstrates the Puritans prospective of seeing everything in black and white. He was drawn to the story of the Salem witch trials, and the more he learned about the trials, the hysteria, and the unfounded accusations made by the young women in Salem, the more parallels he saw between the contemporary events of the Red Scare and McCarthyism. He writes about a character by the name of John Proctor, a sinned man who sacrifices himself in order to save himself, just like how Miller refused to sell out his friends that were possible communists. Pointing the finger away from her and on to others. 13) This quote emphasizes how later when he asks questions to the suspects, the testimony they give will be backed by him since he is an expert. What is an Allegory?. He took some creative license with the storytelling to make a stronger impact on the audience. This was not a war fought on a battlefield, but rather one fought politically and economically. Because I cannot have another in my life! There is danger for me. An allegory is a story with an obvious meaning but if you look deeper into it, there is another meaning. So for a brief explanation, McCarthyism was carried out under senator Joseph McCarthy during 1950-1954 against alleged communist in the US government and in other institutions. Hi! Arthur Miller develops an allegory in The Crucible by comparing the Salem Witch Trials to McCarthyism by using ringleaders, persecuted couples, and hypocrisy in the government or legal system., There are still difficulties found when interpreting The Crucible as a strict allegorical representation of the 1950s McCarthyism. Our summaries and analyses are written by experts, and your questions are answered by real teachers. The crucible was a tragedy because almost the whole town was accused of being a witch or having dolls in their homes which made then think they were doing something with the dolls to harm someone else. Power is defined as The ability to do something or act in a particular way, especially as as a faculty or quality. Throughout history, women have significantly lacked not only power but the ability to be recognized as equal to their male counterparts. As mentioned in the Background page of the test, since, Judge Danforths aforementioned quote on page 1324 shows his concern for himself and his reputation rather than the lives of the multitude of innocent Salem civilians whose lives depend on his verdict. The Review Of The Crucible Essay George Orwell's 1984 as a Historical Allegory Essay that is consistently dominant, is the theme of manipulation, and how even the most overt and simplistic forms of manipulation manages to keep the citizens of Oceania so loyal so successfully. His words are daring and intense which helps pull the audience in. The Crucible, published in 1953 by Arthur Miller is a very popular book written about the 1692 Salem Witch Trials. Some communist spies were even found infiltrating the Manhattan Project. In the 1953, Arthur Miller came out with a play: The Crucible based on the Salem Witch Trials tackling McCarthyism; accusing others of being communists trying to overthrow democracy in the United States (9-10). Our writers can help you with any type of essay. Miller published this play in 1953, after feeling the effects of McCarthyism during the 1950s and the Great Depression of the 1930s. This connects to the 1950s, when to be accused of a communist Or a communist sympathizer all you needed to do is not report a communist. Copyright 2022 IPL.org All rights reserved. However, we have not only repeated it on various occasions, but through Arthur Miller's The Crucible, we also see the parallel of the event with the Salem Witch hunts that took place years before the hearings. Citizens lost respect and trust in the government and other civilians, due to several threats within the country and worldwide. Rebecca is also accused and her husband Francis cannot believe that she is charged, For murder, Rebecca is charged, the marvelous and supernatural murder of Goody Putnams babies. During the witchcraft hysteria and McCarthyism people would look for any reason to accuse someone and to have someone to blame for, An allegory is a story, poem or picture that can be interpreted to reveal a hidden meaning, typically a moral or political one. Prior to the early action in the play the only besmirching of Abigails name are the rumours of her secret relationship with John Proctor and this sparks conflict between her and Goody Proctor. 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