crucible essay conclusion

The Crucible

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Welcome to the LitCharts study guide on Arthur Miller's The Crucible . Created by the original team behind SparkNotes, LitCharts are the world's best literature guides.

The Crucible: Introduction

The crucible: plot summary, the crucible: detailed summary & analysis, the crucible: themes, the crucible: quotes, the crucible: characters, the crucible: symbols, the crucible: theme wheel, brief biography of arthur miller.

Historical Context of The Crucible

Other books related to the crucible.

• Full Title: The Crucible
• When Written: 1950-52
• When Published: 1953
• Literary Period: Realist Drama
• Genre: Tragic Drama
• Setting: Salem, Massachusetts in 1692, when it was a Puritan colony
• Climax: The Crucible has an odd structure, in which each of the four acts ends on a climax. Act I: the girls scream out the names of witches. Act II: Proctor vows he will confront Abigail. Act III: Proctor reveals his adultery with Abigail, and Elizabeth Proctor lies. Act IV: Proctor rips up his confession.
• Antagonist: Abigail Williams

Extra Credit for The Crucible

The Real Salem Witch Trials. In his depiction of the witch trials, Miller took many major departures from fact. For instance, John Proctor was nearly 60 and Abigail Williams only 11 at the time of the witch trials. Any affair between the two is highly unlikely, to say the least. Miller was always open about the liberties he took with history, saying that he was writing "a fictional story about an important theme."

Some Like it Hot. Arthur Miller was not a star the way writers are stars today. He was much, much bigger than that. After he wrote Death of a Salesman , he was a tremendous national sensation. In fact, he was such a big star that he married Marilyn Monroe. The couple married in 1956, and stayed together until 1961.

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What is the summary of the play?

Set in Salem, Massachusetts in 1692, the play focuses on the protagonist John Proctor as he struggles to overcome his past transgressions, prior to the play, when he committed adultery with Abigail Williams which subsequently controls and influences the outcome of the play. Abigail charges various citizens of practising witchcraft, leading to Proctor’s death.

What is the introduction to the play for the question - Choose a play in which there is a central character brings about his or her downfall because of a weakness within their character.

Arthur Miller’s play ‘The Crucible’ explores a character who possess a significant weakness. John Proctor, the antagonist, is unwilling to forgive himself after committing adultery with Abigail Williams. It is this inability to forgive himself that prevents him from revealing Abigail’s lies before they gather momentum and ultimately lead to his downfall in the play’s denouement.

What is the introduction to the play for the question - For a play you have studied, choose a scene in which a character is forced to face up to the truth about himself/herself?

Arthur Millers ‘The Crucible’ is a play where a character is forced to face up to the truth about themselves. John Proctor is a crucial character in the play who’s actions influence the outcome of everyone else. John’s struggles and worries of his tainted past are clearly shown throughout the play. Only through the personal sacrifice and matyrdrom can the constraints of Salem’s society be broken

What is the sentence for the techniques to convey the ideas in the play?

Through the use of characterisation, key scene and dialogue Arthur Miller successfully conveys/demonstrates and refer back to question.

What is the introduction to the play for a question about setting?

Arthur Miller’s the crucible is a play that makes use of setting to make the main ideas of the play more comprehensible and believable. After accusations of witchcraft, hysteria breaks out in Salem. Only through the use of setting can the main ideas be conveyed to the reader and the outcome of the play be explained.

What is the introduction to the play for a question on choose a play in which a central character struggles to cope with social convention or financial difficulties or family duties?

Arthur Miller’s play ‘The Crucible’ contains a central character who struggles to cope with social convention. The protagonist John Proctor, is unwilling to forgive himself after committing adultery - an act frowned upon by the Puritan community. It is his inability to forgive himself and need for self preservation that subsequently controls and influences the outcome of the play, resulting in Proctors death.

What is the introduction for choose a play in which the concluding scene provides effective clarification of the central concerns?

Arthur Miller’s play ‘ The Crucible ‘ concludes with a scene that provides effective clarification of the central concerns in the play. The protagonist John Proctor, is unwilling to forgive himself for committing adultery with Abigail Williams. Proctors need for self preservation and unwillingness to forgive himself influence the outcome of the play and result in his death in the denouement of the play.

What is the introduction for choose a play in which the conflict between two characters is an important feature?

Arthur Miller’s play ‘The Crucible’ explores a conflict between two important characters which influence the outcome of the play. John Proctor ,the protagonist, is tortured and weighed down by the guilt of his affair with Abigail Williams. Due to this, Proctor life is influenced by Abigail who is ultimately the cause of his death in the plays denouement.

What is the introduction for choose a play which focuses on a relationship which is destructive or is in crisis?

Arthur Miller’s play ‘The Crucible’ focuses on a relationship which is destructive. The protagonist, John Proctor, is tortured weighed down with guilt of his affair with Abigail Williams. Proctor tries his hardest to remove Abigail from his life. However it is his rejection of her that results in Abigail seeking revenge on his wife, ultimately leading to Proctors death in the plays denouement.

What is the introduction for choose a play in which a major character behaves in an impulsive or calculating or emotional manner?

Arthur Miller’s play ‘The Crucible’ focuses on a character who behaves in a calculating way.The protagonist, John Proctor, is tortured weighed down with guilt of his affair with Abigail Williams. Proctor tries his hardest to remove Abigail from his life. However it is his rejection of her that results in Abigail seeking revenge on his wife, ultimately leading to Proctors death in the plays denouement.

What is the introduction for choose a play in which there is a scene which influences the course of future events?

Arthur Miller’s play ‘The Crucible’ contains a scene which influences the course of future events.The protagonist, John Proctor, is tortured weighed down with guilt of his affair with Abigail Williams. Proctor tries his hardest to remove Abigail from his life. However it is his rejection of her that results in Abigail seeking revenge on his wife, by accusing her of witchcraft, ultimately leading to Proctors death in the plays denouement.

What is the introduction for choose a play which deals with the theme of honour or shame or betrayal?

Arthur Miller’s play ‘The Crucible’ explores the theme of betrayal. The protagonist, John Proctor, is tortured weighed down with guilt of his affair with Abigail Williams. Proctor tries his hardest to remove Abigail from his life and not betray his wife again. However it is his rejection of her that results in Abigail seeking revenge on his wife, by accusing her of witchcraft, ultimately leading to Proctors death in the plays denouement.

What is the introduction for choose a play which has an effective opening scene or concluding scene?

Arthur Miller’s play ‘ The Crucible ‘ which has an effective opening scene. The protagonist John Proctor, is unwilling to forgive himself for committing adultery with Abigail Williams. Proctors need for self preservation and unwillingness to forgive himself influence the outcome of the play and result in his death in the denouement of the play.

What is the introduction for choose a play in which a major character’s actions influence the emotions of others?

Arthur Miller’s play ‘The Crucible’ contains a major character who influences the emotions of others. The protagonist, John Proctor, is tortured weighed down with guilt of his affair with Abigail Williams. Proctor tries his hardest to remove Abigail from his life. However it is his rejection of her that results in Abigail seeking revenge on his wife, by accusing her of witchcraft, ultimately leading to Proctors death in the plays denouement.

What is the introduction for choose a play in which there is a scene involving a moment of conflict or of resolution to conflict?

Arthur Miller’s play ‘The Crucible’ contains a scene involving a moment of conflict. The protagonist, John Proctor, is tortured and weighed down with guilt of his affair with Abigail Williams. Proctor tries his hardest to remove Abigail from his life. However it is his rejection of her that results in Abigail seeking revenge on his wife, by accusing her of witchcraft. Proctor attends court in the hope of pleading his wife’s innocence, which results in a conflict, that ultimately leads to Proctors death in the plays denouement.

What is the introduction for choose a play which explores an important issue or issues within society?

Arthur Miller’s play ‘The Crucible’ explores the issue of suppressed desire in the Puritan community of the 1690s. The protagonist John Proctor, is unwilling to forgive himself after committing adultery - an act frowned upon by the Puritan community. It is his inability to forgive himself and need for self preservation that subsequently controls and influences the outcome of the play, resulting in Proctors death.

What is the introduction for a character who, makes a vital error?

Arthur Miller’s play ‘The Crucible’ contains a scene where a character makes a vital error. The protagonist, John Proctor, is tortured and weighed down with guilt of his affair with Abigail Williams. Proctor tries his hardest to remove Abigail from his life. However it is his rejection of her that results in Abigail seeking revenge on his wife, by accusing her of witchcraft. Proctor attends court in the hope of pleading his wife’s innocence but when presented with the chance to save herself and her husband, Elizabeth’s natural lie to protect her husband ultimately leads to Proctors death in the plays denouement.

What is the introduction for a scene that acts as a clear turning point?

What is the introduction for choose a play where the emotions of one or more characters reach a climax?

Arthur Miller’s play ‘The Crucible’ contains a scene involving a moment of conflict. The protagonist, John Proctor, is tortured and weighed down with guilt of his affair with Abigail Williams. Proctor tries his hardest to remove Abigail from his life. However it is his rejection of her that results in Abigail seeking revenge on his wife, by accusing her of witchcraft. Proctor attends court in the hope of pleading his wife’s innocence, which results in a climax of his emotions, that ultimately leads to Proctors death in the plays denouement.

What is the conclusion to the play?

To conclude - refer to question. Had Proctor been able to overcome his excessive pride and forgive himself for the the adultery he committed and not been so preoccupied with his past transgressions and reputation in Salem, he could have revealed his knowledge of Abigail earlier in the play and prevented the deaths of many people, as well as his own. Ultimately his inhabiting to forgive himself which was his fatal weakness and Miller successfully conveys the power conscience has over us. The play as a whole provides a powerful message about the dangers of being swept up in hysteria as well as the difficulties placed upon an individual to conform to society.

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Essays About The Crucible: 10 Essay Questions for Students

The Crucible, by Arthur Miller, is one of the most-studied plays in American history. What are some of the top essays about The Crucible that people can write?

The Crucible , by Arthur Miller, is a play that focuses on The Salem Witch Trials. This is one of the most studied times in American history when people could be put on trial and brutally executed just for being suspected of being a witch. The primary instigator was Elizabeth Proctor, who was just 17 years old and started falsely accusing people of being a witch. The practice spread to children, such as Abigail Williams, and even men, such as John Proctor, were accused of being a witch. 

In the 15 months following the first accusation, 20 people were executed. The Crucible focuses on how the events of the witch trials unfolded. Take a look at a few possible essay topics that stem from the play.

For help with your essays, check out our round-up of the best essay checkers !

1. Who Is the Most Heroic Character in The Crucible?

2. what are the different types of judgment that take place in ‘the crucible’, 3. why is ‘the crucible’ considered to be timeless, 4. how does arthur miller explore mass hysteria through the lens of salem and his characters, 5. analyze the factors contributing to salem’s downfall and how they relate to the main theme of the crucible, 6. what changes does reverand hale go through during ‘the crucible’, 7. why do people accuse those who are different, and why aren’t they challenged, 8. the paper makes a consistent appearance throughout the play; what does it mean, 9. what is a crucible, and what is the meaning of the play’s title, 10. what issues present in “the crucible” do we still face today.

Even though you can write about many characters and describe why they are heroic, the most heroic character is John Proctor. The people of Salem widely respect him because of his independence. He also has a “sharp and biting way with hypocrites,” always sticking to his virtues.

A few points to touch on in this essay include:

• He is the main source of social authority in the town, and he is directly tied to the leaders of the Puritan Church. 
• He is also a deeply flawed person, as he is shown to be adulterous throughout the play and crosses the church more than once.
• He struggles with a deep moral conflict, growing throughout the play. 

Because of the growth he experiences during the story and the character traits he possesses, he is the most heroic character in the story.

It is relatively easy to look at the trials in The Salem Witch Trials and see them as a “Kangaroo Court,” where those accused don’t have a fair trial. At the same time, it is helpful to look at the different types of judgment that occur in the play. A few possible points to mention include:

• There is an element of legal judgment in the play, but it is mostly superficial. Danforth is responsible for legal judgment, but this is natural justice because of its dogmatic focus on reputation. 
• There is also an element of personal judgment, particularly when Proctor believes himself to be a “sinner” that has gone against the morals he holds himself to. 
• Finally, there is also spiritual judgment, as shown when Elizabeth assures Proctor that there is “no higher judge under the heaven.” The town is also fearful of God’s judgment throughout the play, contributing to mass hysteria.

The essay can look at these different types of judgment and how they impact the town during the play. 

A lot of people describe the play as a timeless one. The play is still relevant today, even though it focuses on events over 300 years ago. An interesting essay would look at why the play is still relevant today. Some of the reasons include:

• Mass hysteria can still happen today, and it might be worth looking at a few recent examples.
• Dogmatic religious persecution is still a very big problem in certain parts of the world, and a strong essay could highlight a few examples.
• A lot of people are still accused of crimes without any evidence, and the court of public opinion might find them guilty before a real trial has taken place.

These topics are so deep that it is possible to write a full essay on each of the individual points above, drawing parallels between them and the play. 

Many people say that The Crucible is the perfect example of just how badly instances of mass hysteria can unfold. Mass hysteria is arguably the most dominant theme of the play, as the people of Salem are engulfed by worries related to witchcraft and accusations of people worshipping the devil. 

It could be helpful to write an essay on how mass hysteria developed and evolved during the play. Some of the key points to note include:

• People who are consumed by mass hysteria are unable to think rationally.
• One rumor that Abigail creates leads to dozens of people being incarcerated in just a matter of days, despite the accusations being unproven.
• The effects of mass incarceration directly influence a very repressive society.
• Many people feel the need to join the repressive crowd because they want to be seen as religious.

Finally, the essay can also touch on how mass hysteria impacted not only those people who were accused but also those making the accusations. Then, the essay can discuss what finally brought these events to an end. 

Several factors contribute to the downfall of Ceylon and the events that unfold in The Crucible. A few examples include:

• Samuel Parris, Annie Putnam, and even Judge Danforth struggled with the living conditions of Salem, which caused people not to think straight. He rendered them susceptible to anyone offering the slightest explanation regarding the adverse living conditions.
• The rigid, religious, dogmatic society contributed to easy accusations, with people eager for someone to blame for the hard times.
• Family feuds also contributed to the events of The Crucible , causing the parents to believe the haphazard lies of their children.

Ultimately, these factors can be discussed in an essay on The Crucible. They directly feed into the main theme of mass hysteria stemming from religious dogmatism.

In the play The Crucible , Reverend Hale is one of the most important characters. He initially supported The Salem Witch Trials, but then he changed his mind. He even published a harsh criticism of the trials in the town of Salem.

Some of the key points to note include:

• He initially supported the trials, even saying, “ Before the Laws of God, we are as swine !”
• He is a perfect example of how a powerful religious figure can directly lead to mass hysteria.
• He eventually changes his mind when he loses faith in the court, seeing how immoral it is.

Reverend Hale undergoes one of the most dramatic transformations as the play unfolds. It is worth taking a closer look at his initial position, his final position, and the impact of his transformation on his life and the town. 

It might also be helpful to look at some of the biggest reasons people accuse those different from them. A few points to include in the essay might be:

• People tend to accuse those who are different because they are scared of them. They don’t know what to expect, and keeping them down might be the easiest way to allay their fears.
• People might also accuse those different from them because they see an easy target. They feel like they can elevate their social standing by taking advantage of easy prey.
• Finally, people might somehow accuse those different from them because they genuinely believe them to be “lesser” people. It might be helpful to draw a few parallels between the play and history.

It is also important to highlight why these accusations go unchallenged. Do they want a side with the person making the accusation? Or do they want to side with the person being accused? Some people try to ride the middle, not saying anything at all.

Ultimately, they agree with the person accusing by not saying anything because they are not challenging an accusation, even if it is without evidence. This could be an interesting topic to explore, and there are plenty of parallels between this topic and the play. 

In The Crucible , the paper shows up again and again. In other works of literature, it is commonly associated with truth and knowledge. After all, it is how events are recorded. This play is more closely associated with individualism and mortality. Some of the points to note include:

• The paper shows up in the play as the judicial list naming the people who have been condemned for witchcraft, demonstrating moral issues.
• Then, the paper shows up again, outlining the crimes Proctor is accused of, showing issues related to morality and individualism.
• The paper also shows up again when Proctor refuses to sign his testimony or have his false confession recorded with his signature on it or “posted on the church door,” alluding to morality and individualism.

These are just a few of the biggest ways that paper stands for morality and individualism. Of course, there are several other possibilities, and a strong essay would back up any claim with evidence from the play. 

Even though The Crucible focuses on The Salem Witch Trials, it is helpful to take a step back and think about why the play is named for a crucible. A crucible is a metal container that can melt substances when exposed to high temperatures. This essay will draw a parallel between the purpose of a crucible and its relation to the play.

A few key points to note include:

• Danforth states, “ we burn a fire in here… ” drawing a parallel between the fires of hell and the court proceedings that are about to unfold.
• The court’s goal is to separate good from evil, just as a crucible burns up evil inside the container, leaving only the good left.
• The town goes on a violent witch hunt, accusing people indiscriminately, just as the crucible fires can sometimes burn so hot that nothing is left.

There are plenty of parallels between the name of the play and the container for which it is named. 

Finally, it could also be helpful to write an essay on whether you believe the issues present in the play are still present today. A few points to touch on include:

• Many people are concerned with developing “fake news” and “alternative facts.” How do you think these issues are similar to the mass hysteria presented in The Crucible? 
• What role do you think leaders in our government are supposed to play, and how do you see our leaders falling short like those in The Crucible ? 
• How did the events of The Crucible eventually come to an end, and what do you think our leaders should do today? 

This topic can be very politically charged, but it is still important for people to think about. It can push even professional writers to think critically about what they believe, why they believe it, and what it might mean for the future. 

If you are interested in learning more, check out our essay writing topics !

Bryan Collins is the owner of Become a Writer Today. He's an author from Ireland who helps writers build authority and earn a living from their creative work. He's also a former Forbes columnist and his work has appeared in publications like Lifehacker and Fast Company.

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87 The Crucible Essay Topics & Examples

Looking for The Crucible essay examples? Arthur Miller’s play is worth writing about!

🏆 A+ The Crucible Essay Examples

📌 interesting essay topics for the crucible, 🔝 best the crucible essay topics, 👍 most catchy the crucible essay titles, ❓ the crucible essay questions.

The Crucible is a play by famous American playwright Arthur Miller that premiered in 1953 in NYC. It is based on a true story of the Salem witch trials that took place in the late 17th century.

In your The Crucible essay, you might want to make a literary analysis of the play. Another option is to focus on one of the themes or symbols used by Miller. Whether you need to write a short 5-paragraph essay or a longer argumentative paper on the play, this article will be helpful. It contains catchy titles, research questions, and essay topics for The Crucible by Arthur Miller. Free essay examples are added to inspire you even more.

• A. Miller’s “The Crucible” Play: Who Is to Blame? The Crucible, written by Arthur Miller in 1953, is a play focusing on the topic of the Salem witch of the last decade of the 1600s in Massachusetts.
• Salem’s Puritans in “The Crucible” Play by Arthur Miller Parris is described as a man in his forties and the author adds that there is “very little good to be said for him”. The land is not very fertile and the town is surrounded […]
• Analysis of the Movie The Crucible Arthur Miller’s play and movie was a reflection of what used to happen in the United States of America. It was a situation where reason was not used in the judicial system and people were […]
• Goodness as a Central Theme of “The Crucible” In the play “The Crucible”, Artur Miller raises the topic of Salem witch accusations taking place in Massachusetts during the end of the seventeenth century.
• Shakespeare’s “Othello” and Miller’s “The Crucible” The villains in both “Othello” and “The Crucible” are unique in their proficiency in the use of language for manipulating others and their ability to use the current setting for achieving their goals; Abigail is […]
• Witches Against Corruption in Miller’s The Crucible Play Through their portrayal in the play, the accused witches have become powerful symbols of strength and resistance for women who want to take a stand against corruption and injustice.
• “The Crucible” by Arthur Williams John may be considered the protagonist of the play, however, the interrelation of the two main female characters of the play are, certainly, of great use for the development of the action and realization of […]
• Arthur Miller: Hypocrisy, Guilt, Authority, and Hysteria in “The Crucible” The cruel persecution of minorities and the interference of the state in the individual’s conscience became the key concerns of Miller’s criticism of this people’s actions and beliefs.
• “The Crucible” by Arthur Miller Answer: Hale comes to Salem with the intention of finding concrete proof of witchcraft and using it to condemn the people guilty of the crime.
• John Hale’s Image in “The Crucible” by Arthur Miller The book is concerned with the topic of witch trials taking place in the city of Salem, the Province of Massachusetts Bay, 1692-1693; it features a number of characters, some of whom depict the real […]
• “The Crucible” a Play by Arthur Miller In both cases, it can clearly be seen that it is fear that allows unreasonable and unlawful actions to continue under the guise of lawful actions that are for the common good.
• Literature as a Protest: The Lottery and The Crucible Thus, in the case of “the lottery” it can be seen that it is a form of protest against the practice of blindly following “tradition” without taking into consideration the full logic of the actions […]
• The Salem Witch Trials in “The Crucible” by Arthur Miller Though Miller has made a range of changes to the original, the alterations did not prevent from understanding the case better; instead, these changes allowed for updating the story so that it would be interesting […]
• “The Crucible” by Arthur Miller: Play Analysis The scenario calls for the need to investigate the villagers on issues pertaining to witchcraft, a take that finds many of them victims of the evil doing ready to be judged. First, the plot of […]
• The Crucible (1996) by Nicholas Hytner Although Miller has never consented to the historical accuracy of the story, most of the events in the story match up with the occurrences in Salem, Massachusetts during the seventeenth century.
• The Crucible by Arthur Miller The plays interweaves Christ’s crucifixion with the picture of a bubbling crucible in it a man and a society: the predicament of arriving to the right choice of morality and the inevitability of attaining redemption […]
• Informative Synthesis on Movie: The Crucible The writer of the play version of the film, Arthur Miller, takes charge of the screenplay while Nicholas Hytner is the director.
• The Madness of the Salem Witch Trials of 1692 in “The Crucible” by Arthur Miller
• The Theme of Sacrifice in “The Crucible” by Arthur Miller and “The Scarlet Letter” by Nathaniel Hawthorn
• The Society and the Individual in Arthur Miller’s “The Crucible”
• The Social Breakdown That Allowed the Witch Hunt Paranoia in Salem in Arthur Miller’s “The Crucible”
• The Victory of Morality Over Cowardice in “The Crucible” by Arthur Miller
• Values and Morality in “The Crucible” by Arthur Miller
• The Valuable Reasons of Abigail Williams in “The Crucible” by Arthur Miller
• The Significance and Role of Abigail Williams and Tituba in “The Crucible” by Arthur Miller
• The Witch Hearings in “The Crucible” by Arthur Miller
• The Influence of the McCarthy Hearings of the 1950’s in “The Crucible” by Arthur Miller
• The Use of Rhetorical Devices to Reveal Negative Correlation Between Power Truth, Justice, and Emotions in “The Crucible” by Arthur Miller
• The Traits and Characteristics of John Proctor in “The Crucible” by Arthur Miller
• The Unfair and Unkind Treatment of Women in Arthur Miller’s “The Crucible”
• The Internal Battles of Mary Warren, John Proctor and Reverend Hale in “The Crucible” by Arthur Miller
• The Symbolism of the Crucible as a Test for Salem in “The Crucible” by Arthur Miller
• The True Meaning of Tragedy in “The Crucible” by Arthur Miller
• The Presentation of Abigail Williams in Act I of “The Crucible” by Arthur Miller
• The Tragic Fate of John Proctor in “The Crucible” by Arthur Miller
• The Reasons Why People Stand Up for Justice in “The Crucible” by Arthur Miller and “The Lottery” by Shirley Jackson
• The Sinful Confessions in Arthur Miller’s “The Crucible”
• The Motivation of Abigail Williams to Protect Her Image and Interest in “The Crucible” by Arthur Miller
• The Unreasonable Discrimination in “The Crucible” by Arthur Miller
• The Theme of Justice Versus Retribution and Revenge in “The Crucible” by Arthur Miller
• The Responibility of the Salem Community for the Tragedy in “The Crucible” by Arthur Miller
• Weakness, Jealousy, and Manipulation in “The Crucible” by Arthur Miller
• Vengeance and Malevolent Intent in a Corrupt World in “The Crucible” by Arthur Miller
• The Materialistic and Controlling Characteristics of Reverend Parris in “The Crucible” by Arthur Miller
• The Themes of Fear, Revenge and Greed, and Courage in “The Crucible” by Arthur Miller
• The Sacrifices and Actions of Abigail for Love in “The Crucible” by Arthur Miller
• What Arthur Miller’s “The Crucible” Has to Offer to Modern Readers Globally
• The Historical Meaning and Universal Themes of the Love Triangle, Mass Hysteria, and the Judicial System in “The Crucible” by Arthur Miller
• The Salem Witch Trials as an Outlet for Revenge in Arthur Miller’s “The Crucible”
• The Three Stages of John Proctor’s Transformation in “The Crucible” by Arthur Miller
• The Transformation of Abigail Williams in “The Crucible” by Arthur Miller
• The Themes of Intolerance, Reputation, and Injustice in “The Crucible” by Arthur Miller
• The Theme of Courage in “The Crucible” by Arthur Miller and “The Scarlet Letter” by Nathaniel Hawthorne
• John Proctor as a Fair and Noble Character in “The Crucible” by Arthur Miller
• The Strength of Elizabeth as Shown Through Her Trials in “The Crucible” by Arthur Miller
• The Key Aspects of a Witch-Hunt in “The Crucible” by Arthur Miller and Paradise Lost
• An Analysis of Social Status as a Significant Theme in Arthur Miller’s “The Crucible”
• How Does Fear Motivate the Main Characters in “The Crucible”?
• What Was the Critical and Public Reaction to “The Crucible”?
• What Is the Main Story of “The Crucible”?
• What Were the Changes in John Proctor’s Character Throughout the Play “The Crucible”?
• Why Is “The Crucible” So Famous?
• How Does Arthur Miller Create Tension in the Trial Scene of “The Crucible”?
• What Is the True Meaning of “The Crucible”?
• How Does Miller Present the Character of John Proctor in “The Crucible”?
• How Does John Proctor Contribute to the Effectiveness of Arthur Miller’s “The Crucible”?
• What Are Some Examples of Mob Mentality in “The Crucible”?
• How Does Miller Create Dramatic Tension in the Four Acts of “The Crucible”?
• Does John Proctor Die in “The Crucible”?
• When Did the Witch Trials Take Place in “The Crucible”?
• How Does Miller Convey His Message Through “The Crucible”?
• Was Jon Proctor From Arthur Miller’s “The Crucible” a Good Man?
• How Did Arthur Miller Portray the Relationship Between John and Elizabeth Proctor in “The Crucible” by Arthur Miller?
• How Are Women Portrayed in Arthur Miller’s “The Crucible”?
• How Does Arthur Miller Show Abigail’s Character in “The Crucible”?
• Does Arthur Miller’s Play “The Crucible” End in Hope?
• How Easily People Can Be Fooled as Portrayed in Arthur Miller’s Play “The Crucible”?
• How Does Miller Present Social Status in “The Crucible”?
• Why Was John Proctor Convicted of Witchcraft in Arthur Miller’s “The Crucible”?
• How Miller Creates Conflict in “The Crucible”?
• How Does Arthur Miller Explore Social Injustice in His Play “The Crucible”?
• How Arthur Miller Effectively Illustrates the Strength of John Proctor in His Play “The Crucible”?
• How Arthur Miller Makes Act Three of “The Crucible” a Dramatic Scene?
• Why “The Crucible” Remains Important Today?
• What Arthur Miller’s “The Crucible” Has to Offer to Modern Readers Globally?
• How Does Miller Present the Character of Abigail in “The Crucible”?
• How Does Miller Use Reverend Hale in “The Crucible”?
• Chicago (A-D)
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The Crucible

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Suggested Essay Topics

1. Compare the roles that Elizabeth Proctor and Abigail Williams play in The Crucible .

2. What role does sex, and sexual repression, play in The Crucible ?

3. Why are Danforth, Hathorne, and the other authorities so resistant to believing the claim that Abigail and the other girls are lying?

4. What kind of government does Salem have? What role does it play in the action?

5. Analyze Reverend Parris. What are his motivations in supporting the witch trials?

6. Discuss the changes that Reverend Hale undergoes in the course of the play.

The Crucible SparkNotes Literature Guide

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The Crucible Arthur Miller

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The Crucible Essays

How envy drives unfair judgment: comparing the crucible (drama) and the dressmaker (novel) forest lin 12th grade, the crucible.

In Arthur Miller's "The Crucible" and Rosalie Ham's "The Dressmaker", an unbalanced power distribution stemming from an unjust social hierarchy causes much jealousy displayed amongst the citizens of Salem and Dungatar, influencing their judgements...

The Devil’s Own: Danforth and His Character Transformation in Salem Anonymous 10th Grade

By the time Judge Danforth appears in Act III of The Crucible , the audience has become acquainted with a host of characters, each of which are motivated, in turn, by a desire to better their position, need for attention, saving of reputation, and...

The Universality of Vigilance, Discernment, and Dissent: Analysis of 'The Crucible' and 'Land and Freedom' Sapfira Milman 12th Grade

Political theocracy is an inherently oppressive, autocratic system, rendering individuals ultimately powerless. A composer’s political and personal representation subjectively constructs an audience’s conceptual and contemporary opinion through...

The Salvation of a Name: Analysis of Reputation in 'The Crucible' and 'Molly's Game' Anonymous 10th Grade

“Because it is my name! Because I cannot have another in my life! Because I lie and sign myself to lies!...I have given you my soul; leave me my name!” (Miller 143)

This quotation is found both in Arthur Miller’s play The Crucible and in Aaron...

Conformity, Imbalance of Power, and Social Injustice Geoff Cowper-Smith

A "Great Drama" is a play in which an audience can find personal relevance. It is something which an audience can relate to. A great drama should having meaning to audiences for multiple generations. Arthur Miller's "The Crucible" successfully...

Sins and Ambitions Anthony Haddad

"The belief in a supernatural source of evil is not necessary; men alone are quite capable of every wickedness." - Joseph Conrad

The Salem witchcraft trials illuminate a great human campaign to rid society of the wicked devil and his sinful...

The Stream of Conscience in Arthur Miller's The Crucible Anonymous

In Arthur Miller's powerful stage play The Crucible, written in 1953 as a metaphor for the McCarthy hearings on communism in America, the idea of conscience is greatly emphasized in many of the main characters. Miller himself once said that The...

The Crucible as an Allegory Anonymous

In his classic drama The Crucible, Arthur Miller chronicles the horror of the Salem witch trials, an embarrassing episode of colonial America's history. At first reading, one might only view Miller's work as a vivid account of the tragedy of...

Contemporary Events Leading to The Crucible Lee Wang

When The Crucible opened on January 22, 1953, audiences greeted it with lukewarm applause. Critics did what they do best by berating the new play. What is now arguably the most influential allegorical play on the subject of Communism written...

Society In The Crucible and Death of a Salesman Michael Brooks

Two plays by Arthur Miller, Death of a Salesman and The Crucible, both contend that society is the indifferent, sometimes brutal, force that crushes an individual. Although the plays take place in different time periods, they each convey the force...

The Evolution of Reverend Hale Matt Rigolizzo 11th Grade

How can a trial turn a religious minister into a man separated from a town’s power structure? In The Crucible, Reverend Hale is sent to Salem to deal with an alleged outbreak of witchcraft. At the beginning of the play, Hale is a confidant man,...

Puritans, the Devil, and American Literature Anonymous 11th Grade

“The Devil and Tom Walker” by Washington Irving and “Young Goodman Brown” by Nathaniel Hawthorne are both short stories that illustrate Puritan ideas about the place of evil in human nature. Both short stories revolve around a central character...

Rev. Parris: Greed and Lies in The Crucible Anonymous 10th Grade

Human nature has a tendency, a fad if you will, to display traits of selfishness and a "me first, you later" attitude. This sort of thinking often leads people to do unjust or politically incorrect things, and it gets them in trouble with the law,...

Personal Expediency Among the Puritans Chloe Mourad 10th Grade

Within the Puritan society of the seventeenth century, the fear of the Devil fueled the actions of individuals; this idea is reflected in two significant works of literature, A Year of Wonders by Geraldine Brooks and The Crucible by Arthur Miller....

Fear is Something to be Feared Serena Huang 10th Grade

Fear is Something to be Feared

The word "fear" can be defined as: a distressing emotion aroused by impending danger or pain. In his play The Crucible, Arthur Miller addresses the fear embedded within Puritan society. According to the Public...

The Two Opposing Female Roles in “The Crucible” Sanya Helene Stern 11th Grade

“Does this dress make me look fat?” It’s a common conception; women tell each other to wear black because the contrast is slimming. Politicians run attack ads on components to make themselves look better in comparison. The literary technique of...

A New Perspective on Salem Anonymous College

The name Salem or any mention of the Salem witch trials almost always turns heads, and usually this sudden attention is not due to a reputable history. Most people think of the Salem witch trials and begin to picture an out of control environment....

The Crucible - Pure vs. Tainted Love Anonymous 9th Grade

The concept of redemptive and destructive love is common in all modes of texts, no matter the location or the time period. This is because love itself is timeless; it is a moving force that pushes people to act, an emotion which can cause both...

Hubris vs. Heroism : An Analysis of John Proctor’s shortcomings as Miller’s Tragic Hero Arthur Miller 11th Grade

The famous philosopher Aristotle formally defined the parameters of the tragic hero in his work On Poetics (335 B.C.). Aristotle based his tragic hero model on Oedipus, a king from Greek mythology. He defined the tragic hero as a man of noble...

Ambiguous Political Agendas: Historical Figures in Miller and Atwood Anonymous 12th Grade

Political agendas remain dubious and uncertain, but control is the eventual aim, almost by definition, of political activity. The Crucible by Arthur Miller and Margaret Atwood’s free-verse poem “Helen of Troy Does Countertop Dancing” expose innate...

The Crucible and Year of Wonders Anonymous 12th Grade

Arthur Miller’s play The Crucible and Geraldine Brooks’ novel Year of Wonders are both works that explore the treatment of individuals under oppressive theocratic ruling. Both Miller’s and Brooks’ works are aligned with key themes of superstition,...

How the Actions of the Court Amplified Hysteria and Expedited the Trials in The Crucible Anonymous 10th Grade

How is it possible that the actions of a single institution can completely decimate the physical and societal structure of an entire town? In Arthur Miller’s play The Crucible, this situation comes to pass in Salem, Massachusetts during the 1690’...

The "Weights" of the World: A Central Motif in 'The Crucible' Evan Kade Bridges 12th Grade

Arthur Miller confronts the “weight of truth," "weight of authority," and the "weight of law" in The Crucible. This play expresses the different complications that come along with having to bear each "weight." Many characters in the play conform...

Compare the ways in which The Crucible and Year of Wonders explore the conflict between appearance and reality. Kulin Gunathilake 12th Grade

Arthur Miller’s allegorical play, The Crucible , illustrates the parallels between the Salem Witch Trials and the HUAC communist crisis, highlighting the injustice of McCarthyism. Alternatively, Geraldine Brooks intertextually takes a cue from the...

The Crucible Conclusion

In conclusion, The Crucible is similar to modern day life and human nature will most likely not change anytime soon. Human nature was to blame for the disasters that happened in Salem 1692 and is to blame for my negative personal encounters. Human nature is what character is made of during trying situations and that is where the title of the play gets its name. A crucible is a ceramic or metal container in which metals or other substances may be melted or subjected to very high temperatures. The main purpose of a crucible is to see what the metal is made of. This symbolizes human nature and what people will do when they are put to the test. The Crucible is important to read because the modern generation should be aware of hysteria and what

The Crucible Act 1 Summary

The Crucible was based in Salem, Massachusetts in 1692. The book starts off with Reverend Parris finding the girls in the woods dancing. Upon finding them Betty Reverend Parris’s daughter and some of the girls become ill. Abigail Reverend Parris’s niece tells him that when he found them in the wood Betty was so frightened when Parris found her she fainted and won’t wake. With Betty and the other girls unable to wake rumors of witchcraft start around the community.

The Crucible Book Report Essay

“The Crucible” is a fiction story that took place in a small town called Salem in the state of Massachusetts in 1692 during the spring time. The plot of this story is about a group of girls who went into the forest led by a black slave named Tituba. They were all dancing in the forest until Reverend Parris caught them dancing in the forest and even saw one of the girl naked. Parris’s daughter Betty who was there in the forest falls into a coma-like state when Reverend Parris caught them. Reverend Parris only noticed his daughter was sick the next day and accused Abigail William, who is Reverend Parris’s niece, of witchery and caused his daughter to go into a coma-like state.

Dbq Essay On The Crucible

The times back then were terrible. The Crucible is a play written by Arthur Miller in 1953 about The Salem Witch Trials of 1692.McCarthyism was the “witch hunt” for the communist in 1953.the parallels between The Crucible and McCarthyism are naming names,lack of proof ,and reststance. The first reason they are parallel is because of naming names. Hollywood director Elia Kazan went in front of the HUAC twice. The first time he did not confess and names.

The Crucible Argument

Dying for a cause, it’s happened many times throughout history. It’s how the world has progressed through many wars, rebellions, and social movements. Reverand Hale in The Crucible by Arthur Miller says “no principle, however glorious” is worth dying for, which was said during the period of the witch trials. This was a logical statement in that particular situation, where it was a basis of false accusations and pride. However, in modern times this statement applied to the situation of the present-day can be refuted and rejected.

Cause And Effect Of The Crucible

A crucible is known as a very severe situation, or a trial. In the play, The Crucible, by Arthur Miller, the people of Salem experienced a crucible when they went through the witch trials. The trials became so severe that innocent people were dying in ways such as hanging or having boulders placed on them. The Crucible got its name from the trials, the impact it had on society, and other after effects of the trial.

Literary Analysis Essay On The Crucible

Shawn Jande Ms. Clancy American Literature B3 15 November 2015 The Crucible Analytical Essay Imagine, being accused of a crime you didn’t commit by your neighbors and friends out of jealousy, and desire. This is what many people in the town of Salem had to go through during the time of the Salem Witch Trials. People's motives such as: gaining and maintaining power, and aspirations for what other people had caused them to make irrational, and atrocious decisions. In The Crucible by Arthur Miller, desire and power drive characters to create chaos in the community.

Literary Analysis Of The Crucible

The Crucible Literary Analysis The theme in a story is the concealed message that the author is trying to portray. The theme can be compared to a baby crying. Sometimes it is obvious as to why the baby is crying, but often times it is a mere thinking situation. The baby cannot tell you why it is crying or what he/she wants.

Examples Of Integrity In The Crucible

As Bob Marley once said, “The greatness of a man is not in how much wealth he acquires, but in his integrity and his ability to affect those around him positively.” Integrity is the quality of being honest and upholding one’s morals and principles. Living in a fast-paced and ever-changing society, human beings have come into contact with adversity and hardship all throughout history. Those who act with integrity during tough times have a major influence on those around them, and taking a stand and upholding ones’ beliefs and morals at great self sacrifice can inspire and encourage others to do the same. Arthur Miller’s 1953 play, The Crucible is a prime example of upholding integrity, and the characters within the play face difficult choices between doing

Who Is To Blame In The Crucible

The Crucible by Arthur Miller is a dramatic play that expresses a very important message and that is how far people would go to save themselves from the hands of death. There are many characters in the Crucible who are guilty of taking innocent lives, but there are three major characters who, without a doubt, are the most at blame. The play takes place in the city of Salem, a city filled with people that would do anything to keep their reputation clean. Throughout the play, Miller is introducing multiple characters that experience changes in their decisions and negatively influence more people eventually leading up to the witch trials. The main point that the story revolves around is that people would rather lie and blame someone else instead of confessing and accepting the punishment.

Examples Of Evidence In The Crucible

Legitimate Evidence “Extraordinary claims require extraordinary evidence”- Carl Sagan. The Crucible, written by Arthur Miller, is a play based on the injustice of the ‘Red Scare’. Arthur Miller is one of America’s greatest playwrights and is praised for his moral courage for refusing to name names of Communist Party members before the House Unamerican Activities Committee. Another brave man during the time was Herb Block; who made political cartoons such as “I have here in my hands” and “We now have important evidence”. In both Herb Block’s cartoons and Arthur Miller’s play flawed, faulty and unreasonable evidence is used to accuse and convict many innocent people.

The Crucible Setting Analysis

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

The Crucible

Good afternoon teachers and fellow peers, In order to achieve their own personal and communal ambitions, figures in society manipulate and persuade people through events and situations to conform to their own political agenda. In the 1955 prescribed text, “The Crucible,” playwright Arthur Miller establishes the exploitative behaviour of characters through dramatised staging features. Similarly in the 1964 related text, “The Times They are A-Changin’,” Bob Dylan insights individual ambitions through musical and poetic devices. The shared ideas of the modernist era such as the significance of religion and political hegemony are investigated by both composers in their perspective texts.

The Crucible Mob Mentality Analysis

The crucibles a play written by Arthur miller. The Salem witch trials, event written by humans. The play only could portray half of the horrors that actual people went through. The crucibles demonstrated the themes of mob mentality and justice.

Salem Witch Trials In The Crucible

The Crucible by Arthur Miller is a play about what happened during the Salem Witch Trials. It gives insight about what people had to deal with in this situation and how they handled it. The trials were basically a big test which helped figuring out whether or not people were guilty of witchcraft. This is an example of what a crucible is. In our world today we still have crucibles and even though they are different than back then, they all relate to each other because of what influence they have on people.

Abigail Williams In The Crucible Analysis

The Crucible by Arthur Miller is a play which contains a multitude of complex characters . In the play, the characters’ motivations and inner processes are explored. Because of the historical setting, the characters live in a society of judgement and extreme religious devotion. This is a factor that places any of the characters’ choices and morals in a public balance to be judged by others. Abigail Williams is the main character of the play and acts with an utter selfishness and obsession.

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Maryse Condé, ‘Grande Dame’ of Francophone Literature, Dies at 90

She explored the history and culture of Africa, the West Indies and Europe in work that made her a perennial favorite for the Nobel Prize.

By Clay Risen

Maryse Condé, a writer from the French Caribbean island of Guadeloupe whose explorations of race, gender and colonialism across the Francophone world made her a perennial favorite for the Nobel Prize in Literature, died on Tuesday in Apt, a town in southern France. She was 90.

Her death, at a hospital, was confirmed by her husband, Richard Philcox, who translated many of her works into English.

Ms. Condé’s work, beginning with her first novel, “Hérémakhonon” (1976), came at a pivotal time, as the notion of French literature, centered on the canonical works of French writers, began to give way to the multifarious notion of Francophone literature, drawing from all parts of the French-speaking world.

Having lived in Guadeloupe, France, West Africa and the United States, Ms. Condé was able to imbue her work with a kaleidoscopic cosmopolitanism; she was equally at home with memoirs, novels set in 18th-century Mali and 17th-century Massachusetts, and even a book of food writing . Her sure-handedness won her acclaim as the “grande dame” of Francophone literature.

She was twice shortlisted for the International Booker Prize, given to novelists writing in languages other than English. After the 2018 Nobel Prize for Literature was canceled in the wake of a sexual abuse scandal among the award committee, she received the New Academy Prize , created by a group of Swedish cultural figures as a temporary replacement — the first and last person to receive the award.

Like other writers grappling with the legacy of colonialism, Ms. Condé centered her work on broadly political themes, examining the formation of different individual and collective identities. But she stood apart in her adamant nonconformity.

She supported African independence, but she was critical of the leaders who came after it, accusing them of corruption and empty promises. She was proud to call herself a Black writer, but she lashed out at movements like Negritude and Pan-Africanism, which she said replicated white racism by reducing all Black people to a single identity.

Much of her work was historical. Her breakout novel, “Segu” (1984), which sold more than 200,000 copies in France, traces the life of a royal adviser in the Bambara Empire of West Africa, which flourished in the 18th and 19th centuries but collapsed under pressure from European and Islamic forces.

Among her favorite books as a child was “Wuthering Heights,” and in 1995 she offered a retelling of Emily Brontë’s classic tale of obsession and revenge with “Windward Heights,” set in Cuba and Guadeloupe.

She had already done something similar with Nathaniel Hawthorne’s novel “The Scarlet Letter” and Arthur Miller’s play “The Crucible,” drawing on elements of both works to tell the story of an enslaved woman caught up in the Salem witch trials in “I, Tituba, Black Witch of Salem” (1986), which won the Grand Prix Littéraire de la Femme.

Since then she was said to be a frequent contender for the Nobel Prize, though she professed a lack of interest in the results — or in the trappings of success generally.

“I am drawn to people ready to disobey the law and who refuse to accept orders from anybody — people who, like me, don’t believe in material wealth, for whom money is nothing, owning a home is nothing, a car is nothing,” she said in a 1989 interview with the journal Callaloo. “Those kinds of people tend to be my friends.”

Maryse Boucolon was born on Feb. 11, 1934, in Pointe-à-Pitre, a city in Guadeloupe, an overseas department of France. Her parents were both affluent educators: Her mother, Jeanne Quidal, ran a girls’ school, and her father, Auguste Boucolon, taught school before founding a bank.

The youngest of eight siblings, Maryse grew up protected, and isolated, by her parents’ relative wealth. Her parents did not allow her to attend the island’s ubiquitous street festivals or mix with people they considered beneath them socially, which she said also kept her ignorant of the worst impacts of colonialism and racism.

She began writing at an early age. When she was about 12 she wrote a one-act play as a gift for her mother on her birthday. But her political awakening came more gradually.

As a teenager she read “Black Shack Alley” (1950), a semi-autobiographical novel by Joseph Zobel about a poor Black boy in Martinique, another French Caribbean department. That book revealed to her the sort of experiences that most Black Caribbean people endured under colonialism.

When she was 16, her parents sent her to Paris to complete her education. They had told her the city was the center of reason and justice, but instead she found herself the object of racism and sexism.

She went on to study at the Sorbonne, and to mix with Paris’s Black intellectual circles. In 1959 she met a Guinean actor, Mamadou Condé, and they married a year later. But the relationship soon soured, and in 1960 she moved to Africa to teach.

Over the next 13 years she lived for long stints in Guinea, Ghana and Senegal. The region was in the throes of independence and decolonization, and it attracted thinkers and activists from around the Black diaspora.

As she moved among them, Ms. Condé imbibed their heady mix of Marxism and Black Power, and she began to put those ideas into writing, first as a playwright and then, in 1976, in “Hérémakhonon,” which means “Waiting for Happiness” in the West African language Malinke.

Though she insisted it was not autobiographical, “Hérémakhonon” tells the story of a Black woman from Guadeloupe who lives for a time in Paris before going to Africa in hopes of finding herself — only to realize, in the end, that geography does not hold the key to one’s identity.

By then she had returned to Paris, where in 1975 she received a doctorate in literature from the Sorbonne. Long estranged from her husband, she had begun a relationship with Mr. Philcox. She finally divorced Mr. Condé in 1981, and she and Mr. Philcox married a year later.

Along with her husband, Ms. Condé is survived by three daughters from her first marriage, Sylvie, Aïcha and Leïla Condé; five grandchildren; and three great-grandchildren.

She held a professorship at Columbia University, and she also taught at the University of Virginia and the University of California, Los Angeles.

Ms. Condé and Mr. Philcox returned to Guadeloupe in 1986 and lived there until a few years ago, when they returned to France so she could be closer to treatment for a neurological disease.

The disease left her unable to see. She wrote her last three books, all published since 2020, by dictating them, chapter by chapter, to her husband.

She was first shortlisted for the International Booker Prize in 2015 for the body of her work. She was shortlisted again in 2023, when she was 89, for her final book , “The Gospel According to the New World,” about a dark-skinned boy in Martinique who may or may not be the son of God.

Though she did not win the prize — it went to Georgi Gospodinov for his book “Time Shelter” — she did achieve the distinction of being the oldest person ever shortlisted for a Booker.

Clay Risen is a Times reporter on the Obituaries desk. More about Clay Risen

Home — Essay Samples — Literature — The Crucible — Argumentative On The Crucible

Argumentative on The Crucible

• Categories: Morality The Crucible

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Published: Mar 19, 2024

Words: 627 | Page: 1 | 4 min read

Table of contents

Introduction, danger of mass hysteria, morality and the consequences of compromise, abuse of power and unchecked authority, language and dramatic techniques, relevance in today's society.

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