"'I

HSC Common Module: The Crucible

HSC Common Module: The Crucible

• The art of the dramatist is to reveal us to ourselves. How effectively has

Arthur Miller revealed what it is to be human?

HSC: Common Module (Texts

~nd Human Experiences)
~esson 3: The Crucible (I)
 HSC Common Module: The Crucible HSC Common Module: The Crucible

Introduction

A scathing investigation into the nature of fear and paranoia, Miller's allegorical
appraisal of McCarthy era Cold War politics asserts his 1953 play as one of the most
renowned dramas of the twentieth century. Miller's creative reimagining of the 17th
century Salem witch trials provides an engaging and fruitful study and expanding
our understanding of the performing arts as a vessel for social change. The
complexity with which Miller exposes the manner in which human selfishness and
impulse can see political doctrine manipulated with disastrous personal
consequence sees The Crucible emerge as a profoundly insightful study into the
complexity of human behaviours and experiences.

These Delta books are yours to keep and use throughout Year 10, but please look after them In this lesson, you will be introduced to the historical background of the play and
carefully as they take a substantial amount of time, resources and effort to prepare. Owing the contextual influences that shaped its representation. We will look at an
to this, lost or damaged books will incur a compulsory $110 replacement fee. overview of the play, its characters and themes, before identifying representations
of human experience in the play. We will explore how Miller utilises literary and
All course material at Delta is strictly for our students' use only. This is protected and dramaturgic techniques to represent these human experiences in Act I in a close
enforced both through the copyright act and the conditions of your enrolment.
textual analysis.

What is the Common Module: Texts and Human Experience?

The Common Module is the first module that students doing the HSC will study.
Both HSC Advanced and Standard English students study it and it is the subject of
HSC Paper 1.

Let's quickly revise the module requirements:

In this common module students deepen their understanding of how texts

represent individual and collective human experiences. They examine how
texts represent human qualities and emotions associated with, or arising
 HSC Common Module: The Crucible HSC Common Module: The Crucible

from, these experiences. Students appreciate, explore, interpret, analyse and Exercise:
evaluate the ways language is used to shape these representations in a range Read the above rubric carefully and highlight any conceptual terms regarding
of texts in a variety of forms, modes and media. the human experience.

Students explore how texts may give insight into the anomalies, paradoxes
and inconsistencies in human behaviour and motivations, inviting the
responder to see the world differently, to challenge assumptions, ignite new
ideas or reflect personally. They may also consider the role of storytelling
throughout time to express and reflect particular lives and cultures. By
responding to a range of texts they further develop skills and confidence
using various literary devices, language concepts, modes and media to
formulate a considered response to texts.
The syllabus also outlines the importance of representation, or (re)presentation.
Students study one prescribed text and a range of short texts that provide rich Read the definition below:
opportunities to further explore representations of human experiences
illuminated in texts. They make increasingly informed judgements about how "Representation is the way ideas are portrayed and represented in texts,
aspects of these texts, for example context, purpose, structure, stylistic and using language devices, forms, features and structures of texts to create
grammatical features, and form shape meaning. In addition, students select specific views about characters, events and ideas. Representation applies to
one related text and draw from personal experience to make connections all language modes: spoken, written, visual and multimodal."
between themselves, the world of the text and their wider world.
A representation is a literary construct; it is how a text presents its world, using
By responding and composing throughout the module students further language, textual features, and devices. Representations can highlight certain
develop a repertoire of skills in comprehending, interpreting and analysing perspectives, can privilege some details and suppress others. Representations
complex texts. They examine how different modes and media use visual, necessarily reflect an authorial purpose; we must ask why authors have chosen to
verbal and/or digital language elements. They communicate ideas using represent certain things in a particular way.
figurative language to express universal themes and evaluative language to
make informed judgements about texts. Students further develop skills in
Thus, the questions that we will be considering throughout this unit are:
using metalanguage, correct grammar and syntax to analyse language and
express a personal perspective about a text.
 HSC Common Module: The Crucible HSC Common Module: The Crucible

How does Miller's play represent individual and human experiences that, in turn, When Reverend Hale, an expert on witchcraft arrives to investigate to the situation.
conveys the human qualities and emotions associated with, or arising from, these Abigail leads the other girls in accusing several of the town's women of being
experiences? witches and the town is swept into hysteria. While the first of the accused are social
How does Miller's play give insight into the anomalies, paradoxes and inconsistencies in outcasts, the girls begin to accuse more prominent and respected members of the
human behaviour? society and many are sentenced to hang.

How does the play relate to the role of storytelling throughout time? Does it deepen the When his wife is accused, Proctor knows he must expose Abigail as a liar and a fraud
reader's understanding of different lives and cultures? by revealing his own sin in court, however his testimony is dismissed by the judges
and he is arrested for witchcraft himself. As social unrest increases, Proctor is
How does the play... pressured to 'confess' and expose other witches to save his own life but he
"'0:'11~
make the reader see the world differently? ultimately refuses, choosing to die a martyr instead.
challenge the reader's assumptions on an issue?
ignite new ideas? Main characters
encourage the reader to reflect personally?
As we go through the play you will be introduced to many characters. Below is a
An overview of the play summary of the main ones:

The Crucible takes place in Salem, Massachusetts in 1692 in the home of Salem's
• John Proctor
minister, Reverend Parris, whose daughter Betty lies unconscious due to a
mysterious illness that has left the local doctor baffled. The night before, Parris had
John Proctor is a Salem farmer and former lover of Abigail's. He is respected by
caught Betty, his niece Abigail, Tituba, his black slave, and some other local girls
others as a man of honesty and integrity. He is vocal about his beliefs and openly
dancing in the woods. Rumours of witchcraft begin to spread through the village as
denounces Parris, Salem's minister, as being more focused on money than preaching
it is revealed that another girl has also mysteriously fallen ill.
the word of God.

When the girls are left alone, Abigail is revealed to be their ringleader and instigator
However, throughout most of the play, Proctor is a tormented individual who is
of the transgressions that took place in the forest. These include Abigail drinking a
unable to forgive himself for his affair. His relationship with his wife is strained as
charm to kill the wife of John Proctor, who she had an affair with. Abigail threatens
he believes she does not fully trust him or forgive him. He also hesitates to expose
the other girls to keep silent and stick to a story.
Abigail as a fraud because it would mean revealing his sin and thus losing his good
name.
 HSC Common Module: The Crucible
HSC Common Module: The Crucible

The play follows Proctor's internal struggle with guilt, however he emerges as a man
However, it this very eagerness that renders Hale vulnerable to manipulation and
of integrity. At the end of the play, Proctor refuses to slander himself and his friends
allows him to be carried away by the overwhelming 'evidence'. When Hale realises
by signing a false confession. Although he goes to death falsely condemned as a
witch, he ultimately saves his good name and restores his self-image. his mistake in trusting Abigail, it is too late to turn the tides of hysteria. As he tries
in vain to stop the loss of life, his faith in witchcraft, the law, and most importantly

• Abigail himself, is severely shaken.

17 years old and beautiful, Abigail is the main antagonist of the play and is • Reverend Parris
portrayed as a temptress and a Machiavellian manipulator. She leads the
accusations of witchcraft to achieve her own ends- the elimination of the wife of Parris is Salem's minister. He is portrayed as on overly paranoid and insecure
,~~
John Proctor who she has had an affair with. Her fierce drive makes her a character who constantly has to reassert his authority over the villagers. He is the

representation of the repressed desires - sexual, material, or other - present in all subject of dislike by many of them, especially Proctor, who considers him to be more

Puritans. concerned with material benefit than with God.

Abigail's disdain and disregard of social rules sets her apart from the others. In this Parris is preoccupied with his reputation in the town and is threatened by talk of

way, she is similar to Proctor. However, unlike Proctor, she lacks a conscience and factions and rebellion. Initially, he vehemently denies the rumours out of fear for

has no hesitation in sacrificing innocents to achieve her desires. While young and his reputation if witchcraft were to be associated with his household. But as the play

passionate, Abigail has a strategic and calculating nature. She possesses much progresses, Parris puts his complete support behind the witch trials in a bid to

greater insight than the other villagers, allowing her to manipulate them with ease. strengthen his authority over Salem.

There is no change of heart or redemption for Abigail as the play unfolds. When
Proctor is condemned and the witch trials collapse, Abigail leaves Salem without a • Elizabeth Proctor
second glance leaving destruction behind her.
Elizabeth is the wife of John Proctor. She is portrayed as an upright and moral

• Reverend Hale Christian woman who is unfailingly honest and loyal to her husband. On discovering
his affair, she loses faith in him'. However, Elizabeth's capacity for forgiveness

Like John Proctor, Hale goes through a major journey over the course of the play. guides her husband to a better understanding of himself, self-forgiveness and self-

Their paths, however, go in polar opposite directions. While Proctor is full of guilt acceptance, and to recognise that he is a good man.

and internal struggles at the start of the play, Hale enters Salem as the picture of
confidence and righteousness. He is an intellectual and an expert in witchcraft with • Rebecca Nurse
a sincere and genuine motivation to help the afflicted.
 HSC Common Module: The Crucible HSC Common Module: The Crucible

Rebecca is a wise elderly woman and is the first to argue against the witchcraft • Historical: Specific historical events which may be reflected in your text.
rumours and suggest a logical explanation. Highly respected throughout Salem and • Cultural: A feature of culture, particularly literary culture. For instance,
well known for her deeds of charity and kindness, her experience and good artistic movements or changing preferences in reading material.
reputation is not enough to stem the hysteria or stop her from being falsely accused.
NESA asks students to: understand how the complexity of their own and of other

• Mary Warren contexts shape composition and response to texts. As the rubric states, "students ...
also consider the role of storytelling throughout time to express and reflect particular
lives and cultures. "
Mary is the Proctors' servant and lives in their household. Portrayed as a submissive
and easily intimidated young girl, she follows Abigail in accusing villagers of
witchcraft although she knows she is lying. Students learn that:

• Their perceptions of the world are filtered through their own context
• Judge Danforth • Context shapes language, forms and features of texts
• Language, forms and features of texts inscribe values and attitudes in their
Judge Danforth presides over the witchcraft trials in Salem. He is portrayed as self- representations of people, information and ideas
righteous and tyrannical, believing himself to be a fair and just judge doing the work • Texts may be responded to and composed differently in different contexts
of God. However his unmovable belief in the infallibility of the court or Abigail's
testimony makes him blind to the truth. We must not only consider the context of the composer, but also our own
contexts when we analyse a text. Every text contains a message, and whether we
accept or reject this message depends upon the values we carry inside ourselves.
Contextual information
These values are more often than not shaped by our context.
Context:

Context in The Crucible

The senior English syllabi usually refer to three aspects of context, all of which
overlap and depend on each other. A historical event may, for instance, engender
social change, thus reflecting both social and historical context. Similarly, it is Miller's play is interesting contextually, considering that - while set in the historical
impossible to separate cultural, historical and social influences when discussing the period of 1692 puritan America - it is more critically an appraisal of the Cold War
role of religion in texts' context. Nonetheless, some broad differences might be: era in which it was written. As such, we are really dealing with two different
contexts at the same time - ultimately however, these two inevitably inform each
• Social: The social situation of the time, with reference to class structure other; with Salem, Massachusetts in the late 17th century forming the vessel
'
economic paradigms, religion, the place of women, political beliefs etc. through which we might understand America in the i 950s.
 HSC Common Module: The Crucible
HSC Common Module: The Crucible
minister in 1672 cauterising the divide between the two precincts. However,
The Salem Witch Trials - the Salem witch trials were a series of trials and
financial troubles contributing to even more conflict between the various ministers
prosecutions conducted between 1692 and 1693, which saw the execution of twenty
and their populations, most notoriously the behaviours of Reverend Parris who
people under suspicion of witchcraft. Founded in a Calvinistic belief of the
became disliked for enforcing harsh penalties against minor infractions - often
supernatural, it is considered one of the most famous cases of American mass
against well-respected members of the society. The social and political tensions at
hysteria, and held significant influence in the ensuing development of American
the time were paramount, with the region becoming known by its neighbours as
culture - signifying a large shift away from such isolationist religious extremism.
distinctly 'quarrelsome'. Observers noted that large-scale conflict was inevitable
The dedicated Court of Oyer and Terminer was formed to hear the cases of
within such a fractious social atmosphere.
witchcraft. The lack of physical proof led the court to accept 'spectral evidence', a
decision that would seal the fates of many. Spectral evidence consisted of the Religious - the local Salem political presence was dominated by Puritan leaders,
victim's narration of their dreams and visions in which the accused witches sent ~ mainly Calvinistic in their worldviews. Indeed, the New England region in general
their spirits or 'spectres' to torture them. These statements were taken as truth and was populated largely by Puritans - with mass migration to the area following the
little other proof was required. By October 1692, 19 men and women had been ascension of the Catholic and harshly anti-Anglican, Charles I to the English throne
hanged before the court was finally dissolved. The remaining accused were in 1625. These colonialists adopted fiercely self-deterministic attitudes, migrating
pardoned and one of the darkest periods in the history of humankind came to an to the America with the express intention of founding a society based solely upon
end. the expression and practice of Puritan beliefs. In Salem in particular, Calvinism
defined the way of life - Calvinism being a sect of Protestantism that adheres to an
The Salem witch trials can be understood through three contextual sub-lenses: incredibly strict interpretation of Christianity, focusing on asceticism and ultra-
conservatism. For example, in Salem - locals were expected to attend three-hour
Political - colonial era America was characterised by much political conflict
sermons twice a week; song and dance, as well as celebration of holidays including
between the protestant English migrants, the local Native American populations
and the French colonisers of Quebec to the north. The Massachusetts Bay Province
0 Easter and Christmas were forbidden; toys and play were seen as distractions from
worship and education was focused entirely on developing religious piety. The
was established by charter in 1691 by William and Mary, joint monarchs of England,
Puritans were politically insular, operating largely as a separate entity to the
Scotland and Ireland. Local politics was defined by conflict and cooperation between
three main parties; the Expansionists (who were typically Anglican), the non- authority of the Crown.

Expansionists (who were typically Congregationalist) and the Populists, consisting Belief in the supernatural was an accepted aspect of Calvinist living - particularly a
of an atypically large amount of rural and lower-class citizens who traditionally belief in Satan's presence and intervention into the daily affairs of the average
ascribed to the values of Puritanism and The First Great Awakening. person. Witchcraft ritualism, which had been previously used by peasants to invoke
good harvests and inform the elements and associated with benevolence, became
Local - locally, the Salem area was known for enduring conflict and argument
gradually associated with demons and evil spirits. The use of spells and symbol
between Salem village and Salem Town. There was ongoing dispute over property
worship were seen in Calvinist society as the pursuits of pagans and evidence of
lines and church privileges, with Salem village hiring their own congregational
7

HSC Common Module: The Crucible HSC Common Module: The Crucible

Satan's influence in the every-day. While the plot of The Crucible may seem absurd The Cold War:
to modern-day readers, it was not uncommon for social deviants to be branded as
devil-worshippers, thus necessitating their elimination to restore the purity of the The Cold War period - generally speaking, is seen as the historical period preceding

community. The witch trials were the ultimate expression of this intolerance. this current one, and lasted from roughly between 1945 and 1989 - that is, from the
dropping of the atomic bomb on Hiroshima and Nagasaki and the fall of the Berlin

As we can see, the extreme religious conservatism of the period combined with an Wall over four decades later.

already tumultuous political scene contributed to an atmosphere of tension and The Cold War followed the end of the Second World War, and was a period defined
socially perpetuated fear that would erupt in the period of mass hysteria known as by global tension - as the world's biggest superpowers stood divided in political
the Salem witch trials. Miller's play is based upon the actual historical events of ideology, between the Capitalist West, consisting of the United States of America,
these trials, drawing upon historical figures and the broad narrative of events that

-
Britain and their allies - and the Communist East, consisting of the USSR, China and
occurred throughout 1692.
their respective allied nations. The intensity and importance of this ideological
However, while The Crucible has its
· 1oun
& dations in this historical setting, a division was exacerbated by the nuclear arms race that came to inform the political

thorough and nuanced understanding of its contents must first entail a motivations behind the governments of both the East and the West. This means that

consideration of Miller's 1950s context. Indeed, the play itself is ultimately uses the both sides were racing to amass as many and as powerful nuclear weapons as

setting and events of the Salem witch trials in order to deliver an appraisal of possible in the fear of what seemed like an inevitable attack.

Miller's Cold War political landscape. Miller himself was called before the court to While America and Russia's respective nuclear arsenals grew in strength and
name people he had seen at a Communist writers, meeting. Upon refusing, he was destructive capacity, the Cold War period is referred as such due to the fact that war
fou nd guilty of contempt of Congress but the conviction was later overturned. On between the two nations never actually broke out. It was a period defined by
writing the Crucible, Miller tapped into a sense of dissatisfaction and unrest within political posturing and strategy, rather than outright militaristic conflict. This is due
the greater American psyche in effect becoming the 'public conscience'.
~ almost wholly to a fear held by both sides of the conflict concerning the use of
nuclear weapons; that fear being the fear of Mutually Assured Destruction or MAD.
'The Crucible' was an act of desperation ... When I began to think of writing
about the hunt for Reds in America, I was motivated in some great part by the Mutually Assured Destruction describes the proposed consequence of nuclear war

paralysis that had set in among many liberals who, despite their discomfort - one that theorised that because nuclear weapons were so uniquely destructive - as

with the inquisitors· violations of civil rights, were fearful, and with good witnessed at Hiroshima and Nagasaki - that if a war were to break out in which both

reason, of being identified as covert Communists if they should protest too sides used nuclear weapons as offensive weapons, then the wholesale devastation of
strongly. the Earth was near inevitable. Some went so far as to believe that a Third World War
in which nuclear weapons were used would be so destructive it would see the end of
Arthur Miller
all life on Earth completely. As such, both the Capitalists and the Communists
refrained from using their nuclear weapons out of fear of subsequent nuclear
 HSC Common Module: The Crucible HSC Common Module: The Crucible

retaliation - realising that this would likely result in irreversible global devastation. The term McCarthyism is derived from the fanatical rhetoric of the Second Red

That being said, the Cold War was not without military conflict _ however these Scare's largest perpetuator, Senator John McCarthy. The fear was founded in the

conflicts typically played out in 'proxy wars'. Whil~ Russia and the United States threat communism was perceived to pose to American capitalism and the

never confronted each other directly, they fought each other through the support of foundational doctrines of democracy and religious liberty. The economic

their respective allies in other, third world conflicts. The most important of these philosophies presented by Marxism became increasingly popular throughout the

was the Vietnam War - in which the United States supported the Capitalist South 1930s amongst labour leaders and America's intelligentsia - and the threat of

Vietnamese while Russian and China supported the Communist North. communist expansionism began to appear as a real threat to American stability.
Indeed, conservative groups felt especially under threat following the social
In the minds of the average Western individual, the Cold War was ultimately a advancements of child labour laws, women's suffrage and the economic New Deal
period defined by fear and paranoia: a fear of a nuclear war which could erupt at made by President Roosevelt in the wake of the Great Depression.
seemingly any second - and paranoia regarding the invasion of Communists and
Communist sympathisers seeking to corrupt the established American style of
• In particular however, Senator John McCarthy himself initiated the wave of

living. Indeed, th e Cold War was therefore a period of often intense conservatism communist hysteria that came to define the era of McCarthy witch-hunts in a

and social tension - however, it also saw the West's largest ever counter-cultural speech made in 1950 to the Republican Women's Club in West Virginia. In this

movement with progressive Liberalists pushing for social reform in areas such as speech, McCarthy claimed to have a list of 205 names of Communist party members
Civil Rights and conscription. and sympathisers working within the state department. The speech drew widespread
media attention, and what followed was the establishment and strengthening of
From within this culture offear and paranoia Miller composed The Crucible, and it is certain anti-Communist 'loyalty' institutions intent on trialling and prosecuting
at this point that we must take a look at McCarthyism and its implications for communist sympathisers.
American society.
,. The most famous of these was the House Committee on Un-American Activities, a
\.,
McCarthyism - originating from a period of US history known as the Second Red
Congressional body whose investigation into the Hollywood film industry sparked
Scare is a broad term to describe the hysterical accusation of individuals based upon much controversy and hysteria. The board coined what was known as the '$64
~ittle t~ no valid evidence. The Second Red Scare was born of the enduring question', asking dozens of Hollywood insiders subpoenaed by Congress "are you
ideological conflict between Capitalist America and Communist USSR and saw the
now or have you ever been a member of the Communist Part of the United States".
large-scale investigation of and accusation against hundreds of American citizens
Ten directors in particular who had been subpoenaed by the board cited their First
for the exhibition of communist ideology or sympathy towards communist ideology.
Amendment rights to Freedom of Speech as protection against the interrogations of
Under the most scrutiny were government employees, entertainers and union the House Committee - this defence however failed with the ten being sentenced
leaders - and accusations were typically made upon untrustworthy and often for up to a year of jail time for 'contempt of Congress'.
fallacious evidence.
Congress conducted dozens of cases such as that of the 'Hollywood Ten' between
 HSC Common Module: The Crucible HSC Common Module: The Crucible

1950 and 1954, until McCarthy was condemned the United States Senate 65 to 22 in
December 1954 for "conduct that tends to bring the Senate into dishonour and
disrepute". Between 1949 and 1954, a total of 109 trials were conducted by various
anti-Communist boards.

As we can see, the mass hysteria exhibited at the Salem witch trials bare much
resemblance to the events of the McCarthy era. In fact, Miller himself was
questioned and convicted of 'contempt of Congress' by the House Committee of Un-
American Activities following the release of the play and his associations with
certain suspected Communists.

Exercises:

a) What general patterns of human behaviour does Miller explore in his

play?

b) How does the play's universal core message extend far beyond these
two particular moments of American history?

Textual form

As part of our Common Module study, we also need to pay attention to the manner
t in which our composers represent the individual and shared human experiences that
form the focus of their works. This necessarily entails a thorough understanding of
form and technique - and a consideration into the way composers either conform,
challenge or manipulate elements of their respective textual form.

Most broadly, The Crucible takes the form of a play, consisting of four acts.
However, as with every play we study in English Advanced, we are not analysing it
from the perspective of a theatrical production, but rather through the content
provided by dialogue and stage directions as they are written by the composer. As
such, almost all of what we understand of the personal and political landscapes
presented in The Crucible is delivered through dialogue. By extension, our
 HSC Common Module: The Crucible
HSC Common Module: The Crucible
Miller conducts an investigation into the nature of McCarthy era hysteria without
understanding Salem, Massachusetts is entirely informed by the subjective
once mentioning the historical or political proponents of his 1950s context. Indeed,
perspectives of others. There is very little authorial intervention through
communism and post-war society are foreign concepts in the reality of The
omnipotent narration, and little explicit insight into the subconscious thoughts of
crucible, and yet the subject matter explored still serves as a reflection upon his
our characters. Instead, our entire worldview is shaped through the actions and
contemporaneous political landscape. Therefore, when discussing the play in our
words of Miller's human subjects. This textual feature opens us up for a study of
essays, we must keep in mind at all times that the characters and their actions as
subjectivity and the malleability of human perspective - and while we conduct our
presented in The Crucible, are in fact reflections of more contemporary 1950s
analysis of the text we must always consider that the information delivered by
Miller's characters is inherently tainted by bias each and every one of us carries attitudes.
within. In our study, it is important to consider this feature of the text -our
What is the effect of the allegorical form? Miller's decision to conduct his appraisal
understanding of human experiences is inevitably filtered through the subjective
of post- war politics through allegory will have been in part informed by his
lens of Miller's deeply flawed characters.
historical context. Allegory is a common method of avoiding the threat of
censorship, especially in a period of American history so hostile toward any works
What is interesting about The Crucible - and what makes it quite distinct from other
considered remotely anti-American. Furthermore, allegory provides a useful vessel
plays - is the large use of expositional directional notes included amidst the
through which a composer is able to present an exploration and criticism of
dialogue by Miller, especially in the early stages of the play. These notes provide us
contemporary issues to an audience while largely minimising the biases that might
with insight into the background and behaviour of certain characters.
obfuscate and distract a responder's interpretation of the text. If Miller had
composed a text set in 1950s America, a large part of the audience would have
More specifically, The Crucible is an allegory.
rejected his content based upon historically based presuppositions - but by locating
his play in a largely unfamiliar and contextually divorced 1690s landscape, the
The word 'allegory' derives from the Greek allegoria, meaning to 'speak otherwise'.
audience is to a bigger extent removed from their 1950s bias. As a result, the
An allegory is a literary device in which a composer explores complex themes and
composer is able to deliver their message far more effectively and to a much larger
subjects through extended metaphor. The characters and events presented
audience than otherwise. That being said, historical allegory brings with it a large
throughout the composition serve as symbolic references to ideas prevalent in the
range of dangers that open a text to confusion and criticism. Miller addresses this
composer's immediate reality. As we know, The Crucible depicts the events of the
Salem witch trials, conducted in 1692, as an allegory for the political disturbances of concern of decontextualisation in the foreword to the play:

1950s America. While Miller relies upon existing historical figures and events for his
This play is not history in the sense in which the word is used by the
narrative, their actions and beliefs are representations of more contemporary
academic historian. Dramatic purposes have sometimes required many
attitudes and behaviours.
characters to be fused into one; the number of girls involved in the "crying-
out" has been reduced; Abigail's age has been raised; while there were several
 HSC Common Module: The Crucible
HSC Common Module: The Crucible

judges of almost equal authority, I have symbolized them all in Hathorne and
Danforth. However, I believe that the reader will discover here the essential
nature of one of the strangest and most awful chapters in human history. The
fate of each character is exactly that of his historical model, and there is no
one in the drama who did not play a similar - and in some cases exactly the Prominent Human Experiences in The Crucible
same - role in history.
The relevance of Miller's metaphoric title 'The Crucible' cannot be underestimated.

As for the characters of the persons, little is known about most of them A crucible being a container that can withstand high temperatures for melting metal

excepting what may be surmised from a few letters, the trial record, certain and glass - it serves as an enduring metaphor to the insularity and tension

broadsides written at the time, and references to their conduct in sources of characterising the Salem witch trials. The crucible is a place of concentrated

varying reliability. They may therefore be taken as creations of my own, extremes, and Salem's religious fundamentalism and imposing theocracy ultimately

drawn to the best of my ability in conformity with their known behavior, saw the community tear itself apart.
except as indicated in the commentary I have written for this text.
Throughout the play, the 'heat' that is applied to the citizens through the growing
hysteria and witch trials tests their integrity and their faith, and the lengths to
Exercise:
which they will go in order to save themselves. By portraying a community in these
What is the purpose of an allegory? How does it contribute to Miller's
trying times, Miller is able to bring to light many disturbingly familiar patterns of
exploration of the human experience?
human behaviour and provokes us to confront what it really means to be human.

"We burn a hot fire here; it melts down all concealment." .

I Danforth, Act III

Keep in mind that you are also encouraged to deeply consider other human

experiences found within the text.

Restrictions, angst & rebellion

• The play portrays characters stifled by the strict moral code and lifestyle
expected by the community which do not leave much room for personal
freedom and by extension, self-actualisation. The negative effects of
repression of individual freedom become apparent in the first Act where an
act of defiance by the young girls has far-reaching consequences.
I'

HSC Common Module: The Crucible HSC Common Module: The Crucible

• Not only actions, but individual thoughts are also repressed as to air them Power, jealousy & revenge
risks the scrutiny of the town. Thus, the witch trials provided an outlet for the • While the supernatural is undoubtedly real to the people of Salem, Miller
expression of angsts, grievances and vengeance, culminating in the tragic makes it clear that the girls' testimonies of witchcraft are a pretense. As
events of the play.
Proctor aptly explains "Vengeance is walking Salem", not the devil. There are
only people - and greed, vengeance, envy and ignorance are the hidden
Fear of the unknown & hysteria
forces driving the play. These thematic concerns highlight the play's
• Much of The Crucible deals with how individuals react to things they can't preoccupation with anomalies, paradoxes and inconsistencies.
explain and exposes how truly primitive people are when confronted with • Abigail is motivated by jealousy of Elizabeth Proctor. Thomas Putnam is
their deepest fears.
motivated by greed for other people's property. Ann Putnam is motivated by
• For Salem's occupants, witchcraft represents the epitome of the unknown. her envy of Rebecca's children.
The threat of witchcraft (real or imagined) quickly transmits through the • Throughout the play, we see how the Salemite witch trials provide an
town as a result of rumours and fear, causing the town to fall into a mass opportunity for less prominent members of society to achieve a sense of
hysteria that overrides logic and individual thought and ends up perpetuating importance and power, such as the character of Mary Warren.
its own existence.

• Miller also uses this landscape of hysteria to highlight how most people tend Transgression, guUt & redemption
to conform to what the majority around them think. The Crucible presents • Despite his late entry into the act, John Proctor acts as the vessel through
many reasons for this, including self-preservation, ease and ignorance. The which we experience the entire plot. Throughout the play, his guilt over his
testimony of many individuals is ignored in favour of the society-held view affair causes him to hesitate and battle with himself. His failings in marriage
that the Devil is amongst them, effectively showing the powerlessness of the make him and his wife vulnerable to charges of witchcraft.
individual against the 'collective conscious'.
• But it is Proctor's ability to find self-forgiveness, protect his wife and
confront Abigail that allows us to witness a story, albeit tragic, of profound
Persecution & 'witch-hunting'
personal triumph and redemption.
• In a town such as Salem with a strict 'norm', anyone who deviates from the
status quo is subject to the suspicion and scrutiny of the town. Miller Reputation & good name
elucidates that in times of turmoil and uncertainty, society is already • The importance of a good reputation is a central thematic concern in the
predisposed to convict these people as 'scapegoats'.
Crucible. Reputation is key in a world where social standing is governed by
• Abigail's exploitation of this intolerance is clear as she first accuses the religious adherence. However, in the face of allegations such as witchcraft,
elderly, drunk and homeless, and their arrests strengthen her authority. even the best of reputations are quickly undermined and challenged.
knowing that society is already predisposed to convict them.
• Regardless, this is exactly what sparks doubt at the accusations for Reverend
Hale, and the same force behind Proctor's refusal to sign the false declaration
 HSC Common Module: The Crucible
HSC Common Module: The Crucible

for their deaths. Parris is horrified and dismayed when Abigail admits that the girls
even if it means death. In doing so Proctor's legacy becomes one that
subverts the outwardly apparent: despite being put to death as a witch, and Tituba were indeed conjuring spirits that night in the forest.

Proctor gains the respect of those that matter.

Parris and the Putnams leave to calm the gathering crowd outside the house, leaving
• Abigail's eventual fall from grace further supports the karmic nature of
Abigail alone with Betty. Two other young girls enter, Mercy Lewis and Mary
reputation in The Crucible, despite the tragedies that may take place along
warren, who were also in the woods. Betty awakes, frightened, and reveals that
the way.
Abigail drank blood to cast a spell to kill John Proctor's wife. Abigail violently warns
Betty to never repeat this and threatens the girls with violence if they tell anyone
Ultimately, all of these human experiences and concerns transcend temporal
what actually happened in the forest.
parameters. Whether it be transgression, hysteria or revenge, these concerns remain
relevant to contemporary audiences. It is important that you address such John Proctor arrives and orders Mary, who works in his household, to go home. Left

timelessness within your own essays. alone, Proctor questions Abigail about Betty, and Abigail says she's just being silly.
It is revealed that Proctor and Abigail had an affair when she worked at his house.

Act 1 - synopsis Abigail wants the relationship to continue but Proctor turns down her advances. A
psalm is heard being sung and Betty begins to shriek. Upon hearing her, the other
The first act of The Crucible is the longest act: it introduces the action, the adults rush in and Mrs Putnam claims Betty's distress is proof of witchcraft.
characters and sets up the disturbing sequence of events to follow. There are also
Giles Corey and Rebecca Nurse arrive. Rebecca is a highly-respected old woman with
critical insights into various personal conflicts that threaten to disrupt the social
order in Salem. much experience with children. She claims that Betty's illness is nothing serious,
but merely a childish phase. Reverend Hale, an intellectual and expert in witchcraft
10-year-old Betty Parris is mute and bedridden due to a mysterious sickness. Her
from a nearby town, arrives at the house to investigate the situation.
father, town minister Reverend Parris, discovered Betty, his niece Abigail, his black
slave Tituba and some other young girls from the town dancing in the woods the In front of Hale, Abigail suddenly changes her story and claims that Tituba called

night before. Rumours are spreading of an 'unnatural cause' for Betty's sickness. the Devil last night and has used witchcraft many times before. Threatened with

Parris asks Abigail about the rumours but she insists that Betty is not bewitched and whipping and hanging, a frightened Tituba confesses to working for the Devil and

the girls were just dancing. provides names of other witches in the town. Abigail and Betty also confess their
involvement and begin accusing several others of being witches.
Mr and Mrs Putnam arrive at the Parris household and reveal that their own
daughter is similarly ill. Mrs Putnam says that she has previously lost 7 babies in
infancy and believes the Devil is to blame. She reveals that she sent Ruth to Tituba
in hopes of communicating with her dead siblings to determine who was responsible
 HSC Common Module: The Crucible HSC Common Module: The Crucible

Questions to consider upon analysis Textual analysis

Contextual issues
Stage directions:
As is typical of the play text type, Miller provides us with stage directions. Intended for
• What language choices of Miller's evoke the diction of 1690s America?
theatrical adaptation, they carry with them a symbolic relevance that ought to be
• How does Miller create a sense of the Puritan restrictions that govern life in considered as well.
Salem?

A small upper bedroom in the home of Reverend Samuel Parris, Salem,

• How does Miller use intermissions of factual information to keep the reader
grounded? Massachusetts, in the spring of the year 1692. There is a narrow window at the left.
Through its leaded panes the morning sunlight streams. A candle still burns
Thematic concerns - Human experiences
near the bed, which is at the right. A chest, a chair, and a small table are the other
• Restrictions & rebellion furnishings. At the back a door opens on the landing of the stairway to the ground
floor. The room gives of an air of clean spareness. The roof rafters are exposed, and
• Power
the wood colors are raw and unmellowed. As the curtain rises, Reverend Parris is
• Fear of the unknown discovered kneeling beside the bed, evidently in prayer. His daughter, Betty Parris,
aged ten, is lying on the bed, inert.
• Transgression

• Deception • Miller's description of the setting establishes the tone for the rest of the

• Building hysteria play. The first act takes place in one enclosed space - "a small upper
bedroom in the home" - creating a feeling of claustrophobia, further
Textual issues
emphasised by the "narrow window" and lack of light. The sparse, minimal
furnishings including only "a chest, a chair and a small table" mean the
• Why does Miller use exposition to reveal information about his characters
room is devoid of any homely atmosphere, echoing the Puritanical beliefs
when they enter a scene? How would our perceptions change without his
interruptions in the play? of the society where indulgence is forbidden and only bare necessities are
used. Miller's use of setting takes on symbolic significance; Parris'
• How does Miller use lexical choices, descriptions, gestures & stage directions furnishings are a visual representation of the sparseness and conservatism
to reveal differences between his characters?
of his broader Calvinistic ideals. His room reflects his tendency toward

• How does Miller use setting to create a certain atmosphere? simplicity and asceticism, and sets the tone for our perception of Salem.
Moreover, this small, enclosed space mirrors the set-up of the society in
general - a small, stifling village of complete restrictions, in which
 HSC Common Module: The Crucible HSC Common Module: The Crucible

everyone is closely connected and under constant scrutiny and being persecuted wherever he went, despite his best efforts to win people and God
judgement. Additionally, in opening with the authority figure of Parris, to his side. In meeting, he felt insulted if someone rose to shut the door without first
Miller immediately establishes the notion of authority and the asking his permission.
administration of justice as central ideas within the play.
• The motif of light and dark is also introduced here. While "mormng . He never conceived that the children were anything but thankful for being
sunlight" can be seen through the window, inside the room "a candle" is permitted to walk straight, eyes slightly lowered, arms at the sides, and mouths shut
being used to illuminate the darkness. Outside the house, where there is until bidden to speak.
sunlight, there is complete freedom, nothing is hidden. However, inside
• Miller speaks of Parris in historical terms, addressing him as a historical
the house, where there is little light and a candle is being used to create
figure rather than a fictional device for his allegorical play. It is important
what little light there is, there are many secrets and uncertainty.
that Miller does strive for verisimilitude to the best of his ability throughout
• Unsurprisingly, Parris is in prayer - his Calvinistic devotion established
the composition. He recognises the negative reputation Parris has developed
immediately from the play's outset. Religious observation and its
in his own time and subsequently since - acknowledging the cultural biases
intersection into political life are established as key themes in this
opening tableau. that inevitably inform our perspective of historical figures.
• Miller immediately characterises Parris as a paranoid individual, and
• Furthermore, Betty's position as 'inert' upon the bed, is a physical
introduces the notion of persecution - a concept that will become
representation of the subordination and passivity of the child population
increasingly relevant throughout our study. Indeed, persecution is the
in Salem, as enforced by the disciplinary practices of their Calvinistic
sect. systematic mistreatment of an individual or group of people, usually by one
majority group over another. It is an aspect of politics that is recurringly
Commentary: relevant throughout The Crucible.
• The idea of discipline is now introduced in relation to the monitored
Now Miller asserts himself as quite unique among playwrights, as here he provides behaviour of Salem's children. It is important to consider that Miller
commentary intercut with the dialogue and actions of the play. This information, written recognises the fact that such strict behaviour was mandated out of genuine (if
in prose, is not intended to be delivered during a theatrical performance, but exists not misguided) concern for the well-being of the children. He does not
purely for the director and any readers of the material. In this commentary, Miller
suggest that these practices are born of malicious intent, but rather are the
provides historical details and establishes the political and cultural backgrounds for
product of perceived altruism. These lines open us to this idea of subjectivity
each of his characters.
which so defines both the play and human experience in general. While we as
a modern audience look upon such disciplinary measures as out-dated and

At the time of these events Parris was in his middle forties. In history he cut a detrimental, the people of Salem saw it as beneficial. Miller draws attention

villainous path, and there is very little good to be said for him. He believed he was
 HSC Common Module: The Crucible HSC Common Module: The Crucible

to the fact that we as responders are just as much a product of our cultural well as from the hostile Native American population is reminiscent of the
biases as were the citizens of Salem, Massachusetts. sense of persecution developed amongst conservative Americans in the
1950s, who felt their way of life was under attack by communist and liberalist
They would not have permitted anyone to read a novel... their creed forbade agendas. Feelings that were reinforced by the progressive movement of the
anything remotely resembling a theatre or 'vain enjoyment'. early 20th century that saw advancements such as women's suffrage and
• Miller introduces the idea of anti-intellectualism, as it exists in Salem, child labour laws.
Massachusetts. Being a strictly conservative society, the community They set up a communal society [... ] an autocracy was consent, for they were united
condemns any access to information seen to be potentially contradictory to from top to bottom by a common held ideology whose perpetuation was the reason
established Puritan doctrine. and justification for all their sufferings.
• This note marks the first obvious link between 1690s Salem and 1950s
America - who, in their anti-Communistic hysteria, largely shunned the • Miller introduces the explicitly political notion of autocracy by which
distribution of educational or entertainment material that might contradict authoritative power is concentrated into the hands of a single individual who
established capitalist values. This often took the form of the 'Hollywood exists above the laws they enforce. Autocracies are generally viewed in
blacklist' which was a practice of denying employment to suspected Western society to be exploitative and antithetical to utilitarian aims.
communist sympathisers amongst the entertainment community in Los However, Miller notes that the autocracy was welcomed within the Puritan
Angeles. This was so as to stop the 'infiltration' of communist ideals into society, who values rigid order and stability above personal liberty.
America's mass media circuit. • Once again, Miller acknowledges the subjectivities that rule our perception.
While our cultural biases in the 20th - 21st century might condemn
They carried about an air of innate resistance, even of persecution. Their fathers autocracy, that does not make them inherently bad - and their worth can
had, of course, been persecuted in England. only be determined through the subjective lens of the individual, as informed
by their historical, political and cultural context.
• We return to the notion of persecution. We recognise that Parris' own sense
of persecution is founded in the broader mindset of his cultural landscape. It is not hard to see how easily many could have been led to believe that the time of
• An understanding of 'persecution' is important to developing an informed confusion had been brought upon them by deep and darkling forces.
perspective of politics in Salem, 1950s America, and the world in general.
From a sense of persecution arises a sense of solidarity, from which strongly • Miller here notes that fear and confusion is often the source of political
bound and largely insular, conservative communities are formed. In the disruption. He also acknowledges that a fear of the unknown, which at the
struggle against a perceived oppressor, certain values become only more time had was manifest as a belief in the supernatural, was an understandable
rigidly embraced and a resistance to change or adaptation reinforced. The justification for the panic and paranoia that dominated the period.
persecution the Salem Puritans felt at the hands of the Catholic monarchy, as
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HSC Common Module: The Crucible HSC Common Module: The Crucible

• Again, Miller implicates his 1950s context here, 'the deep and darkling forces' Exercise:
- which in Salem were manifest as witchcraft and Satanism, - are understood In a few sentences, explain the purpose of Miller's commentary in The
in the form of a fear of communism in post-war America. The use of the Crucible.
plosive 'd' highlights how Miller recognises that amidst a state of political
and social confusion, communism resembles an easy target for individual
fears.

• Millers' tone throughout this commentary comes across as remarkable

impartial, he does not appear to condemn any sides or ideology - rather
reflecting upon the cultural and political forces which shaped such insular
and hostile behaviours.

For good purposes ... the people of Salem developed a theocracy, a combine of state
and religious power whose function was to keep the community together, and to
prevent any kind of disunity that might open it to destruction by material or
ideological enemies.

PARRIS, scrambling to his feet in a fury: Out of my sight! She is gone. Out of my - He
• A theocracy is a system of government in which the authoritative religious body is overcome with sobs. He clamps his teeth against them and closes the door and
hold sovereignty over appointed territory. The leader in this circumstance is one leans against it, ex-hausted. Oh, my God! God help me! Quaking with fear, mum-
who exhibits a unique connection to divinity. In Salem, this leader was Reverend bling to himself through his sobs, he goes to the bed and gently takes Betty's hand.
Samuel Parris.
Betty. Child. Dear child, Will you wake, will you open up your eyes! Betty, little
• Miller recognises that the theocracy in Salem emerged out of a desire to one ...
maintain order and protect the community from external threat. This desire for
order fundamentally underpins the construction of any political structure across • The instigating complication within the play, Miller introduces us to Parris as
time. Throughout the play, Miller introduces us to a number of conflicting he weeps over his daughter's illness. Predictably, he prays to God for
political structures and appraises their suitability and responsibility in the assistance and is dependent upon his faith for his daughter's recovery.
perpetuation of certain social behaviours.

He is bending to kneel again when his niece, Abigail Williams, seventeen, enters-a
strikingly beautiful girl, an orphan, with an endless capacity for dissembling.
Now she is all worry and apprehension and propriety.
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HSC Common Module: The Crucible HSC Common Module: The Crucible

,USANNA: Aye, sir, he have been searchin' his books since he left you, sir. But he
• The first description of Abigail when she enters the play establishes up as a >id me tell you, that you might look to unnatural things for the cause of it.
duplicitous character. The triad of "worry and apprehension and propriety"
used to describe her current appearance creates a sense of pretence casting t>ARRIS, his eyes going wide: No-no. There be no unnatural cause here. Tell him I
doubt on her motives and intentions before she has even spoken. The 1 ave sent for Reverend Hale of Beverly, and Mr. Hale will surely confirm that. Let
polysyndeton creates a feeling of multiplicity; layer upon layer of facades 1 im look to medicine and put out all thought of unnatural causes here. There be
that can be switched depending on the requirements of the situation. none.
• Abigail's "endless capacity for dissembling" foreshadows her pivotal role as
the instigator of the events that will unfold later in the play. The emphasis on • Here we see the first suggestions of "unnatural things" in the doctor's
her "strikingly beautiful" appearance captures a discordancy with outward message conveyed by Susanna, who functions as a harbinger of ill news and
appearances and inner realities, a prominent idea within the text. impending chaos. As the doctor can find no explanation "in his books",
symbolic of established understanding and knowledge, the villagers are
forced to venture beyond into the realm of the unknown.
ABIGAIL: Uncle? He looks to her. Susanna Walcott's here_ from Doctor Griggs. • Although witchcraft is not explicitly mentioned, it is the first thing on
everyone's mind and Farris's reaction is one of shock followed by immediate
PARRIS: Oh? Let her come, let her come. denial. His constant, frequent repetition and his insistence on continuing to
use the euphemism "unnatural causes" rather than voicing the word
ABIGAIL, leaning out the door to call to Susanna, who is down the hall a few steps: 'witchcraft' attempts to assure both himself and his listeners that there is no
Come in, Susanna. need for concern. What does this tell us about fear of the unknown as a human
experience and how we deal with it?
Susanna Walcott, a little younger than Abigail, a nervous, hurried girl, enters. • Miller uses specific language choices in The Crucible to help evoke the dialect
of 17th century Salem. Note the changing tenses, archaic words and use of
PARRIS, eagerly: What does the doctor say, child? double negatives such as in "he cannot discover no medicine... "

SUSANNA, craning around Parris to get a look at Betty: He bid me come and tell you, ABIGAIL: Uncle, the rumor of witchcraft is all about; I think you'd best go down and
reverend sir, that he cannot discover no medicine for it in his books. deny it yourself. The parlor's packed with people, sir. I'll sit with her.

PARRIS: Then he must search on. PARRIS, pressed, turns on her: And what shall I say to them? That my daughter and
my niece I discovered dancing like heathen in the forest?
 HSC Common Module: The Crucible HSC Common Module: The Crucible

ABIGAIL: Uncle, we did dance; let you tell them I confessed it -and I'll be whipped girl running through the woods, a symbol of the suppressed desires (in
if I must be. But they're speakin' of witchcraft. Betty's not witched. particular, sexual desires) present in all of the inhabitants of Salem.

PARRIS: Abigail, I cannot go before the congregation when I know you have not ABIGAIL, quavering, as she sits: I would never hurt Betty. I love her dearly.
opened with me. What did you do with her in the forest?

PARRIS: Now look you, child, your punishment will come in its time. But if you
ABIGAIL: We did dance, uncle, and when you leaped out of the bush so suddenly, trafficked with spirits in the forest I must know it now, for surely my enemies will,
Betty was frightened and then she fainted. And there's the whole of it. and they will ruin me with it.

• In this interaction, Miller articulates the sense of gossip and rumour that ABIGAIL: But we never conjured spirits.
dominated 1690s Salem, Massachusetts. He characterises the society as one
informed largely by the social paranoia, even regardless of witchcraft. PARRIS: Then why can she not move herself since midnight? This child is
• Abigail's reference to the gathering crowd suggests how social order is desperate! Abigail lowers her eyes. It must come out-my enemies will bring it out.
maintained by a paradoxically self-destructive structure of internal Let me know what you done there. Abigail, do you understand that I have many
'
interpersonal surveillance, with citizens keeping unofficial reports upon each enemies?
other - perpetuating a state of paranoia and suspicion.
• This gossiping culture resonates with Miller's post-war context, in which the ABIGAIL: I have heard of it, uncle.
threat of communism was promoted as a local issue - a threat not just to
global stability, but to the stability of our neighbourhoods and social groups. PARRIS: There is a faction that is sworn to drive me from my pulpit. Do you
As such, gossip and surveillance rose to prominence within insular suburban understand that?
communities, with rumours of communist sympathy travelling fast amongst
such routes. ABIGAIL: I think so, sir.
• Once again, we are made aware of the restrictions that the town places upon
the conduct of its inhabitants. Parris' comparison of the girls to "heathens" • As Parris continues to interrogate his niece, we are provided some insight
suggests that their actions betray a lack of moral principles yet the image of into why the suggestions of his household being associated with witchcraft
the girls dancing in the forest captures a sense of both isolation and freedom have so unsettled him. Parris increasingly comes across as an insecure
at the outskirts of society. As they cannot dance within Salem, the girls character, overly concerned with his reputation and preoccupied by the views
venture into the wilderness to indulge the desires which society deem of others. His repetitive and verbose manner reveals a fixation on his
unacceptable, innocent or not. As Parris reveals later on, he also saw a naked "enemies". His repeated questioning of Abigail of whether she understands is
a way of constantly seeking reassurance and validation from his niece about
 HSC Common Module: The Crucible
HSC Common Module: The Crucible

his paranoid ideas. In contrast, through her stage directions and mannered,
ABIGAIL, in a temper: My name is good in the village! I will not have it said my
polite tone when replying to her uncle, Abigail embodies her earlier
name is soiled! Goody Proctor is a gossiping liar!
description of "worry and apprehension and propriety."

• Parris asks Abigail whether her reputation in the village is clean, albeit in a
very passive-aggressive and loaded manner, ironically directing her to the
PARRIS, studies her, then nods, half convinced: Abigail, I have fought here three
'upright answer'. He prefaces his question with anaphoric repetition of "I
long years to bend these stiff-necked people to me, and now, just now when
have" while emphasising his struggle to establish his position of authority
some good respect is rising for me in them parish, you compromise my very
over the metaphorical 'stiff-necks' of the villagers and reminding Abigail of
character. I have given you a home, child, I have put clothes upon your back-
his charitable treatment of her. It also shows the gravity with which Parris
now give me upright answer. Your name in the town-it is entirely white, is it not?
views his position in the town and the power he thinks should accompany it.
• Again, Parris prefers to speak in euphemisms rather than directly broaching
ABIGAIL, with an edge of resentment: Why, I am sure it is, sir. There be no blush
unsettling topics. 'White' symbolises purity and innocence, with the
about my name. undertone that he is asking about licentious behaviour. Sensing a slight
against herself, Abigail is quick to lose her polite manner, betraying her
pARRIS, to the point: Abigail, is there any other cause than you have told me, for
mercurial nature. Beginning with "an edge of resentment", she quickly
your being discharged from Goody Proctor's service? I have heard it said, and I tell
dissolves into biting insults and accusations against Mrs Proctor. Her
you as I heard it, that she comes so rarely to the church this year for she will not sit
malicious tone and asyndeton reveal a targeted fury against this "lying,
so close to something soiled. What signified that remark? cold, snivelling woman". Here Abigail shifts the focus away from her own
doubtful reputation by slandering the reputation of Mrs Proctor. She also
ABIGAIL: She hates me, uncle, she must, for I would not be her slave. It's a bitter
turns on her uncle by discrediting his motives for interrogating her. Finishing
woman, a lying, cold, sniveling woman, and I will not work for such a woman!
her tirade with the ironic claim that Mrs Proctor is a ''gossiping liar", we see
Abigail's tendency for 'projection', a psychological defence mechanism
PARRIS: She may be. And yet it has troubled me that you are now seven month out
involving the denial of one's negative qualities by attributing them to others,
of their house, and in all this time no other family has ever called for your service.
described by psychoanalyst Freud.

ABIGAIL: They want slaves, not such as I. Let them send to Barbados for that. I will
Enter Mrs. Ann Putnam. She is a twisted soul of forty-five , a death -n·dden woman,
not black my face for any of them! With ill-concealed resentment at him: Do you
haunted by dreams.
begrudge my bed, uncle?

PARRIS: No-no.
 HSC Common Module: The Crucible
HSC Common Module: The Crucible
alluding to the ludicrous nature of the spectral evidence that becomes pivotal
PARRIS, as soon as the door begins to open: No-no, I cannot have anyone. He sees
to the rest of the play.
her, and a certain deference springs into him, although his worry remains. Why,
• While the audience can see the logical fallacy in her reasoning that what
Goody Putnam, come in.
cannot be explained must be caused by the "Devil's touch", Mrs Putnam's
personification of the archetypal 'forked and hoofed' devil persona serves
MRS. PUTNAM, full of breath, shiny-eyed: It is a marvel. It is surely a stroke of
to instil fear within the villagers by drawing on established cultural images.
hell upon you. Note also the repeated references to what people "saw" and what people
"say", giving insight into the spread of rumours. As the events unfold, we see
PARRIS: No, Goody Putnam, it is-
how rumours of witchcraft become belief in witchcraft and hysteria takes
hold by building upon irrational fear.
MRS. PUTNAM, glancing at Betty: How high did she fly, how high?

Enter Mary Warren, breathless. She is seventeen, a subservient, na'ive, lonely girl.
PARRIS: No, no, she never flew-

MARY WARREN: What'll we do? The village is out! I just come from the farm; the
MRS. PUTNAM, very pleased with it: Why, it's sure she did. Mr. Collins saw her
whole country's talkin' witchcraft! They'll be callin' us witches, Abby!
gain' over Ingersoll's barn, and come down light as bird, he says!

MERCY, pointing and looking at Mary Warren: She means to tell, I know it.

MRS. PUTNAM, with vicious certainty: I'd not call it sick; the Devil's touch is
MARY WARREN: Abby, we've got to tell. Witchery's a hangin' error, a hangin' like
heavier than sick. It's death, y'know, it's death drivin' into them, forked and
they done in Boston two year ago! We must tell the truth, Abby! You'll only be
hoofed. whipped for dancin', and the other things!

• As we see multiple times throughout the play, Miller is particular in the

ABIGAIL: Oh, we'll be whipped!
timing of the entrances and exits of characters. The entrance of the
Putnams in the midst of Parris' distress adds to the feeling of scrutiny and
MARY WARREN: I never done none of it, Abby. I only looked!
heightens the feeling of claustrophobia in the small room.
• The antithesis of a "marvel" and a "stroke of hell" to describe Betty's illness
• We see that the girls consider Abigail their leader, turning to her for a way
establishes Mrs Putnam as a character who finds pleasure in others suffering,
out of their dilemma. Note Mary's tricolonic characterisation as
functioning as a representative of the mentality of the broader Salem. The
"subservient, naive, lonely''. Similarly, Mercy is introduced earlier as "fat, sly,
almost childlike curiosity and excitement in her tone as she describes
merciless". Miller uses these triads to narrowly define each girl's personality
Betty's antics (how high did she fly? ... light as bird!) capture her glee while also
 HSC Common Module: The Crucible
HSC Common Module: The Crucible

and their standing in relation to the domineering, quick-witted and beautiful

I But Betty collapses in her hands and lies inert on the bed.
! Abigail, making it easy to see how she easily inveigles the others by
I
• After Betty awakens and reveals the truth of what the girls got up to,
manipulating their awe and fear of her. While Mary suggests Abigail was the
audiences get a glimpse of Abigail's ruthless disposition as she uses threats of
instigator of the transgressions in the forest, Abigail's quick pronounal
violence to get the other girls to stick to a story to protect herself. In her
substitution of 'we'll' for 'you'll' conveys her unwillingness to take
monologue, she captures the girls' attention using short and incomplete
responsibility and assures the others that they will all face the consequences.
sentences to draw emphasis to each thing she says and convey her version of
events as final. Her hyperbolic descriptions and use of colour "black" ,
ABIGAIL, pulling her away from the window: I told him everything; he knows now, he
"reddish" and their associated connotations of evil and violence enhances
knows everything we- the threats she is making in an attempt to scare the other girls into
submission. She uses high modality "I will come" and "you know J can" to
BETTY: You drank blood, Abby! You didn't tell him that!
convince the girls that she will carry through on her promised threat. Her
deliberate understatement of the gruesome death of her parents does not so
ABIGAIL: Betty, you never say that again! You will never-
much evoke sympathy but makes it seem almost a passing remark,
emphasising that she can be expected to do much worse to those who cross
BETTY: You did, you did! You drank a charm to kill John Proctor's wife! You drank a
her.
charm to kill Goody Proctor!

Consider Miller's exposition following John Proctor's entrance:

ABIGAIL, smashes her across the face: Shut it! Now shut it!

Proctor was a farmer in his middle thirties. He need not have been a partisan of any
BETTY, collapsing on the bed: Mama, Mama! She dissolves into sobs.
faction in the town, but there is evidence to suggest that he had a sharp and biting
way with hypocrites. He was the kind of man-powerful of body, even-tempered,
ABIGAIL: Now look you. All of you. We danced. And Tituba conjured Ruth Putnam's
and not easily led-who cannot refuse support to partisans without drawing their
dead sisters. And that is all. And mark this. Let either of you breathe a word, or the
deepest resentment. In Proctor's presence a fool felt his foolishness instantly-
edge of a word, about the other things, and I will come to you in the black of some
and a Proctor is always marked for calumny therefore.
terrible night and I will bring a pointy reckoning that will shudder you. And you
know I can do it; I saw Indians smash my dear parents' heads on the pillow next to
But as we shall see, the steady manner he displays does not spring from an
mine, and I have seen some reddish work done at night, and I can make you wish
untroubled soul. He is a sinner, a sinner not only against the moral fashion of
you had never seen the sun go down! She goes to Betty and roughly sits her up. Now,
the time, but against his own vision of decent conduct. These people had no ritual
''1}
i you-sit up and stop this! for the washing away of sins. It is another trait we inherited from them, and it has
 HSC Common Module: The Crucible HSC Common Module: The Crucible

helped to discipline us as well as to breed hypocrisy among us. Proctor, respected as a 'morality play' in which characters are intended to dram~tise Good and
and even feared in Salem, has come to regard himself as a kind of fraud. But no Evil. This reading is supported by the stark juxtaposition between the moral
hint of this has yet appeared on the surface, and as he enters from the crowded Proctor and Abigail; while both have 'sinned', the latter is shown to have very
parlor below it is a man in his prime we see, with a quiet confidence and an few redeeming qualities.
unexpressed, hidden force.
PROCTOR: Abby, you'll put it out of mind. I'll not be comin' for you more.
• The description of Proctor is strikingly different from the other characters we
have been introduced to thus far. He is "respected" amongst the villagers and ABIGAIL: You're surely sportin' with me.
possesses many quintessentially 'good' characteristics, yet he is a "sinner".
Miller's deliberate mention of his "sharp and biting way with hypocrites" PROCTOR: You know me better.

underpins the root of Proctor's self-loathing. Having compromised his own

moral values by cheating on his wife to sleep with the young Abigail, he has ABIGAIL: I know how you clutched my back behind your house and sweated like
become in his own eyes what he so greatly despises: a hypocrite. This is a stallion whenever I come near! Or did I dream that? It's she put me out, you
important to note, because Miller recognises that in reality human beings are cannot pretend it were you. I saw your face when she put me out, and you loved me
inherently complex - and no one individual is without flaw. While Proctor then and you do now!
may assert himself as a calm and balanced presence in the community, he
himself is guilty of impulse and sinful indulgence. As the play progresses, we PROCTOR: Abby, that's a wild thing to say-
are further exposed to the weight of Proctor's guilt as he struggles to regain
his lost self-image. However, simultaneously Proctor is aware of this ABIGAIL: A wild thing may say wild things. But not so wild, I think. I have seen
hypocrisy - and while not open about his extra-marital affair, his conscious ~1 .'''. you since she put me out; I have seen you nights.
leads him to look upon himself as a 'kind of fraud'. In this complexity of
human nature that inevitably complicates the political process. Indeed, there PROCTOR: I have hardly stepped off my farm this seven month.
is an irony in the fact that a political system designed to maintain order is
maintained by humans who are innately irrational and disruptive in their ABIGAIL: I have a sense for heat, John, and yours has drawn me to my window, and
nature. I have seen you looking up, burning in your loneliness. Do you tell me you've never
• Miller foreshadows the accusations that will be brought against the Proctors looked up at my window?
later on with "In Proctor's presence a fool felt his foolishness instantly-and a
Proctor is always marked for calumny therefore." This reads like an aphorism, PROCTOR: I may have looked up.
lending Proctor a significance beyond that of the individual. Indeed, Proctor
can be interpreted as a representative of the 'the moral man' and the Crucible
 HSC Common Module: The Crucible
HSC Common Module: The Crucible

ABIGAIL, now softening: And you must. You are no wintry man. I know you, John.
I know you. She is weeping. I cannot sleep for dreamin'; I cannot dream but I wake PROCTOR: Aye, but we did not.
:;
and walk about the house as though find you comin' through some door. She clutches
'I him desperately.
II ABIGAIL, with a bitter anger: Oh, I marvel how such a strong man may let such a
i
sickly wife be-
• As Abigail and Proctor are left alone, we learn that they have very different
views regarding the future of their affair, with Proctor turning down Abigail's PROCTOR, angered-at himself as well: You'll speak nothin' of Elizabeth!
advances. Abigail uses seductive and sensual imagery of heat and fires in a ABIGAIL: She is blackening my name in the village! She is telling lies about me! She
bid to evoke Proctor's lust and regain his affections. While her claim that she is a cold, sniveling woman, and you bend to her! Let her turn you like a-
has a "sense for heat" is primarily a sexual innuendo portraying Abigail as a
temptress, it is also a metaphorical reflection of her ability to instigate PROCTOR, shaking her: Do you look for whippin'?
conflict and use it to her advantage. A psalm is heard being sung below.

• We also see again the symbolism of walls and closed spaces as a ABIGAIL, in tears: I look for John Proctor that took me from my sleep and put
representation of Salem's Puritanical restrictions and conversely how open knowledge in my heart! I never knew what pretense Salem was, I never knew the
spaces can provide freedom from scrutiny. Proctor and Abigail indulged their lying lessons I was taught by all these Christian women and their covenanted men!
desires outside his house - "you clutched my back behind your house" - thus And now you bid me tear the light out of my eyes? I will not, I cannot! You loved
revealing that outside of their homes, individuals are free to transgress me, John Proctor, and whatever sin it is, you love me yet! He turns abruptly to go
beyond society's limits. out. She rushes to him. John, pity me, pity me!

PROCTOR, gently pressing her from him, with great sympathy but firmly: Child- • Proctor's dramatic "J will cut off my hand... " conveys his rejection as final. The
biblical allusion in this hyperbole is explicit. Consider Matthew 5:30: "And

ABIGAIL, with a flash of anger: How do you call me child! if thy right hand offend thee, cut it off and cast it from thee, for it is profitable for
thee". Again, Miller paints Proctor as the embodiment of an upright and

PROCTOR: Abby, I may think of you softly from time to time. But I will cut off my moral man, who having fallen once is now firm in his resolve to avoid sinning
again.
hand before I'll ever reach for you again. Wipe it out of mind. We never touched,
Abby. • It can be argued that the more complex character in this scene is Abigail, as
she answers Proctor's rhetorical question with a pleading monologue. In a

ABIGAIL: Aye, but we did. feminist reading, where Proctor is done "sporting" and has gone back to his
wife, Abigail is left suffering with the memories of their unresolved
 RSC Common Module: The Crucible
RSC Common Module: The Crucible
• Like Proctor, Rebecca's distinctness from the others is immediately clear. She
relationship. This is supported by Proctor's calm, almost callous, dismissal-
establishes herself as a voice of reason and experience and provides a logical
"Aye but we did not." While he may be content to leave things in the past,
explanation for the girls' 'fits'. Note also her comedic personification of the
Abigail has no such sense of closure. It is obvious that their short-lived affair
devil as powerless at the mercy of children. How does this compare to Mrs
has had a greater impact on her and although they seem to be equally
Putnam description of the devil earlier and what does this accomplish? As we
blameworthy, it is Abigail who is now discredited in the eyes of the villagers
see from her unembellished style of speech, Rebecca relies on simple
and whose name is 'soiled'.
analogies ('silly seasons") and similes ("a child's spirit is like a child'') to
• Her monologue also carries an undertone of a greater disdain for Salem in
convey her points. This establishes her as a character who speaks simply and
general as she bitterly describes the town as a "pretense" whose inhabitants
wisely, refuting fear and hysteria with common sense and optimism. Like
tell "lying lessons". In this way, Abigail and Proctor are similar. Both are
Proctor, Rebecca resembles a more contemporary perspective - one that
aware of Salem's hypocrisy and disillusioned by it. All of this resonates with
rejects the supernatural. It is important that we acknowledge the fact that
our understanding of many post-war American neighbourhoods, which -
Salem was a locale made up of many different and competing political
while projecting an outward image of fidelity and social righteousness - were
perspectives. The ensuing hysteria is not the result of political homogeneity,
in fact host to much anti-social, immoral behaviour. In fact, Miller is making
but rather of fragmentation. - The same can be said of the social landscape
a point that often, when individuals are placed beneath a strict social
following WWII.
contract, it is in our nature to undermine and act against it - even if we
purport to abide by the established rules.
MRS. PUTNAM, with a growing edge of sarcasm: But I must! You think it God's work
Everything is quiet. Rebecca walks across the room to the bed. Gentleness exudes you should never lose a child, nor grandchild either, and I bury all but one? There
from her. Betty is quietly whimpering, eyes shut. Rebecca simply stands over the are wheels within wheels in this village, and fires within fires!

child, who gradually quiets.

PUTNAM, to Parris: When Reverend Hale comes, you will proceed to look for signs
REBECCA, sitting: I think she'll wake in time. Pray calm yourselves. I have eleven of witchcraft here.
children, and I am twenty-six times a grandma, and I have seen them all through
their silly seasons, and when it come on them they will run the Devil bowlegged PROCTOR, to Putnam: You cannot command Mr. Parris. We vote by name in this
keeping up with their mischief. I think she'll wake when she tires of it. A child's society, not by acreage.
spirit is like a child, you can never catch it by running after it; you must stand still,

and, for love, it will soon itself come back. PUTNAM: I never heard you worried so on this society, Mr. Proctor. I do not think I
saw you at Sabbath meeting since snow flew.
 HSC Common Module: The Crucible
HSC Common Module: The Crucible

motivating their congregations into subordination out of fear, rather than

PROCTOR: I have trouble enough without I come five mile to hear him preach only
cooperation. Proctor reflects the sentiments of the more moderate Catholic
hellfire and bloody damnation. Take it to heart, Mr. Parris. There are many others
and even Congregationalist Protestants of England and Continental Europe -
who stay away from church these days because you hardly ever mention God any
he rejects the notion that the individual should be controlled through fear,
more.
and rather supports the empowerment of the individual through education

I
and reason.
PARRIS, now aroused: Why, that's a drastic charge!
• In this scene, we learn more of Proctor's character. He is quick to anger and
his sharp, disdainful tone when he tells Putnam "we vote by name in this
REBECCA: It's somewhat true; there are many that quail to bring their children-
society, not by acreage" reveal that he has little patience for those with views
less moral than his own. This also reinforces the idea of the importance of a
PARRIS: I do not preach for children, Rebecca. It is not the children who are
person's good name and reputation in Salem.
unmindful of their obligations toward this ministry.
• Finally, there is dramatic irony in Farris's repetition of 'the children'. He
claims he does not "preach for the children" as the "children are not
• Mrs Putnam is convinced there are hidden witches amongst them doing the unmindful", yet is this very underestimation that allows his niece and the
devil's work, claiming there are "wheels within wheels in this village and fires other girls to work their machinations unbeknownst to the adults.
within fires". Note the parallelism (similarly structured elements of a
sentence) of "wheels within wheels" and "fires between fires". This lends an
PROCTOR: Mr. Parris, you are the first minister ever did demand the deed to this
overall balance and rhythm, giving a smoother flow to Mrs Putnam's words
house-
and thus persuasiveness. Taken in a broader context, it also functions as an
astute metaphor for the condition of Salem in general, with hidden grudges n,
~•'·/ PARRIS: Man! Don't a minister deserve a house to live in?
and agendas festering beneath the surface for which witchcraft accusations

serve as an outlet.
PROCTOR: To live in, yes. But to ask ownership is like you shall own the meeting
• Putnam now accuses Proctor of anti-social sentiments, noting his recent
house itself; the last meeting I were at you spoke so long on deeds and
absence from church gatherings. Putnam's concern reflects the importance of
mortgages I thought it were an auction.
religion to the maintenance of Salem - one's spiritual involvement in the
community directly informs the broader stability of the society, in the eyes of
PARRIS: I want a mark of confidence, is all! I am your third preacher in seven years.
Putnam. But Proctor's response reflects a significant transition away from
I do not wish to be put out like the cat whenever some majority feels the whim.
Calvinist philosophies and toward a more moderate form of spirituality.
You people seem not to comprehend that a minister is the Lord's man in the
Indeed, much Calvinistic belief is predicated on the supposed consequences
parish; a minister is not to be so lightly crossed and contradicted-
for immorality. The reality of hell is a constant topic in Calvinistic churches -
 l
HSC Common Module: The Crucible
HSC Common Module: The Crucible

PROCTOR: Your grandfather had a habit of willing land that never b�longed to him,
if I may say it plain.
PUTNAM: Aye!

GILES: That's God's truth; he nearly willed away my north pasture but he knew I'd
pARRIS: There is either obedience or the church will bum like Hell is burning!
break his fingers before he'd set his name to it. Let's get your lumber home, John. I
feel a sudden will to work coming on.
PROCTOR: Can you speak one minute without we land in Hell again? I am sick of
Hell!
'I
PUTNAM: You load one oak of mine and you'll fight to drag it home!
GILES: Aye, and we'll win too, Putnam-this fool and I. Come on! He turns to Proctor
I

• Proctor's humorous quip about Parris' sermon resembling an

,1
·1 "auction"
his authority to and starts out.
portrays Parris as a worldly man, more interested in using
However, Parris'
gain material benefits than spreading the message of God.
to maintain his PUTNAM: I'll have my men on you, Corey! I'll clap a writ on you!
defensive tone again reveals that he constantly struggles
a minister and is
authority. He believes he does not have the proper respect of
• The end of Scene 4 reveals other animosities when Proctor, Corey and
tantly trying to
worried of being "put out like the cat". We find him cons
ter is" to outline Putnam begin arguing over land rights. Putnam's threats and intimidation
reassert his authority, here anaphorically repeating "a minis
are not taken seriously by the other men as we see from Giles' nonchalant
his position and the respect it deserves.
response. Putnam's promise - "I'll clap a writ (court warrant) on you!" -
foreshadows the accusations that will be brought against the Coreys as the
• Parris' exclamation that "there is either obedience or the church will
bum like
the issues at witch-hunts continue. Again, they provide a way for grudges and agendas to
Hell" presents an absolute dichotomy that effectively captures
in black and be fulfilled.
the heart of the play. Like the rest of Salem, he sees the world
Dissent is equal to
white where everyone belongs to either God or the Devil.
tioned by God. Coming into Salem now, Reverend Hale conceives of himself much as a young
anarchy. In this Puritan theocracy, the church is the law, sanc
s the church's doctor on his first call. His painfully acquired armory of symptoms, catchwords,
Continuing this logic of dichotomies, anyone who challenge
and diagnostic procedures is now to be put to use at last ... He feels himself allied
authority must then be a servant of the Devil.
with the best minds of Europe-kings, philosophers, scientists, and ecclesiasts

• We must also consider Proctor's inner conflict. Does his aversion to talk of of all churches. His goal is light, goodness and its preservation, and he knows
the exaltation of the blessed whose intelligence, sharpened by minute examinations
"hell and damnation" stem primarily from his dislike of Parris' preaching, his
of enormous tracts, is finally called upon to face what may be a bloody fight
disillusionment with authority or from his guilty conscience?
with the Fiend himself.

' i

u
 HSC Common Module: The Crucible l
I
HSC Common Module: The Crucible

He appears loaded down with half a dozen heavy books.

• Rebecca again shows her compassionate nature, however her exit has far-
HALE, holding up his hands: No, no. Now let me instruct you. We cannot look to reaching negative implications. The two voices of reason, Proctor and
superstition in this. The Devil is precise; the marks of his presence are definite as Rebecca, leave before the investigation begins. Thus, they are not present
stone, and I must tell you all that I shall not proceed unless you are prepared to when the hysteria takes root and are unable to stop it from growing until it is
believe me if I should find no bruise of Hell upon her. too late.
• There is imagery of infection here with suggestions of rot and corruption.
• The use of medical vernacular to introduce Reverend Hale strengthens the Parris is correct in his hypothesis: the 'boil' of suspicion is opened and like an
analogy of him as a kind of spiritual "doctor'' whose job is to diagnose infection it spreads throughout Salem.
witchcraft and provide its cure. Miller's accumulation of "kings, philosophers,
scientists and ecclesiasts" is hyperbolic in its exaltation of Hale, explaining
~;i e Mrs. Putnam enters with Tituba, and instantly Abigail points at Tituba.
the reverence with which he is treated in Salem. While "his goal is light,
goodness" may come across as a banality, we see that Hale is motivated by ABIGAIL: She made me do it! She made Betty do it!
sincere intentions.
TITUBA, shocked and angry: Abby!
• The symbolism of having Hale enter "loaded down" with books establishes
him as an intellectual but also alludes that it is this very zeal and willingness ABIGAIL: She makes me drink blood!
to serve that allows others to manipulate him, particularly Abigail.
PARRIS: Blood!!
REBECCA: Will it hurt the child, sir?

HALE: You have sent your spirit out upon this child, have you not? Are you
HALE: I cannot tell. If she is truly in the Devil's grip we may have to rip and tear to gathering souls for the Devil?
get her free.
ABIGAIL: She sends her spirit on me in church; she makes me laugh at prayer!
REBECCA: I think I'll go, then. I am too old for this. She rises.
PARRIS: She have often laughed at prayer!
PARRIS, striving for conviction: Why, Rebecca, we may open up the boil of all
our troubles today! ABIGAIL: She comes to me every night to go and drink blood!

REBECCA: Let us hope for that. I go to God for you, sir. TITUBA: You beg me to conjure! She beg me make charm-

u
 HSC Common Module: The Crucible
l
I
HSC Common Module: The Crucible
I
I

ABIGAIL : Don't lie! To Hale: She comes to me while I sleep; she's always making Abigail rises, staring as though inspired, and cries out.
me dream corruptions!
ABIGAIL: I want to open myself! They turn to her, startled. She is enraptured, as
• We see that Tituba is overrun by repeated accusations one after the other though in a pearly light. I want the light of God, I want the sweet love of Jesus! 1
('She made me... She sends ... She comes to me... ''). As Abigail's 'proof' mounts danced for the Devil; I saw him; I wrote in his book; I go back to Jesus; I kiss His
against her, Tituba is interrogated with leading questions. "You have sent hand. I saw Sarah Good with the Devil! I saw Goody Osburn with the Devil! I saw
your spirit out upon this child, have you not?" already contains a presumption Bridget Bishop with the Devil!
of guilt that her interrogators want confirmed rather than trying to get a true As she is speaking, Betty is rising from the bed, a fever in her eyes, and picks up the
answer. Her interrupted dialogue (''Don't lie!") allows Abigail to effectively chant.
silence Tituba's voice. As a black female slave, she is powerless to defend
herself against Abigail's false accusations. BETTY, staring too: I saw George Jacobs with the Devil! I saw Goody Howe with the
Devil!
HALE, resolved now: Tituba, I want you to wake this child.
On their ecstatic cries
TITUBA: I have no power on this child, sir. THE CURTAIN FALLS

HALE: You most certainly do, and you will free her from it now! When did you • Miller concludes the opening act with a cacophonous display of hysteria _
compact with the Devil? enhanced through his use of repetition.
• Abigail is quick to realise that she can achieve immediate respect and
TITUBA: I don't compact with no Devil! authority by declaring witchcraft, which translates into power. Her
melodramatic exclamations ("I want the sweet love of Jesus'') lend a
PARRIS: You will confess yourself or I will take you out and whip you to your theatrical air to her confession. Similarly, seeing Abigail's success, Betty
death, Tituba! joins in the accusations and we see the perpetuation of the vicious cycle of
hysteria. Note how Betty mirrors Abigail both in actions ('staring') and
• The paradoxical ultimatum presents Tituba with no real choice. The only sentence structure (''I saw ... with the devil!'').
way out is to make false confessions and join the accusers; an act of self-
' i
preservation. Tituba takes cues from her interrogators and tells them what
they want to hear, going on to implicate Sarah Good and Goody Osburn as
witches.

I I
LJ
~
I
I

HSC Common Module: The Crucible HSC Common Module: The Crucible

• Consistently, we see how empowering a study of texts and human experiences

Core Human Experiences: Fear of the unknown, deception and hysteria
is for a responder. Most of Miller's observations about society work through
To this point, we have examined Act I closely. What we will do now is examine that negation. By depicting and satirising his era's flaws, he empowers not only
idea critically, which will then lead us into constructing some general ideas about his audience but us as a contemporary audience to avoid this same fate,
the core human experience of everyday existence as represented in the text. reinforcing the need for a critically empowered, reflective populace open to
challenging preconceived ideals.
By the end of this portion, students should have sufficient material to write a
paragraph outlining the treatment of the three aforementioned concepts. In this Hence, in considering the dot points above, a formula for discussion emerges. In
section, we will focus on the 'fear of the unknown'. Some core things to remember: writing about texts and human experiences, we need to identify a few things, in
sequence:

Context and Fear:

e
• While we can clearly see the contextual relevance of Miller's representation • What is the enduring human experience represented in the text?
of fear, in that it both critiques the McCarthy era Communist superstition, • How is that human experience mediated by the text's context and form?
while also reflecting on the historical conservatism of Calvinism, we must be • What are the implications of that representation for a responder studying it?
sure to extract out what is universal and enduring within the human
experience. As a result, (1) we begin by defining what this core human experience is, (2) we then

0 In this case, these contextual reflections cause us to recognise an look deeply in the text, showing how that human experience is mediated by the
enduring fear of the other, which manifests in tension whenever formal decisions (and contextual background) of the composer, and then--
a group is made to face the unknown. importantly--(3) we tie it back to us as readers, defining how our understanding of

0
Similarly, we see an effect on the audience: by realising this hysteria, core human experiences are developed by studying this representation.
audiences are empowered to recognise their own instances of fear and
challenge them, resulting in a greater resilience in eras of social 1. How is the fear of the unknown manifested in the play? What is Miller
upheaval. trying to say about this particular idea?
2. What do we learn about ourselves and our society as a result of this

Deception: representation?
• Similarly, Miller's text reflects an enduring tendency to be deceived, as
individuals are often subject to the manipulations of their political or social
authorities. In this way, the text forces us to reflect on the motivations behind
an authority's actions - in turn developing our capacity for critical

evaluation.
~
1

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HSC Common Module: The Crucible HSC Common Module: The Crucible

a) The implications of the fear of the unknown for an individuaPs identity and
sense of self.
b) The implications for the responder and how such portrayal develops their
understanding of the world.

Technique Quote Explanation

Now that we have the direction we wish our argument to take, our job is to collate
effective evidence. Remember, in writing for Year 12, sentences have to be compact
and to the point. Each sentence you write must have a piece of textual evidence
which you explain.

In the following table, identify four quotes, their techniques, and include an
explanation revealing their relevance to a study of an enduring human experience of
the fear of the unknown. In this explanation, you can consider:
 HSC Common Module: The Crucible HSC Common Module: The Crucible

When we're assembling our paragraphs, we need to abide by a strong body

paragraph structure: NB: You aren't limited to this length. Three PEEL sentences should be
considered the absolute baseline and, in Year 12 especially, we would be

Part Role Example Structure aiming for at least four pieces of evidence in each of our four paragraphs.

Topic Answer In The Crucible, Miller's depiction of

For the next few exercises we will use the following question:
sentence question/Introduce core [tension in text] reflects a [statement on
human experience human experience], prompting
How does the representation of a core human experience in Act I empower
represented in text. responders to [implication for responder].
the individual to develop their own outlook?

PEEL sentence Explicitly foregrounds a Adapting the [context], Miller uses

(Contextual key contextual element [technique] in {quote] to reveal {statement Write a topic sentence answering that question and introducing Miller's treatment
Overview) of the text and how it examining how enduring human of the fear of the unknown. Your teacher will give feedback.

mediates the enduring experiences are mediated by precise

human experience from contextual ones].
the topic sentence.

PEEL sentence Builds on previous Subsequently, [technique} in {quote]

analysis, incorporates reflects [idea].
linking word (similarly,
in contrast).

PEEL sentence Builds on previous Miller also centralises [idea] through the
analysis, incorporates use of [technique} in {quote]. Using the same question, write three PEEL sentences corresponding to the
linking word (similarly, structure given above.

in contrast).
Your evidence should draw from the notes above and your own answers to
Ultimately Summarises what the Hence/Ultimately/Thus, through Miller's
previous questions, ideas may be repeated so long as an explicit link to the key
sentence responder has portrayal of [idea] the audience develops
words of the question is drawn.
understood about greater understanding of [human
enduring nature of experience} precipitating {change in their
human experience. awareness of self/others].
 HSC Common Module: The Crucible HSC Common Module: The Crucible

Summary of Act i

f%'. 9 The Crucible introduces us to political landscape of late 17th century Salem,
Massachusetts in the early colonial days of European-American history. Miller
characterises Salem as an isolationist hub, separate from the liberalist philosophies
gaining popularity amongst the political systems of continental Europe during the
Age of Enlightenment. Salem alternatively strictly adhered to the Calvinistic
traditions of Protestantism, establishing a theocracy that operated almost
independently from the rest of colonial society. Such rigid adherence, which
included the forbiddance of such activities as dancing and singing, were galvanised
by a perception of persecution instigated by protestant persecution by Catholics in
England. The political landscape, one which saw no separation of church and state,
of 1690s Massachusetts was characterised by broader political turmoil and confusion
from which the supernatural became a target for blame in regards to social
disruption. Within this landscape, Miller draws comparison to his contemporary
post-war American context - one fractured by the cataclysmic events of World War

Select your strongest sentence and submit for feedback. II, and which saw a galvanising of conservative capitalist sentiments in light of a
rising communist sympathies. What emerged was a widespread fear of communism,
Finally, write a summative sentence that links back to the question, outlining and the attribution of social ills upon the political ideologies communists and
specifically an implication for the responder in recognising the play's communist sympathises propagated.
treatment of an enduring human experience.
While a distinctly political play, throughout The Crucible Miller continually observes
the fact that our political structures are ultimately operated and maintained by
 HSC Common Module: The Crucible HSC Common Module: The Crucible

individuals - as such, a separation of the political and the personal is near

impossible, and through the actions and motivations of his characters Miller
communicates the two entities to be mutually dependent. In particular, while the
citizens of Salem are undoubtedly motivated by a fear of the supernatural, Miller
recurringly notes that such individuals, for example Reverend Samuel Parris and
Thomas Putnam, are motivated not by strictly religious concerns but rather out of
political aspirations. Furthermore, Miller observes a transition away from the strict
Calvinistic tendencies of Salem's older generation toward an embrace of
individualism exhibited by younger characters such as Abigail and Mercy.
Ultimately, the individuals in Miller's play become vessels for political doctrine -
and serve as representations for the fears and spiritual beliefs that motivated the
mass hysteria of the period.
• Research Freudian defence mechanisms. Which one do each of the characters
Miller's most prominent and effective representational device is that of the allegory.
rely on?
The personal and political systems represented within Miller's historical Salem
landscape are in fact vessels through which he launches a commentary of his
contemporary post-war society. In doing so, he navigates the cultural biases which
inform his context, and presents an appraisal of the human impulse toward fear and
paranoia separate from the influence of engrained anti-Communist rhetoric -
achieving a more effectively engaging appraisal of his post- war society.
Furthermore, the play supports its historical representations through the inclusion
of Miller's personal commentary - existing beyond the theatrical realm of the play,
these inclusions give insight into the personal and political motivations of the play's
main characters - representing each figure in a way that is representative to the best
extent of historical truth.
• What different agendas are we introduced to so far that may drive future
witchcraft accusations?
Homework

• Does Proctor have a tragic flaw? Is it his lust, integrity, inability to forgive
himself or something else?