AN OVERVIEW OF The Crucible he Crucible a play in four acts set in the colonial period in the 1600s portrays an infamous episode in American history the Salem witch trials The Salem Massachusetts government was a theocracy as were other early American communities settled by Puritans from England There was no separation of church and state in Salem The government was based on religious principles The Puritans believed witches existed and did the work of the devil In Salem in 1692 a group of young Puritan girls claimed to have communicated with the devil at the urging of certain adults in the community Soon a full blown witch hunt was in progress Playwright Arthur Miller based his work on some of these events 12
The Crucible based on the Salem witch trails follows the story of fictional John Proctor 13
The Crucible was written in 1952 during another infamous interlude in American history called the Red Scare a time when Americans were suspicious of anyone who might be connected to the Communist Party Many people including writers and entertainers were called before Congress by the House Un American Activities Committee HUAC Some politicians believed communism posed a danger to the American way of life HUAC questioned people including writers and entertainers to see if they had communist ties It was often enough to simply name someone as a communist sympathizer to get them into trouble Miller wrote The Crucible as a commentary on what he saw as a witch hunt for communists Unnatural Things The first act of the play takes place in an upstairs bedroom in the home of Reverend Samuel Parris who ministers to the congregation of Salem Reverend Parris is praying beside the bed of his ten year old daughter Betty She is lying in what appears to be a comatose state Parris a widower is raising Betty with the help of Tituba a black slave and housekeeper Also living in the house is Abigail Abby Williams his 17 year old 14
Actor Adolphe Menjou takes the oath as he testifies for HUAC in 1947 The Crucible criticized the Red Scare orphaned niece Parris has asked the doctor for help but he sends word that there is nothing he can do for Betty He says it is time to call in a spiritual expert to look for unnatural things as the cause of illness her In fact Parris has already called Reverend Hale an expert on such matters Another child in the community Mary Putnam is also strangely ill Right before the children fell ill Parris found Abby Betty and some others in the forest with Tituba They seemed to have been engaged in a strange ritual He asks Abby about this activity as well as why she was fired from her job as a servant to John and Elizabeth Proctor Abby denies any evildoing or communicating with the devil 15
