Was Salem destroyed by superstition, witchery, the unknown and human emotion? A profound and unrelenting YES. When the topic of a Puritan society is brought up, most people think of a rigorous, conservative, highly devout society. While this may have usually been the case, this was not always so. The Puritan society was not only known to act out of brotherly, Christian love, but to cruelly lash out on those who sinned or were deemed unfit for society. The trumped-up witch hysteria in Salem, Massachusetts, deteriorated the rational and emotional stability of its citizens. This exploited the population's weakest qualities, and insecurities. The obvious breakdown in Salem's social order led to the tragedy which saw twenty innocent people hung on the accusation of witchcraft. Arthur Miller, author of The Crucible, used hysteria to introduce personality flaws in vulnerable characters. A rigid social system, fear, and confusion were evident conditions that became prevalent before and during the witch trials. These conditions only contributed to the tragedy in Salem.
The isolation of the Puritan society created a rigid social system that did not allow for any variation in lifestyle. The strict society that was employed at this time had a detrimental effect on the Proctor family. John Proctor, a hard working farmer who had a bad season the year before and struggling this year was occasionally absent at Sunday service. This was due to the fact he needed to tend to his crops. Also, Proctor did not agree with the appointment of Mr. Parris as the newest minister, and therefore did not have his last child baptized. With the latest craze of witchery and swirling accusations, John Proctor was easily indicted of being a messenger for the devil by the testimony of his disillusioned servant Mary Warren, who in the past committed perjury. The court who heard the testimony easily accepts it because she is a church going person, while John Proctor slightly deviates from the norm.
