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Effects Of Fear In The Crucible

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Fear is mankind’s greatest enemy. It causes ordinary people to do irrational things that someone in the right mind would not do. As stated by former president Franklin D. Roosevelt in his inaugural address, “We have nothing to fear but fear itself”’. Fear is something that could end all humanity. It causes humans to turn against each other in order to better themselves. A great example of this is shown throughout “The Crucible” by Arthur Miller when the townspeople have an intense fear the devil, “If she is truly in the Devil’s grip we may have to rip and tear to get her free” (Miller 37). The power of the Devil is blown to great proportions where it influences people’s everyday lives. “The Crucible” was written to teach people the harmful effects of scapegoating and hysteria. Arthur Miller does not want history to repeat itself so we must learn from it and go forward. …show more content…

It is easier to go with the flow than to go against it. Hysteria causes people to think irrationally and make decisions that they regret later. If a group of people believe and say that someone was evil, then other people may label that person as such without even knowing him or her. In “The Crucible”, Mary transfers the blame put on her by accusing Proctor of making her do the Devil’s work, “You’re the Devil’s man!” (Miller 110). This shifts the attention of the court in another direction and causes Proctor to look evil. The Salem Witch Trials was created because of a bunch of accusations made towards people who were disliked, were a social outcast, or too old to be useful. The most accused people were the woman who were too old to bear children. In this society the role of the women was to create children and when that was no longer possible, they lost their role and usefulness, causing people try and get rid of

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