Salem Witch Trials In 1692, the Massachusetts Bay Colony settlement was gripped by panic after a group of young girls suffered mysterious symptoms. Their symptoms included shaking fits, hallucinations, loss of appetite (not wanting to eat), and the temporary loss of hearing, sight, and speech. When the doctor could not diagnose a medical cause for the “sickness” he diagnosed their illness as begin caused by witchcraft.

Salem Witch Trials Between 1692 and 1693, more than 400 people in Salem and nearby towns were accused of being witches. Ultimately 19 men and women were found guilty and hanged.

Communism/McCarthyism Communism: Karl Marx (a German philosopher) created a social structure (a way society could work) that focused on a group mentality where everyone makes the same amount of money no matter what career they choose. In the 1950’s there was a BIG fear of communism (because Americans like to keep what they earn). This was called THE RED SCARE. (Red was a symbol of communism).

Communism/McCarthyism Throughout the 1940s and 1950s America was overwhelmed with concerns about the threat of communism growing in Eastern Europe and China. Senator Joseph McCarthy made a public accusation that more than two hundred “card-carrying” communists had invaded the United States government.

Communism/McCarthyism While the House Un-American Activities Committee had been formed in 1938 as an anti-Communist organ, McCarthy’s accusations heightened the political tensions of the times. Known as McCarthyism, the paranoid hunt for communists was especially difficult on writers and entertainers (Hollywood actors and actresses), Many were labeled communist sympathizers and were unable to continue working. Some had their passports taken away, while others were jailed for refusing to give the names of other communists.

Communism/McCarthyism Just a little over fifty years ago, during the late 1940’s and throughout the 1950’s, there was a great fear of Communism in America and abroad. The House Committee on Un-American Activities (HUAC) was created in 1938 as a means to investigate and weed out Communists and Communist supporters from American society.

Communism/McCarthyism Its first major attack of the HUAC was on the Hollywood film industry. Blacklisting of Hollywood writers, actors, producers, directors and others suspected of Communist affiliations began with the committee’s hearings in October of 1947, and flourished throughout the 1950’s. Senator Joseph McCarthy conducted “witch hunts” in an attempt to find and eliminate suspected Communists. This was very similar to the European and American Colony witch hunts of the 1600’s.

Communism/McCarthyism The individuals, who were persecuted during what is now referred to as the “McCarthy Era,” had their once prominent careers destroyed. They lost their friends and family, and all based on untrue rumors, which were spread about them, such as planning to start a revolution and attempt to overthrow the Government of the United States.

Communism/McCarthyism McCarthyism: named after Joseph McCarthy. Dedicated to rooting out suspected communists in American society. Blacklist: A list of people who are under suspicion and not accepted or hired by certain groups.

Communism/McCarthyism Wisconsin senator Joseph McCarthy was at the height of his political power about the time The Crucible was published. McCarthy was dedicated to rooting out suspected communist infiltrators in every branch of American society. McCarthyism, as it is called, ruined the careers of many individuals on the basis of flimsy evidence. McCarthy seemed to be more concerned with personal ambition than with the facts.

Arthur Miller / The Crucible

Arthur Miller / The Crucible During the Second World War, Arthur Miller moved to New York where he began writing plays. Directed by Elia Kazan, his play, All My Sons (1947) dealt with war and business corruption. His next play, also directed by Kazan, Death of a Salesman (1947), and featuring Lee J. Cobb as Willy Loman, won a Pulitzer Prize and became one of the most famous plays in history.

Arthur Miller Overwhelmed by post-war paranoia and intolerance, Miller began work on the third of his major plays. Though it was clearly Miller’s opinion about the McCarthyism of the early 1950s, The Crucible was set in Salem, Massachusetts during the witch-hunts of the late 17th century.

Arthur Miller Within three years of writing The Crucible, Arthur Miller was called before the House Un-American Activities Committee (HUAC), and convicted of contempt of Congress for not cooperating. In 1956, Miller himself was questioned by McCarthy’s committee about his relations with the American Communist Party. Miller refused to give any testimony that could damn any of his friends.

The Crucible The Crucible, which received several awards, was an analogy for the McCarthy era and mass hysteria. The main purpose of The Crucible was to create a historical connection between the events of the Salem witch-hunts in 1692, and the rise of anti-communist hysteria in the United States in the 1950’s.

The Crucible Although its first Broadway production flopped, it become one of Miller's most-produced play. In the play he expressed his faith in the ability of an individual to resist conformist pressures.

The Crucible The Crucible was based on court records and historical personages of the Salem witch trials of 1692. The Crucible, which deals with extraordinary tragedy in ordinary lives, expanded Miller’s voice and his concern for the physical and psychological well-being of the working class.