Slavery And Racism In Arthur Miller's The Crucible

A group of girls were dancing in the woods with a black slave named Tituba. When the girls got caught dancing in the woods, they started blaming other people in the village of being involved with witchcraft. Soon enough, the whole village believed the devil exists and lives within the fear of each person. Arthur Miller’s The Crucible explores through the individuals vengeance, reputation, fear, and seeking for power with the drama of suspense and impact.

The 1996 movie “The Crucible” offers some insight to what the Salem witch trials were all about in 1692. The movie begins with teenage girls dancing in the woods and performing what looks like some ceremony led by a slave named Tituba. It is revealed that the girls were participating in witchcraft in order to cast a love spell on the young men in town. The girls end up being caught in this act and are accused of witchcraft. This event sets off mass hysteria in Salem, Massachusetts. The girls being to lie. Saying other people in town bewitched them and that Satan willed them to do those things in the woods. These lies lead to more accusations that the townsfolk say out of selfishness and greed. Some want land and money, some want a forbidden

The book expounds more information on race information of the slaves in the land of the Caribbean. It further clarifies on the sexual relationship that existed between the masters who owned the slaves and enslaved women of color in the Caribbean Island. The author gives more light on the sexual assaults against young black girls had to undergo while in the hands of white planters who owned large track on sugar plantation on the Island, unlike the white who lived freely. Though Stuart is girl barely out of childhood age, she sees the glaring proof of affection as well as obligation on her part do something concerning dehumanization of women through sexual assault. Stuart knows pretty well that she can hardly speak of dedication or desire or choice in such unequal situation may be living in a hell of sexual assaults.

In “The Crucible” by Arthur Miller, a group of girls were found dancing in the forest. Betty, the minister’s daughter, becomes sick and they believe she is possessed. Abigail, the minister’s niece, is questioned but blames it all on Tituba. Tituba confesses to have signed a deal with the devil and is seen as saved by God so then Abigail confesses to also be saved and not hung. Abigail blames different people

Later in the story Tituba under the pressure of the court confest which ignited a hunt for witches. in both the salem witch trials and the red scare people where both paranoid of something. At the time of the witch trials the people were afraid of evil spirits, and the devil if you were accused of being a witch you would lose almost everything you owned. With the power of the church the people of Salem where easy overpowered by Propaganda and hysteria, with this people started so claim any was a witches for power, land, and even political strength. “We are what we always were in Salem, but now the little crazy children are jangling the keys of the kingdom, and common vengeance writes the law!”

Tragedy Mr.Miller wrote the tragedy of the crucible. The setting of the crucible is in Massachusetts bay during 1692/93. The tragedy is a dramatized and partially fictionalized play. The tragedy of the crucible begins with a rumor that started with nine girls. The play focuses on the inconsistencies of the salem witch trials and the behavior that can result from dark desires and agendas.

Cruelty is a recurrent theme in literature that often acts as a critical factor in a novel’s development. In Arthur Miller’s play, The Crucible, the occurrence of cruelty is seen to be gradually increasing as the story goes on from accusations of witchcraft that lead into chaos and death. Through Miller’s depiction of the merciless accusations and murders of innocent people, cruelty reveals a high extent of people’s animosity and vengeance that is greatly influenced by the attitude of the surrounding atmosphere. The accusations first began when the girls who were caught “dancing” in the forest were under pressure to confess what they were truly doing.

Another book read and added to Goodreads, but why was The Crucible chosen to be read in class? What is the importance? This book not only made you think and reflect on your own life, but to see how things are applied and revealed in different ways. The Crucible by Arthur Miller fits its name because of the conflicts the story contains and yet can still connect today with the “crucibles” we face such as revenge and pride.

The Crucible is a story by Arthur Miller this story was released during the Mccarthyism era and is written to relate what is going on during Mccarthyism time and compared to what had happened during the time of the Salem witch trials. The setting or the crucible will impact the characters, the plot and the tone of the story. The setting of The Crucible affected the characters because during this period of time Salem Massachusetts was a Puritan colony. The Puritans were very strict people, for example on page 1154 of Arthur Miller's The Crucible Paris the town's Minister threatens to beat his slave Tituba “ You will confess yourself or I will take you out and whip you to death Tituba” that statement says that the fact that Parris is going to whip Tituba to death if she doesn't do what he says and confess that he is willing to kill anyone who does not follow the rules. Another

Walker’s essay shows the dehumanization and abuse that black women have endured for years. She talks about how their creativity was stifled due to slavery. She also tells how black women were treated more like objects than human beings. They entered loveless marriages and became prostitutes because of the injustice upon them. Walker uses her mother’s garden to express freedom, not only for her but for all the black women who had been wronged.

The aspects of slavery are shown in the last three lines where she says, “Their color is a diabolic dye.” (Wheatley) In this line the fact that she is comparing the color black to the demons’ color shows that most probably she is ashamed of her race or it could be that she is trying to make the White American believe her and go on there side just so that she could publish her book. However, if we interpret it in other ways, the way she uses the words “diabolic dye” could be referring the black that the white think of as devils and objects. The fact that they are dark skinned the Whites think of them as the cursed community.

Black women are treated less than because of their ascribed traits, their gender and race, and are often dehumanized and belittled throughout the movie. They are treated like slaves and are seen as easily disposable. There are several moments throughout the film that show the racial, gender, and class inequalities. These moments also show exploitation and opportunity hoarding. The Help also explains historical context of the inequality that occurred during that time period.

When people think of the play, “The Crucible”, they usually picture the witch trials and women being hanged, but Arthur Miller depicts the witch trials in a completely new light. He shows through a story that the witch trials were much more than just people calling others witches. There was deceit, pain, greed, and more. Through the play, we follow the character, Abigail, observe her actions and their consequences. We witness the lives of people she impacts, what happens to them, and how many times she lies to get her way.

In Arthur Miller 's play The Crucible, false accusations and fear are used to imprison and kill many people accused of being witches. In this way, The Crucible stands as an allegory for McCarthy 's communist hunt, during which many people were also killed and imprisoned due to accusations of communism. By comparing McCarthyism to the Salem Witch Trials, Miller is able to communicate that people should not conform to societal trends because these trends may be misleading and cause innocent people to get hurt. Many characters in The Crucible serve as allegories to McCarthy 's communist hunt, specifically Abigail Williams, Giles Corey, and Betty Parris.

As said in the documents I read, the theme is "the fundamental and often universal idea of a literary artwork".