The play The Crucible introduces us to some vital insights by the themes presented throughout it. One of these themes is that fear and suspicion are infectious and can produce a state of general hysteria that results in the destruction of public order and rationality. This theme is displayed in the past in Hollywood as well as Salem. These two themes displayed in The Crucible are applied to today's life as well as in past historic events.
First off, in order to understand the theme of fear and suspicion being infectious and producing a general hysteria that results in the destruction of public order and rationality, one can look back in time at the communist infiltration in Hollywood in the mid 1900's. During this period of time, communism was thought by some to be the answer to depression, but to most of the United States it seemed to be an enemy to the order of their society. The citizens as well as the government were very cautious toward "Red Scare" or "Russiaphobia" as it was called. The United States" fear of this caused the people to be suspicious of Hollywood, believing that some directors were broadcasting communist propaganda in their theatrical releases. The government then decided to regulate the Hollywood directors. All of the director and screenwriters who were accused of being communists were questioned and ordered to name others. Ten Hollywood directors and screenwriters with communist ideals, named the "Hollywood Ten", chose not to talk and were fired as well as sentenced to serve time in jail for not naming other members of the communist party. During this period of hysteria 324 very talented people were blacklisted from Hollywood.
In addition, the actions of the community in Salem, MA. during the Salem witch trials were similar to the actions taken by the United States toward communism in Hollywood. Many innocent people were arrested or even condemned to death by hanging once the fear of witchcraft and satanism were introduced by the young girls of the community.
"The Crucible" The movie "The Crucible" portrayed the Puritan lifestyle in many ways. It showed the beliefs of people, and how they easily gave into a lie if it was related to their religion. It's astonishing what people would give into believing back then. It's also amazing what one girl would ...
Film Review of The Crucible Salem was a town in which, perhaps like many others, various people held grievances or grudges against one another. ... While there are some obvious differences between the stage play and the film adaptation of The Crucible, the latter stays quite true to its original form. ... The movie version of The Crucible, having the advantages of film, conveys the story better than the stage play does. Because motion picture opens up the possibilities and mediums in which to get a message across, it has the potential to do so, and it does so quite well in The Crucible. ...
Towns from New York to Savannah participate in this outrageous behavior, and when it comes to films depicting such grand dissipation, one of the best is Nicholas Hytner's "The Crucible." Based on Arthur Miller's play of the same name, "The Crucible" is set in the small settler town of Salem, Massachusetts in the early 1690's, a town with many young ladies looking for love. ... Many of the people targeted in McCarthy's hunt were celebrities based solely on the reason that they spend a lot of time outside the country; Miller topped this exclusive list and in response he wrote...
Introduction Arthur Miller's play "The Crucible,"" was first published in 1953 during the politically tumultuous time of McCarthyist America. ... Throughout "The Crucible," John Proctor is not the same type of in his own eyes as others perceive him. ...
He wrote The Crucible in an attempt to enlighten the public about the unjust persecution of "Communists" during the 1950s. ... It is clear that Miller's The Crucible parallels his life and times. ... There are some difficulties in interpreting The Crucible as a strict allegorical treatment of 1950s McCarthyism. ... As a result, writing The Crucible was his way of making a stand on the issue without being unjustly persecuted. After writing The Crucible, interviews with Miller revealed that the play was his answer to politics. ...
In the article, "Why I Wrote The Crucible,- originally published in The New Yorker, Miller explained how he came to write the drama: "The Crucible- was an act of desperation. ... Miller basically used information on the Salem Witch Trials and the McCarthy trials, in order to write The Crucible. ... There are many parallels to these two trials in The Crucible. ... Although most of Miller's thoughts in The Crucible are factual, some of them never actually took place in real life. All of the characters in The Crucible have distinct personalities, which truly bring this drama to ...
The Crucible In literal terms, a crucible is a little metal bowl used to heat metals to break them down into their original elements. In Arthur Miller's play The Crucible, the title plays a very important role in symbolizing what the characters themselves go through. ... Miller easily shows the crucible experience in 3 main characters. ... Once these characters were put through the crucible experience, their motivations changed in one way or another. ... All the changes made in these characters can easily be traced back to their crucible experience. ...
The title of the play being The Crucible, the term "crucible" is never actually mentioned. The word crucible, in simplest terms, means "a trial." ... Many of the characters in The Crucible face difficult decisions, or crucibles, piecing together the story. ... John Proctor has yet another crucible to overcome. ... He has conquered his final crucible. ...
The Crucible is a play that reveals the story of the famous witchcraft trials in Salem, Massachusetts. ... The settings in both The Scarlet Letter and The Crucible are similar in many ways. The Scarlet Letter takes place around the 1640s, as The Crucible occurs in 1692. ... The towns desire to seek out and personally condemn sinners is also the source of conflict in The Crucible. In The Crucible, the townspeople hunt out the witches in the community as an attempt to rid the town of evil. ...
The Crucible Arthur Miller's 1950 play The Crucible uses literary elements to mirror the Mc Carthy Ear. The Crucible by Arthur Miller is a "witch hunt" play that takes place in Salem, Massachusetts in 1692. ... Miller's 1950 play The Crucible expresses a variety of themes. ... In The Crucible reputation is a fear of guilt by association becomes particularly pernicious. ...