Has there ever been a time when you have been accused of something you did not do and painted in a negative light? This is The Crucible in a nutshell. Salem was in complete disarray as accusations of witchcraft spread through the town. The author, Arthur Miller, vividly depicts the Puritans' rowdy society. The Puritans lived in constant fear and anxiety, hoping they would not be convicted by government officials. This play explores a number of themes as it illustrates the repercussions of fabricating allegations against others. The main themes that were developed throughout the play include hysteria, groupthink, and reputation. Hysteria is a recurring motif in the play because Abigail Williams, the main accuser and antagonist, is well-known …show more content…
Her manipulations were powerful enough to brainwash a crowd, leading others to believe everything she said. Her clever assumptions deceived the girls of Salem into mimicking Mary Warren's words (Act 3, Line 471, HMH). Mary, a frightened young girl, was one of the many accused women in Massachusetts. Abigail portrayed Mary’s character as one who participates in witchcraft, which allowed her to lead others into her trap: believing that Mary Warren is a witch. This has resulted in an act of peer pressure, causing a chain reaction in the community. This theme of groupthink influenced the crowd when they were being testified in the courtroom (Act 2). As they continuously dispute alleged names all at once, it made the girls of Salem form an alliance; sticking to one another so they can act innocent during the trials. Groupthink allowed the others to psychologically connect to Abigail, seeing her as their leader, despite claiming fake accusations. It was an unfair share as the officials believed in the group’s wrong claims, which put Mary in a bad …show more content…
During the Salem witch trials, your only chance of surviving and protecting your innocence was to maintain a good reputation. The town respected John Proctor for his integrity and work ethic, but he had one serious character flaw: he had an affair with Abigail Williams. In Act 2, Elizabeth Proctor discovered he had been going behind her back, seeing Abigail at home before she was fired from working for them. This affected the Proctor’s relationship as a whole, as Elizabeth lost complete trust in John. The affair was not to be mentioned in Salem as it could affect his reputation and he wanted to keep his name clean as possible. In Act 4, John confessed his adultery as he could no longer take the guilt within him. He attempts to preserve his reputation one last time before his death, as he ripped up the document of his confession of dealing with the devil. The Crucible's portrayal of reputation is highlighted through John Proctors' actions. During his execution, John considered his reputation, this demonstrates the extent to which a person’s reputation can influence their actions and decisions, even in the face of
Abigail is the young girl who leads the charge against the supposed witches of Salem. She uses her position as one of the accusers to manipulate and control the people around her. She is able to convince the court officials that the accused are guilty, and is able to turn the community against those who oppose her. Abigail's power over the other girls is demonstrated when she threatens them with physical harm saying “Let either of you breathe a word, or the edge of a word, about the other things, and I will come to you in the black of some terrible night and I will bring a pointy reckoning that will shudder you. And you know I can do it; I saw Indians smash my dear parents’ heads on the pillow next to mine, and l have seen some reddish work done at night, and l can make you wish you had never seen the sun go down” (575).
Knowing that they've sinned, the girls claim they were bewitched. The group of girls claimed over half the town that they were witches. Mary couldn’t take the lies anymore, then Abigail and the girls turned on her. Mary seemed to be doing the right thing but in Abigail's eyes, it was wrong. Abigail and Mary may have appeared different but there are also many similarities.
Mary is right in the middle of all the chaos in Salem. Therefore, when it comes down to making a decision she gets stuck with the devil's bargain regardless of the path she takes. For intense she is being compelled by the manipulative character of Abigail Williams to claim that she's seen various people practicing witchcraft. Miller creates the character of Abigail to represent the powerful leaders that emerged throughout the 1950s by utilizing people's fears. This devious tactic is also used by Abigail as she asserts fear into Mary Warren.
Mary Warren is a selfish fearful liar. Exposition (Background Information): In the 1950s, Arthur Miller wrote The Crucible because he was inspired by the Red Scare and the mass hysteria it caused. During the Red Scare Senator Joseph McCarthy of Wisconsin, would target and accused American citizens of being communists, including Arther Miller. Thesis:
Abigail is vengeful, selfish, manipulative, and overall a magnificent liar. Arthur Miller’s The Crucible American play from the 1990s reveals how hysteria supplants logic and enables people to believe false claims. In The Crucible mass hysteria is shown to allow the people of Salem to believe that their neighbors who they considered outstanding people are now committing absurd and unbelievable acts. I believe that Abigail Williams could have ended the mass hysteria in Salem by coming forward and telling the truth about what happened in the woods with the other girls, not accusing innocent people of witchcraft, and admitting to pretending she was bewitched.
From the very beginning of the play, Abigail Williams proves to be a dishonest and vengeful character. In Act One, she threatens the other girls who were in the to keep to her version of what happened in the woods so that none of them end up in trouble. “Mark this—let either of you breathe a word, or the edge of a word about the other things, and I will come to you
Instead Mary warren sobbing, rushes to Abigail, “I love God, I bless God” (116). Mary Warren almost told the truth, that the witch accusations are fake but, instead runs to Abigail's arms for comfort and spurs more lies. This is significant because the one moment that someone could of potentially prevented future people from hanging due to a false claim, she backs out at the last moment due to her fear of what will happen to her. By keeping up the lie Mary Warren makes her position clear, that she is unable to open up to reason which, continues the never ending cycle of injustice due to people being too afraid to speak the truth against the majority. Another example, of the fear of the unknown affecting the judgment of the people of Salem is when Tituba, terrified and shaking, is being accused by Mrs. Putnam that “she must be hanged” (37).
Suspicion of witchcraft engulfed the entire community of Salem. Although nearly the entire community had been invested in the witchcraft trials, at the very center of it all was Abigail Williams. After suspicion of witchcraft was directed towards Abigail, fear inflicted her to divert the criticism. Abigail’s sense of empowerment over other community members of Salem
n 1953 is when “The Crucible” was published by Arthur Miller, people still believed in witch’s and the powers of witchcraft. Abigail beliefs was so strong that she and a group of others went into the woods and danced around a cauldron. Little did she know that the power of witchcraft was not what she though they would be. “Now sit you down and take counsel with yourself, or you will be set in the jail until you decide to answer all question… this is a court of law… I’ll have no effrontery here!” - Danforth.
Mary makes it seem as if she is a good person in the beginning of the play. However, she is broken down to her true essence later on and goes through some personal changes. Mary is a naturally weak person, so she would rather go with what everyone else was saying rather than stand up for what is right. Readers are able to see how easily Mary is influenced by Abigail as well as the other girls. Mary and the other girls began to accuse innocent people of witchcraft in the court, which resulted in innocent lives being taken.
In a small village called Salem, witchcraft and sorcery exist, however everyone is pointing fingers but not a single soul knows who is actually to blame for this nonsense. During this time period of hysteria, there are multiple scenes that are very questionable due to one person and one person only. Abigail is the one most responsible for the hysteria and witchcraft in Salem. She threatens the group of girls that accompanied her in the woods while they all danced. She has also lied about many things on multiple occasions in which causes an extreme amount of suspicion.
But the mainly because everyone thinks she is a witch. Due to the women in the court room continuously repeating it with details to support, making everybody believe Mary warren is a witch. Mary was the one caught in the dancing in the forest and being accused of witch craft. When Mary was in court she admitted she was witch craft but, also made everyone to think it was an act. In act 2 page 80 Mary Warren is pressured by Proctor to go to court and confess that Abigail is guilty.
When faced with the fear of punishment, it's human nature to lie and save yourself even at the expense of others. In the play "The Crucible" by Arthur Miller, Mary Warren is an eighteen-year-old servant working in the Proctor household. Initially, Mary believes that telling the truth is better than hiding the events that occurred in the forest. Fearful of the repercussions brought by revealing the truth, Mary decides to join Abigail's group; gaining confidence and power at the expense of her honesty. As the play progresses, Mary is, once again, forced to pick between lying and telling the truth to save Elizabeth from hanging.
Abigail is pretending that Mary is bewitching her and the girls in an effort to confirm to the court that Mary is lying about the girls faking the supernatural. These examples show that throughout The Crucible while Mary does try to wield her own power, she becomes susceptible to other characters' power, and is overshadowed by others'
The Spread of Hysteria in Salem In Arthur Miller’s The Crucible, multiple factors fueled the hysteria leading up to the Salem witch trials, such as Abigail’s deceiving plots, Reverend Hale not establishing the truth, and citizens’ mindless accusations. Abigail is the most guilty of causing outbreaks of panic starting with dancing in the woods with other girls, then moving to framing Mary Warren with a doll, and fake acting out seeing otherworldly entities. One example of Abigail’s manipulation is when she stabbed herself with a needle to frame Mary Warren: “Stuck two inches in the flesh of her belly, he draw a needle out” (176). Abigail also has a habit of accusing falsely and gets to girls to gang up during hearings, but everyone believes