1. Arthur Miller’s The Crucible
A Criticism of Current Affairs & An Examination of History

2. Playwright’s Bio Arthur Miller was born in 1915 in New York City
He was the son of a coat manufacturer ruined by the Great Depression
Attended college at the University of Michigan
Married several times (Second wife was Marilyn Monroe)

3. Famous Works 1938- The Grass Still Grows
1944- The Man Who Had All the Luck (Theater Guild Award)
1945- Focus (a novel attacking Anti-Semitism)
1947- All My Sons (New York Drama Critic’s Award)
1949- Death of a Salesman (Pulitzer Prize winner and considered one of the greatest contemporary dramas)
1953- The Crucible (Tony Award)

4. Themes & Style Writer with a social conscience
Focused on those vulnerable to false values imposed on them by society
The effect of opportunism on family relationships
Realism

5. The Crucible Ostensibly about the Salem Witch Trials of 1692
Used trial documents but fictionalized
Combined, created or changed characters
Major trial events are relatively accurate
Really a criticism of the House Committee on Un-American Activities

6. Makings of a Salem Witch Hunt
Salem was a village divided
Land ownership disputes
Dispute about reverend position & compensation
People stubborn about deeply held beliefs
Salem was repressed
Expression of individual thoughts and desires frowned upon or even outlawed
Children were to be seen not heard ;particularly repressed
Spark & Ignition
A group of girls were caught playing at magic and pressured into naming those who bewitched them
A special court was set up
Spectral evidence was used

7. Makings of a Communist Hunt
WWII rise of Communist Party in the US
Cold War becomes intense after USSR gains atomic power
Conservatives in power
Truman initiates disloyalty laws
House of Un-American Activities Committee reinvigorated
Investigates communist activity
Alger Hiss and Rosenberg Cases
Hollywood Blacklist & The Hollywood Ten
McCarthy and his accusations
Others pressured to name others as communists

8. Senator McCarthy Joseph Raymond McCarthy (1908-1957)
McCarthy was elected a Republican Senator in 1946.
He first attracted national attention in Feb. of 1950 when he claimed the Department of State had been infiltrated by Communists

9. McCarthy’s Witch Hunt
During the next three years he repeatedly accused various high-ranking officials of subversive activities
These accusations often ruined lives and careers. None of the accusations were ever substantiated, but McCarthy was popular.
After accusing the secretary of the army of concealing foreign espionage activities, the Senate investigated McCarthy and censured him.

10. Results of both Witch Hunts
Colonial Salem
20 innocent people were executed
Dozens more were imprisoned
One was stoned to death
Families lost their land and livelihood
1950’s
Hundreds unjustly lost their jobs
10 were jailed for 6 months to 2 years
1 was sentenced to 5 years in prison
2 were executed

11. Literary Elements to Look For
Themes & Motifs
Intolerance & Jealousy
Irrationality & Hysteria
Reputation
The Court
Irony
Tragic fall
Using righteousness for personal gain
Tragedy
John Proctor as tragic hero
Finds his moral center as everything crumbles around him