Arthur Miller’s The Crucible

1
Arthur Millers The Crucible

• A Criticism of Current Affairs An Examination
  of History

2
Playwrights Bio

• Arthur Miller was born in 1915 in New York City
• He was the son of a coat manufacturer ruined by
  the Great Depression
• Attended college at the University of Michigan
• Married several times (Second wife was Marilyn
  Monroe)

3
Famous Works

• 1938- The Grass Still Grows
• 1944- The Man Who Had All the Luck (Theater Guild
  Award)
• 1945- Focus (a novel attacking Anti-Semitism)
• 1947- All My Sons (New York Drama Critics Award)
• 1949- Death of a Salesman (Pulitzer Prize winner
  and considered one of the greatest contemporary
  dramas)
• 1953- The Crucible (Tony Award)

4
The Crucible

• Ostensibly about the Salem Witch Trials of 1692
• Used trial documents but fictionalized
• Combined, created or changed characters
• Major trial events are relatively accurate
• Really a criticism of the House Committee on
  Un-American Activities--McCarthyism

5
Makings of a Salem Witch Hunt

• Salem was a village divided
• Land ownership disputes
• Dispute about reverend position compensation
• People stubborn about deeply held beliefs
• Salem was repressed
• Expression of individual thoughts and desires
  frowned upon or even outlawed in a village
  governed by strict Theocracy
• Children to be seen not heard were particularly
  repressed
• Spark Ignition
• A group of girls were caught playing at magic and
  pressured into naming those who bewitched them
• A special court was set up
• Spectral evidence was used

6
Makings of a Communist Hunt

• WWII rise of Communist Party in the US
• Cold War becomes intense after USSR gains atomic
  power
• Conservatives in power
• Truman initiates disloyalty laws
• House of Un-American Activities Committee
  reinvigorated
• Investigates communist activity
• Alger Hiss and Rosenberg Cases
• Hollywood Blacklist The Hollywood Ten
• McCarthy and his accusations
• Others pressured to name others as communists

7
Results of both Witch Hunts

• Colonial Salem
• 20 innocent people were executed
• Dozens more were imprisoned
• One was stoned to death
• Families lost their land and livelihood
• 1950s
• Hundreds unjustly lost their jobs
• 10 were jailed for 6 months to 2 years
• 1 was sentenced to 5 years in prison
• 2 were executed

8
Act 1

• The Overture

9
What does the phrase endless capacity for
dissembling tell us about Abigail?

• She is extremely deceptive
• always question her reliability
• Search for a hidden motive in her words

10
Why does Abigail admit to dancing in the forest?

• She knows Parris saw them
• It is a lesser offense than witchcraft
• She hopes this will satisfy him and prevent
  further questioning and/or an accusation of
  witchcraft

11
Function of forest at night

• Practical function--makes sense that the girls
  would sneak into the forest at night so they
  wouldnt be observed dancing.
• Atmospheric functionSalem in 1692 would be like
  a frontier outpost. Puritan inhabitants believed
  forest was a wild, dark placethe abode of
  heathens and evil spirits.
• Figurative functionrepresents all that makes
  their community vulnerable to physical and
  spiritual attack.

12
Parris character revealed when questioning
Abigail

• His ministry is at stake
• His reputation could be exposed to suspicion
• Doesnt want to be blind-sided with info about
  her that others may have

13
Reverend Parris
14
hypocritical

• because he uses the church to justify his demands
  for money.

15
paranoid

• because he wonders if those who oppose him serve
  the devil and because he thinks Proctor is the
  leader of a plot.

16
arrogant

• because he believes that church members must obey
  the pastor or chaos will ensue.

17
OUT OUT damn spot OR
Abigails spotless reputation

• Claims there are no disparaging rumors about her
  character.
• Was discharged from Goody Proctors service.
• Goody Proctor rarely goes to church to avoid
  sitting so close to something so soiled.
• No one else in the village will hire her.

18
Abigails response

• Attacks Goody Proctors character but does not
  deny the existence of the remark. (so there is a
  rumor about her!shifting blame)
• All the other women in the village are the same
  as Goody Proctor (so
  people do have doubts about her!Its everyone
  elses fault)
• Tries to change subject and put Parris on
  defensive (Do you begrudge my bed, Uncle?Even
  Parriss fault)
• Calls Goody Proctor a gossiping liar.
• (Her answers, however, suggest she is the one
  lying)

19
Rev. Parris change of heart

• Initially, doesnt believe there to be any
  witchcraft in Salem.
• Putnam reminds him that he has taken Parris side
  in all contentious matters so far, but threatens
  to withdraw that support if Parris holds back in
  this matter.
• Everyone is always questioning his actionswhich
  he doesnt likeso he says that he is beginning
  to wonder if that is the work of the devil.

20
FYIIn a written commentary on the play, Miller
indicated that he considered Thomas Putnam one of
the plays principal villains. He notes that
Putnam was vindictive, with many grievances
against his neighbors. He had numerous
complaints involving disputes over ownership of
land. Miller notes that Putnam seems to have
played a key role in the accusations of
witchcraft. Some historians have concluded that
the real Thomas Putnam used accusations of
witchcraft as an excuse to gain land.
21
Reasons the Putnams believe the girls and Tituba
are involved in witchcraft.

• Their babies were murdered
• Ruth was close to conjuring up their spirits.
• Some power of darkness struck her dumb.
• A murdering witch is hiding among the people.

22
FYISneezing can occur when dust or pollen
irritates the lining in the nasal passages.
Congestion from colds or allergies can also force
a person to sneeze. Ruth Putnam may have had a
physical illness however, superstition also held
that sneezing might indicate that a possessed
person was expelling demons through the nose.
This may be the origin of the practice of saying
God bless you when a person sneezes. It also
probably is the reason Mercy suggests that
sneezing may restore Ruths senses.
23
Will the real Abigail please stand up!!

• With the adults gone, Abigail becomes the
  dominant personality, telling the other girls
  what to say, threatening them and insinuating her
  capacity for violence if they betray her.

24
To fake or not to fake or is something really
wrong with Betty?

• Responds when adults are out of room
• Knows that Abigail did not reveal everything
  about that night in the forest (drinking a charm
  to kill Goody Proctor)

25
Enter John Proctor

• Enter Abigail 3?

26
How is Abigail able to adapt her demeanor to suit
her purposes?

• With her unclefeigns concern and righteous
  indignation
• With the girlsdomineering and cruel
• With Proctorcoy and seductive

27
How does Miller use names to imply relationships?

• The other girls say Mr. Proctor Abigail calls
  him John. Her uncle always calls her Abigail
  Proctor calls her Abby. This suggests an
  intimacy borne out in the flirtatious exchange of
  this act.

28
Who do you believe?
29
He admits he had reached for her in the past (but
for what?)

• To comfort her?
• To confide in her?
• Possibly more?

30
Wipe it out of mind

• Is this his way of telling her to pretend nothing
  ever happened or to forget about anything ever
  happening?

31
We never touched, Abby.

• Physically?
• spiritually?
• Denial?

32
He does not deny having looked up

• Was this at her window?
• If so, does this mean lust?
• OR
• Is he wondering if shes okay?

33
Is John Proctor merely guilty of flirting with
Abigail?

• Or something more?

34
Does she exaggerate the seriousness of the
relationship?

• I am waitin for you every night, yet he hasnt
  stepped off his farm in seven months.
• Is she obsessed with him?

35
FYIPuritans believed that you did not have to
actually commit the act to be guilty of it. They
thought that if you lusted in your heart, it was
the same thing as committing adultery.
Therefore, John Proctor could have considered
himself guilty of cheating on his wife without
ever having physically touched Abby.
36
How do the Putnams differ from Proctor and
Rebecca on the issue of witchcraft?

• Putnams seem determined to prove that witchcraft
  is afoot.
• Proctor and Rebecca believe there is a natural
  explanation for the childrens behavior.

37
Why might Ann Putnam hate Rebecca Nurse?

• Ann Putnam has lost seven babies in infancy. Now
  her only surviving child is behaving strangely
  and is ill.
• Rebecca Nurse has 11 children and 26
  grandchildren all of whom seem to be healthy.
• Rebecca Nurse was a midwife for Ann Putnam.

38
FYIIn his commentary on the play, Miller
describes Rebecca and Francis Nurse as people
highly respected for their moral character, good
judgment, and success. He notes that, before the
arrival of Parris, the Nurses and their friends
had blocked the appointment of a minister
supported by the Putnams. Political differences
also were leading to conflicts between the
Nurses friends and the town authorities allied
with the Putnams.
39
Sagacious Advice

• I think shell wake in time. Pray calm
  yourselves. I have eleven 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 keeping
  up with their mischief. I think shell wake when
  she tires of it. A childs 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.

40
More Wise Advice

• Mr. Parris, I think youd best send Reverend
  Hale back as soon as he come. This will set us
  all to arguin again in the society, and we
  thought to have peace this year. I think we
  ought rely on the doctor now, and good prayer.
• No, you cannot break charity with your minister.
  You are another kind, John. Clasp his hand,
  make your peace.

41
The Conflicts
42
Abigail and Mrs. Proctor

• Goody Proctor fired her.
• Abigail is infatuated with John Proctor and
  believes he loves her.
• Mrs. Proctors death would clear the way for
  marriage between them.

43
Abigail vs. John Proctor

• He denies he ever gave her any reason to hope for
  there to be anything between them.
• She thinks she loves him and wants to be his wife.

44
John Proctor vs. Rev. Parris

• Demands the deed to his house
• Wastes the church money on extravagant
  furnishings
• Preaches hellfire and damnation w/o mentioning
  Gods name

45
The Putnams vs. The Nurses

• The Nurses own land that the Putnams covet
• Rebecca Nurse has never lost a child nor
  grandchild, while Mrs. Putnam has lost all but
  one of her children
• The Nurses opposed the Putnams choice for a
  minister

46
John Proctor vs Elizabeth Proctor

• The relationship between the Proctors is
  strained.
• Elizabeth is suspicious of John.
• Elizabeth has been sick for a long time.
• John Proctor confessed a sin to her.
• They dont talk much.
• She is not an affectionate wife.

47
Irony
48
the world goes mad, and it profit nothing you
should lay the cause to the vengeance of a little
girl

• while he suggests that it is foolish to blame
  what has happened on the vengeance of a little
  girl, the audience knows that is the precise
  cause.

49
I do not preach for childrenIt is not the
children who are unmindful of their obligations
toward this ministry,

• Parris sees no reason to instruct the children
  about God, yet it is the young girls who are
  trying to commune with the devil and in an effort
  to conceal their misbehavior, they set in motion
  the events that will destroy Salem.

50
What victory would the Devil have to win a soul
already bad? It is the best the Devil wants,
and who is better than a minister?

• Hale makes the assumption that the minister must
  be the best person in the village, but the facts
  show that Parris is not a good man.

51
You are Gods instrument put in our hands to
discover the Devils agents among us

• Instead of saving the village from the Devil, he
  is persuading her to make false accusations of
  witchcraft against innocent people.

52
Authority

• The authority of the church is supreme and if
  church members dont obey the minister, chaos
  will ensue, and the church will be destroyed.

• Reverend Parris
• Reverend Hale

53
Authority

• Individual conscience is the final authority, and
  every church member has the right to say what he
  believes.

• John Proctor

54
Hales visit reveals

• John Proctor rarely attends church
• One of their children is not baptized
• John Proctor cannot say all of his commandments
• Proctor doesnt like Parris
• Elizabeth and Proctor do not believe that witches
  are among them

55
John Proctor as the voice of reason

• Points out to Mary that not being able to say her
  commandments does not make Goody Good a witch
• Its strange work for a Christian girl to hang
  old women.
• Its hard to think so pious a woman be secretly
  a Devils bitch after seventy year of such good
  prayer.
• In response to Hales argument that those who
  have been convicted of witchcraft have confessed
  to it, he says, And why not, if they must hang
  for denyin it?
• Wonders if the court will believe his story when
  Hale doubts Elizabeth.

56
The charges

• For the marvelous and supernatural murder of
  Goody Putnams babies
• For bewitching Walcotts pigs
• For sending her spirit to stick a needle in
  Abigail Williams

• Rebecca Nurse
• Martha Corey
• Elizabeth Proctor

57
My wife is the very brick and mortar of the
church

• Francis Nurse was saying that his wife is the
  material of which Salems religious community is
  built and the substance that holds it together.

58
Your justice would freeze beer.

• Hyperbole
• used to characterize Elizabeth as unforgiving and
  cold.

59
What victory would the devil have to win a soul
already bad?

• Foreshadows the eventual charges
• against respectable citizens.

60
There is a misty plot afoot so subtle we should
be criminal to cling to old respects and ancient
friendships.

• Hale defending the witch trials when
• Rebecca Nurse is arrested.

61
I cannot think the Devil may own a womans soul
when she keeps an upright way.

• Represents Elizabeth Proctors view
• about the charges of witchcraft.

62
I cannot sleep for dreamin I cannot dream but
I wake and walk about the house as though Id
find you comin through some door.

• Demonstrates Abigails obsession with
• John Proctor.

63
We are only what we always were, but naked now.
And the wind, Gods icy wind, will blow!

• People are either virtuous or they are not. It
  doesnt matter whether their true nature is
  secret or common knowledge God knows.

64
Pontius Pilate! God will not let you wash your
hands of this!

• allusion
• By doing nothing to stop it, Hale is guilty of
  whatever happens to the accused people, and God
  will eventually hold him accountable!

65
I have three childrenhow may I teach them to
walk like men in the world, and I sold my
friends?

• A person must set a good example not only with
  words but also with deeds.

66
A fire is burning! I hear the boot of
Lucifer, I see his filthy face! And it is my
face, and yours, Danforth! For them that quail
to bring men out of ignorance, as I have
quailed, and as you quail now when you know in
all your black hearts that this be fraudGod
damns our kind especially, and we will burn
together!

• When you know someone is committing a wrong, but
  you dont do anything about it, you are more
  guilty than the person who committed the wrong.
  God will surely punish you accordingly.

67
She thinks to dance with me on my wifes grave!
And well she might, for I thought of her softly.
God help me, I lusted, and there is a promise in
such sweat. But it is a whores vengeance, and
you must see it.

• Proctor reveals Abigails motivation in
• seeing his wife condemned.

68
Let you not mistake your duty as I mistook my
own. I came into this village like a bridegroom
to his beloved bearing gifts of high religion
the very crowns of holy law I brought, and what I
touched with my bright confidence, it died and
where I turned the eye of my great faith, blood
flowed up.

• Hale realizes his part in the witch trials
• and is trying to convince Elizabeth to compel
  Proctor to confess

69
Giles Coreys charge against Thomas Putnam

• Giles Corey is condemned for giving evidence that
  is hearsay, while equally invalid evidence is
  used to condemn persons for witchcraft.