The Crucible Playwright, Arthur Miller, wrote The Crucible in 1953. The Crucible is a play set in Salem, Massachusetts. The play is based on the Salem Witch Trials of 1692, but it has an underlying message that connects it to the Red Scare. In order to address the social issues during the Red Scare, Miller uses Abigail to symbolize Joseph McCarthy, logical fallacies in Danforth's dialogue, and motifs that represent the battle of good vs. evil. In order to address the social issues of the Red Scare, Miller uses Abigail to symbolize Joseph McCarthy. Early on in the play, Abigail says “... I saw Sarah Good with the devil! I saw Goody Osburn with the devil! I saw Bridget Bishop with the devil!”(Miller). In this quote Abigail is naming off people …show more content…
Government. Danforth says “The pure in heart need no lawyers”(Miller). In Danforth's statement he is saying if you’re pure and honest you do not need a lawyer. However, everyone needs a lawyer. This connects to the foolish reasons behind those who were accused of being communist, their investigations, and the loss of their jobs(Miller Center). Danforth also says, “... whoever weeps, for those who weep for corruption. Take them!” Danforth is claiming those who weep for the people being hung are corrupt too. Miller uses this example as a relation to McCarthy and his stance on those who attempted to speak against his false accusations(Miller …show more content…
evil through multiple characters. This includes light vs. dark and black vs. white. One quote from the play is “Now Hell and Heaven grapple on our back, and our old pretense is washed away”(Miller). The talk of Hell, Heaven, God, and witchcraft point to the battle of light vs. dark. This battle is seen to be between those who are pure and good, then those who are corrupt and evil. Miller correlates this to the battle in the U.S. Government. A battle of the Americans vs. the communist and alleged betrayers(Miller Center). The character Abigail also says, “She is blackening my name in the village.”(Miller). The battle of black vs. white is referencing ruined and dirty vs. pure and clean. Abigail is connecting her name to being ruined. Miller uses this to refer to the accused during the Red Scare, and the way their names were blackened. Along with how all the American people saw them as guilty and dirty for their supposed
There are many logical fallacies to be found In Arthur Millers, The Crucible, too many to count for. The author uses many fallacies because writers will purposefully use logical fallacies to make an argument seem more persuasive or valid than it really is. In fact, the examples of fallacies on the following pages might be examples you have heard or read. Logical fallacies make an argument weak by using mistaken beliefs/ideas, invalid arguments, illogical arguments, and/or deceptiveness. If you are arguing, avoid fallacies of thought because they create weaknesses in an argument.
In The Crucible, Miller fully displays how the actions of John Proctor really affected the lives of the people around him. His affair with Abigail reveals to be potent to the people around him. Because of Abigail’s desires for Proctor to leave Elizabeth because she questions “how such a strong man may let such a sickly [woman] be [his wife]”(Miller 23). She insults Proctor’s wife as a way to blacken the image of Elizabeth in Proctor’s mind but it seems to have the opposite effect as Proctor yells that [She’ll] speak nothin’ of Elizabeth!(Miller 23).
“People at war with themselves will always have collateral damage in the lives of those around them.” In Arthur Miller’s play The Crucible, Abigail Williams is a selfish 17 year old who wants everyone around her to be as miserable as her because she cannot get what she desires most in this world, John Proctor. With this being said Abigail is the person who is most responsible for the Salem Witch Trials. Despite the fact that she is the trigger to the mass agitation which happens in the novel, she is not the only one at fault. The role of John Proctor and Judge Danforth are also to blame.
For many, The Crucible was just the next powerful and dramatic venture of Arthur Miller's work, but for Miller himself it was an urgent political and social statement. In the 1940’s and 50’s the cold war led many americans to fear and suspect that communism has taken over the United States. Senator Joseph Mccarthy was a famous activist of the Red Scare. The Red Scare was when people accused of being communists were blacklisted, One person who was accused of being a communist was Arthur Miller, a famous playwright. As a result of these events Miller was inspired to write The Crucible, which was during the Salem Witch Trials in the late 1600’s.
Sophie Trieu Ms. DelaCruz English 3 March 30, 2023 Abigail Williams; a Villain and a Victim Have you ever told a lie that caused another person trouble? Abigail, the main antagonist of American author Arthur Miller’s play, The Crucible, does just this; however, the consequences of her deceit are far more harmful than most. Although she is a victim of inequality and abuse due to the time period the play takes place in, it does not excuse her undeniably manipulative behavior. Throughout the play Abigail lies to conceal her ever growing web of falsities, escape charges of witchcraft, and dispose of anyone who poses a threat to her. She uses deliberate language to present an innocent and pious front.
One parallel of figures is Abigail to Joseph McCarthy and how they used the hysteria and crisis that occurred to further their own agendas. Abigail, who sought to win over John Proctor, used the events that ensued after being caught performing in the woods. The tactics that Abigail used followed that of Joseph McCarthy when it came to seeking political gain. Both also wrongfully accused those in the society for such crimes. During Act 1, Abigail uses the events happening with Tituba to cause panic by naming even more accused than originally stated which ressembles such naming as that of the list of people Joseph McCarthy claimed to have in his speech in Wheeling, WV.
Gracie Shaikh Mrs. Evans AP Lang 3/22/2023 The Dangers of Logical Fallacies Throughout History Throughout history, moments of crisis have proven to leave the general public vulnerable, causing them to turn to irrational thoughts or convictions out of fear. Error-stricken reasoning—logical fallacies—become more prominent during times of mass hysteria.
The Purpose of The Crucible The Crucible is a play written by Arthur Miller, which was first published in the early 1950s. The play is set in Salem, Massachusetts in the late 17th century and is based on the event that took place during the Salem witch trials. The play is an allegory for the McCarthyism era in which Arthur Miller lived. McCarthyism was a time when people were accused of being communists without any evidence.
Miller addresses a similar hysteria throughout his play. In The Crucible, there are many characters that feed into or contribute to the rapid spread of witch hysteria in the small village of Salem. The two characters that could have ended the mass hysteria are Abigail Williams and Deputy Governor Danforth. Throughout the play Abigail proves to be a fundamental character in the preservation of the hysteria.
" Miller uses his best characters Abigail Williams, John Proctor, and Rebecca Nurse; to show the meaning of the word “Crucible”. John Proctor made this title memorable because of the way he carried himself throughout the play and book. John Proctor was guilty of his affair with Abigail Williams. Abigail was upset she could not have John
Abigail is the girl that John Proctor had an affair with. In The Crucible Betty Parris says, “You did. You did! You drank a charm to kill John Proctor’s wife! You drank a charm to kill Goody Proctor!”
In the play, The Crucible, written by Aurthor Miller, he establishes meaning throughout the play alongside utilizing logical fallacies by creating a persuasive lens that makes an argument convincing towards the audience. One of the many fallacies that Miller applies throughout the play is Ad Baculum logical fallacy (scare tactics), and it is used when Mary Warren begins speaking during court and the girls in the courtroom begin building panic by repeating everything Mary Warren is saying: Danforth, growing hysterical: Why can they only repeat you? Proctor: Give me a whip––I’ll stop it! Mary Warren: They’re sporting.
In this quote Abigail twists her words into blaming several women she does not like to cause disarray throughout the town and instill trepidation in all people. This connects to the Red Scare because of the fear and agitation people were willing to sell one another out or accuse one another for personal
The Crucible is a plot about the 1692 Salem Witch Trials written by playwrighter Arthur Miller in 1953. The play greatly demonstrates the importance of the individual conscience and is well known for its historically accurate, yet fictionalized content. It takes place in 1692, colonial Massachusetts. The Crucible depicts many issues that the citizens in Salem had to face. Every character had a motivation to accuse one another of witchcraft.
In The Crucible, Miller described Abigail as a “beautiful girl, an orphan, with an endless capacity for dissembling” (Miller 142). In the story, Williams serves as the