The Crucible Dbq Analysis

In times of fear and hysteria in the U.S. it is mass chaos and it only gets worse and worse. During the time of both the witch-hunt eras, whether for communist or actual witches, they prove to have many similarities between them. Both of these times were full of confusion and lying which lead to the temporary downfall of the authority at that time. Joseph McCarthy proved to be a factor in this time and add on to the chaos that was America. Arthur Miller wrote about these times in a book called The Crucible, based on the witch trial era. Giving a testimony and then changing it later questions a person’s probity. Both Elia Kazan and Abigail Williams gave testimonies and later changed them for their own selfish benefits. In the first document

Albert Einstein, Pete Seeger, and Giles Cory all would have agreed tremendously with this amendment; for all men refused to give the people questioning them what they wanted. Albert Einstein said, “... Every intellectual who is called before one of the committees ought to refuse to testify…” (Doc E) Pete Seeger later took his advice when questioned by HUAC and said, “I am not going to answer any questions as to my association, my philosophical or religious beliefs or my political beliefs, or how I voted in any election or any of these private affairs.” He was sentenced to a year in prison. However, he appealed and won but he still remained on the blacklist until the late 1960s. Giles Corey, an elderly man, was condemned for not giving the names of other suspected witches, so they thought that if they tortured him then he’d give up the names. “He would not answer aye or hay to his indictment… Great stones they lay upon his chest until he plead aye or nay. They say he give them but two words. ‘More weight,’ he says. And died.” (Doc F) In doing this both men had consequences, some worse than others, and instead of lying and saying the names of people that truly didn’t do anything they refused to in a sense testify. All of these points both relate to McCarthyism and The Crucible. People became selfish and only saw their benefit, neither had evidence to prove anything that they were saying, and people say what effect it was having and started to figure out what was going on so they refused to testify and accepted the consequences. In times like these people’s emotions and rumors spread like wildfire and before you know it, it’s consumed everything and