Discuss The Role Of Mass Hysteria In The Crucible

In The Crucible, Arthur Miller uses the 17th century Salem Witch Trials to reflect the dangers of mass hysteria. Hundreds of years later, the fear of terrorism in Americans has spurred a similar reaction of mass hysteria. People don’t realize how dangerous mass hysteria can be and how it can affect everyone. It all starts from a rumor or an actual occurrence that people take upon themselves to act on it. Then in turn leads to mass hysteria which is where a group of people believe that something bad is happening. Which leads to many more problems and paranoia in the world.

Hysteria plays an important role in the play tearing apart the community of Salem, Massachusetts. In fact it affects almost all of the characters and ends up ruining them. The hysteria starts after a group of girls believe that by dancing in the woods it will kill Elizabeth Proctor by summoning the devil. Mass hysteria officially breaks out when Abigail Williams began accusing innocent people of summoning the devil and anyone who acted strangely or out of the ordinary were accused of witchcraft. Because of Abigail's accusations whoever denied that they

Families of people who had experienced this event were never the same. This terrorist attack has changed everyone whether they were physically there or just heard about it on the news. And it was all because of one person What happened this day not only affects back then but modern day. After 9/11 Americans were living in horror. Violent outbreaks occurred everywhere. Innocent people were getting teased and killed just because of their race and the way they looked. In December 2015 Gallup found that, “51 percent of people were very or somewhat worried that they or someone in their families would be a victim of terrorism” As the years go on the percent keeps increasing. Just this year the percent has raised