Crucible Intro
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Transcript of Crucible Intro
8/3/2019 Crucible Intro
http://slidepdf.com/reader/full/crucible-intro 1/14
Agenda 10/25
Peer Partners
Peer Review: “Burning House” Essay
Introduce: The Crucible WARM-UP: Respond to following quote:
“Sex, sin, and the Devil were early linked, and
so they continued to be in Salem, and aretoday.” --Author Miller
8/3/2019 Crucible Intro
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The Crucible
A witch hunt and a metaphor
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RELIGIOUS PERSECUTION
In the 1600s, Puritans settled on the East
coast of the United States. They brought
with them the hope of religious freedom,
but instead became embroiled in hysteria
over the existence of witches. They had
been persecuted in their native England,but they created a theocracy and eventually
persecuted others.
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WHO WERE THE ACCUSED?
Most of those accused of being witches were women. Many were healers, and used plants to heal people.
Many were without family, and this made them easy
targets.
They were people who did not fit in with the mainstream
for some reason.
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Thorny Subjects
Miller tackles some of the thorniest subjects of
Puritans’ day and our day: religion, true spirituality,
and sexual desire.
The characters are indeed placed inside a burningcrucible, and their reactions to these forces speak to
us of universal attitudes and motivations
The linking of such powerful subjects (such as the
devil, sex, and sin) gives the play its longevity
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SPECTRAL EVIDENCE
One of the ways most witches were accused was with the
use of “spectral evidence.” If someone said they had seenthe accused with the devil in a dream, or that the accused
had visited them in the night, or had hurt them, it was
taken as evidence that the devil was at work.
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20 executed
Between 175 to
200 imprisoned
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How did it start? In 1692, several girls in the village of Salem, Massachusetts
became intrigued when a West Indian servant told them stories
of magic and voodoo from her native land. Bored and restricted by the oppressive Puritan life, the girlsslipped into the woods one night and “conjured” love charms
and hexes.
One girl, Betty Parris, slipped into unconsciousness when herfather caught them. She wouldn‟t wake up, and this started the
discussion of witchcraft. To avoid punishment, the girls
created the story of the “witches” who made them dance and
conjure the spells.
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Why did it happen? It began as a way for the oppressed girls to avoid being
punished. It then became an ideal way to get revenge on anyone whom
you disliked. People started accusing their neighbors of being witches so
they could steal their farmland. People accused others of being witches if they wanted to
steal their husbands or wives or possessions.
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SYSTEM OF JUSTICE
Those accused of being witches
were most often found guilty.
Sometimes they were sentenced tobe tied to a rock dunked in a
pond, and if they sank, they were
declared innocent. Innocent. If
they somehow survived the
dunking, they were obviously
witches, and they were executed.
Most of those found guilty of
witchcraft were hung.
One man was pressed to death
with rocks because he refused to
plead guilty or innocent, insuring
that his sons still inherited hislands.
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Why Arthur Miller wrote “The Crucible”
Arthur Miller, one of America‟s most famous playwrights,
lived during the 1950s and experienced the Communisthysteria of the era. People thought their were Commies
everywhere, and one man, Senator Joseph McCarthy, made
it his personal mission to find Communists and destroy their
lives by bringing them before something called the HOUSE
UNAMERICAN ACTIVITIES COMMITTEE.
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THE RED SCARE
Senator McCarthy accused many people — actors, writers,
people in media, people in the military — of being Communists.
He held hearings where people were commanded to give names
of other Communists in order for leniency. People were afraid
they might be named as Communists, and it was called the Red
Scare. („Red‟ was a word used for a Communist.)
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THE ANALOGY
The Crucible was Arthur Miller‟s way of
protesting the House Unamerican ActivitiesCommittee hearings. He compared the
Communist hearings to the witch hunts of
Salem, where gossip, rumors, and fear were
evidence enough to convict people.
The term “witch hunt” now applies to any
activity where people are looking for a
scapegoat or where they are using accusations
to get revenge or to get personal gain or
attention.
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REFLECTION
Based on what you‟ve heard about the Salem Witch Trials andthe McCarthy hearings, write a paragraph detailing any
connections you see between the two occurrences.
Why do you think Arthur Miller chose to use the period of
history (1692) that he chose? Why didn‟t he just write aboutthe Red Scare and the McCarthy trials?
Are there any differences between the two occurrences (other
than the obvious things, like time periods and clothes, etc.)
Discuss examples of modern day “witch hunts” that may be
affecting our society and our beliefs about freedom from
persecution.