The Salem Witch Trials In The Crucible By Arthur Miller

Well for the two grudges of Abigail and Elizabeth, and John Proctor and Abigail, the grudge played an important role in the witch trials. The grudge from Abigail and Elizabeth was not very pleasant for Elizabeth. Abigail had blamed Elizabeth for witchcraft, witch meant that if you were blamed you were more than likely killed. Well Elizabeth was never killed, but she was to stay in prison for a whole year until she had her baby. The grudge of between Abigail and John proctor was not a very good one.

Abigail Williams, a girl who was accused of witchcraft uses her situation to get payback on John Proctor, a married man she had an affair with. Abigail is obsessed with Proctor to the point she will do anything to be with him. This is seen in Act 1 when Abigail says “I will come to you in the black of some terrible night and I will bring a point reckoning that will shudder you.” (20) Abigail will do anything to get to John Proctor which would even include murder. To get John back Abigail went as far as stabbing herself and accusing his wife of voodoo.

Ever wonder what was so interesting about the witch trails and how many lives were lost due to people getting falsely accused and getting hung. In the book, The Crucible, the author was Arthur Miller and his book was based on the Salem witchcraft  trials during the modern times. Some  of the many flaws that Abigail showed throughout the book was spitefulness, jealousy, and lust.     Abigail shows the flaw of spitefulness when it comes to the point of her trying to be a part of John’s life or to try to get what she wants in life. “Elizabeth: She wants me dead.

When people don’t want to get in trouble for something they normally blame it on someone else. Now most of the time it doesn't end out that bad, or they find out the person was not telling the truth, but that is not the same for the people of Salem. The main cause of the Salem Witch Trials is Abigail Williams, in Arthur Miller’s Crucible, because of her calling people witches, 20 people got killed there was a lot of fear and no trust for anyone. It’s the fear and people not trusting others that made the witch trials bad, and she seemed to create this hysteria because she feared getting in trouble, she wanted to get revenge, and because once she started she couldn’t stop without getting very punished.

The girls wanted attention and fame; they got it. During this time, Salem was not a safe place. One could charge their neighbor of witchcraft just for the land. This is seen in the movie, Mr. Putnam is accused of telling his daughter to cry witchery on Mr. Jacobs. Without the spectral evidence that the court allowed, the girls had no proof of anyone hurting them.

The Devil had infiltrated the small town of Salem, Massachusetts and it was up to the townspeople to get to the bottom of it. During the Salem witch trials, the town was surrounded by hysteria and panic. At a vulnerable state, many people let others take advantage of them and blindly trusted anyone who had an inkling about the Devil among the town. The Crucible, by Arthur Miller, highlights these gullible and panicked people by showing how others rose to power at this time. Girls like Abigail Williams were trusted on who to blame for witchcraft while others like John Hale were pushed to the side and silenced for questioning the reliability of these blind accusations.

During the Salem Witch Trials, many people were accused of dealing with the devil and causing mischief among their neighbors and fellow citizens. These allegations caused rifts in the community and isolated nearly everyone from fear of being affected or accused themselves. Although it seems that they handled it as they saw fit, there are several ways that the community could’ve been a little more lenient. There are several courses of action that the Crucible should’ve taken that might have saved lives or more effectively condemned the accused: hold all court proceedings in private with an unbiased jury and judge, make sure all evidence was absolutely irrefutable in every aspect, also be sure to not to hold the accusers above the rest. Several people could’ve been spared and their personal standings upheld in Crucible, by Arthur Miller, if the trials would have been held in

Demonstrated throughout Arthur Miller’s play The Crucible, is the effect mass hysteria had on Salem. The trials held in Salem Massachusetts, in 1692 led to the execution of many innocent beings because of the accusation of taking part in witchcraft. The perturbation of some of the characters in play led to the atrocity that the trials became. In The Crucible, fear became the root reason for the destruction of the misinformed society by being the element that contributes to the mass hysteria. This is depicted through some of the characters including Abigail Williams, Mary Warren and the girls that blindly followed Abigail.

Some believed that witchcraft caused diseases and big fits that spread over time. It is no surprise that the suspicion of dark magic could have spread to Salem, and fuelled later events. It is speculated that the witch trials started because of a family feud. Two rivalling families, the Putnam and the Porter, may have wanted to use the excuse of witchcraft as a means of harming their enemies. By accusing a person of witchcraft under

The Salem Witch Trials were blamed on mental illness and superstitions. Some people even said they were poisoned by contamination of their wheat supply. Arthur Miller writes a fictional play about what happened in Salem, where Abigail accuses more than 200 people and 20 were executed. She faked seeing the devil to call witchcraft on the people that have done wrong to her and to save herself. In the crucible, Arthur Miller shows that distrust can ruin relationships.

“The edge of the wilderness was close by. The American continent stretched endlessly West, and it was full of mystery for them. It stood dark and threatening, over their shoulders night and day, for out in Indian tribes marauded from time to time, and Reverend Parris had parishioners who had lost relatives to these heathen” (Miller,5). In the beginning of the book, Reverend Paris one night found his niece and all her friends dancing (which is forbidden in this time period) in the woods, which is known to be the Devil’s playground.

In the spring of 1692 an outbreak of which craft shadowed over the town of Salem, Massachusetts. Although which craft is non-existent it didn't stop these crazed occult activists from pointing fingers at people they have known there whole life. The Crucibles is a tragedy driven story based on the horrific events that took place in Salem. Nevertheless, all this talk of witches had to come from somewhere; surprisingly, it came from a group of girls dancing naked in the forest and drinking the blood of a chicken.

The town Salem decided that the people in their town that resembled witches would be put on trial and persecuted, but the people weren’t witches and were being killed for being different from the rest of society. The convictions of the first people started a continuous strain of executions and imprisonments throughout the community. The courts of the time were corrupted with religious views and biased, so convictions were not far when it came to the accused. No one from this community was safe from the chance of being accused of being a witch. Salem, Massachusetts was a very religious community that held a fairly large amount of power over the people and laws.

In the United States there is a law that states "Every person is presumed innocent until proven guilty,” Title II, Chapter 1, Article 29. This law it allows the people to fight for what they were accused of until either proven guilty or proven innocent. Unfortunately, this does not stop people from making up answers to crime that they accused just to get answers. People want the answers now, so they will believe anything that they hear. If someone is accused, but did not confess they will pressure them to confessing, even if they didn't do the crime.

The Salem Witch Trials were fueled by fear because no one wanted to be punished or killed. In Document B, Act 1 of The Crucible, Reverend Hale arrives to see who is behind all of the witchcraft. When he asks the girls to give him, the names of the people they saw with the Devil. “Abigail: I want to open myself. I want the light of God; I want the sweet love of Jesus!”