The Salem Witch Trials In The Crucible By Arthur Miller

Arthur Miller wrote the play called The Crucible around 1953. Crucible is defined in 2 main ways: a vessel of metal or other material used for heating substances to high temperatures; any severe, difficult or searching test. Which one did he use for inspiration you might ask? Multiple pieces of evidence show that Miller wanted people to understand that he used both definitions. Salem was the vessel, the substances are the people, and the emotions and feelings of the people are what were heated to high temperatures and therefore changed. The people in Salem eventually felt the circumstances of Salem becoming a crucible and they were brought before and were falsely accused of being witches or warlocks. If an accused person did not confess, they

There were tests to find out who’s a witch and there were trials, which the accused must go through. “If she is innocent! Why do you never wonder if Parris be innocent, or Abigail?” (77). Trials were also performed internally because as we find out, people’s deepest and most strongest beliefs are put to the test by their terrible circumstances. “But who tells us Rebecca Nurse murdered seven babies by sending out her spirit on them? It is the children only, and this one will swear she lied to you.” (91). A small shift in power causes multiple people to change their relationships and authority with some other less fortunate

John Proctor re-enforces this by telling Danforth that Elizabeth would never lie as said in this quote: “In her life, sir, she have never lie.”(111). She doesn’t want to mention that her husband committed adultery, sadly, so she tells the court that John didn’t conduct that sin, unknowing that John had already told Danforth (a court magistrate) that he did in fact commit lechery with Abigail (a main character in the play who lead a group of girls and practically bewitched them to act possessed by the devil; also had an affair with John Proctor when she was a servant in the Proctor household, which lead to Elizabeth firing