Arthur Miller was born in Harlem, New York in 1915 to an illiterate Jewish father, Isidore Miller, and Augusta Barnett. Despite being illiterate, his father’s business of manufacturing ladies wear and shoes was successful, giving the Millers a comfortable lifestyle. However, the Depression had hit the business hard and forced the Millers to change their lifestyle. They moved into a smaller house while Arthur had to work after high school in order to study in college. His family’s circumstances propelled Miller into becoming a playwright. He studied at the University of Michigan and won playwright of the year[1].
Miller was already an acclaimed playwright, having written Death of a Salesman, when he wrote The Crucible in 1953. The Crucible was loosely based on the events that took place in Salem, Massachusetts in 1692 when people accused of witchcraft were brought to trial and those who did not confess to practising occult were hanged. It did not matter if they were innocent or not. Miller, however, wrote The Crucible not as a direct remembrance of man’s folly during that time but as allegory to the 1950s hysteria over communism[2]. During the 1950s, there was a general paranoia that communists were trying to dominate the country, the direct result of the Cold War era. Even Miller was invited for questioning, which he refused to attend. Senator Joseph McCarthy led the fervor and dramatic hunting of communists and their sympathizers in the U.S. Miller was reminded of the Salem witch hunt that happened during the 17th century and wrote The Crucible to remind people that what was happening during their time was reminiscent of a period when suspicions and jealousy had wreaked the lives of many people[3].
Review
The Crucible was set in Salem, Massachusetts and the time was between 1692 and 1693. Miller loosely based the story on the characters and event that became popularly known as the witch hunt that occurred in Salem during that period[4]. The characters and what happened to them were followed but Miller made his own interpretations and laced the story with his own twists in order to make it more dramatic to the audience. It revolved around John Proctor and Abigail Williams, a scorned woman. Events became easier to understand if someone was forced to do evil because her or his heart’s desire has been thwarted – such is the case of Abigail. She lied because her ultimate goal was to get rid of Proctor’s wife.
The chaos all started when one of the girls who went to the forest to do some dancing collapsed due to fright after being surprised in the clearing by a reverend – only to wake up hysterical. The hysteria could have been the result of fright or exhaustion but the people chose to interpret it differently. This was unsurprising given the religious fervor of the Puritan era. Proctor went to see the woman who collapsed but found himself confronted by Abigail. Proctor refused her advances, which precipitated the entire witch hunt. The whole thing would have been prevented if Proctor responded to Abigail’s schemes[5].
Abigail saw her opportunity to get back at Proctor for refusing her advances and to get rid of his wife, Elizabeth, in the process. What her selfishness and pride accomplished was to put Proctor on the gallows rather than his wife. On the surface, the chaos and the fateful events that followed merely resulted from the malice of the woman who had been rejected by her former lover. It was revenge of a scorned woman. The story, however, was not just about suspicions and jealousy but also about how fragile were the threads holding society intact. Given the opportunity to take advantage of others, people in Salem were ready to point accusing fingers. Thomas Putnam, for instance, wanted Giles Corey’s land, and used the witchcraft hunt as an opportunity to make Giles miserable by accusing his wife as a practitioner. More, Giles did not just end losing his wife but he suffered the worst among those who were accused of witchcraft. For trying to save his wife and to explain the motive of the accuser, Giles ended up being pressed by stone[6]. Despite the absence of any solid evidence, the judges were willing to hang people just because somebody has claimed them to be practitioners of witchcraft. There were no questions asked about the likely motives of the accusers. It was enough that they were accused to be communing with evil forces or dabbling with the occult.
The judges were an important part of the story because they held the fate of the accused in their hands. In essence, the judges in the trial were not judges in how the term has come to be known in modern society. They seemed not to have minds of their own; they seemed to have not known what critical thinking was all about[7]. Considering their choices of people to become judges, this was expected. One of the judges was a maidservant, probably a woman who was highly superstitious. Another judge was as ignorant and superstitious. Worse, Judge Hathorne was sadistic. It was ironic that to be saved from hanging, an accused should just accept to being one, like in the case of the slave Tituba[8]. The depiction of the judges – their ignorance, cruelty, superstition – was not something that Miller just made up. He did not make them appear evil. He simply gave them these traits because more reasonable and intelligent individuals would not have acted as naively or as unreasonably as they did[9].
Given the portrayal of the judges in this story, society was frightening as the voice of reason has been shelved. Justice was a farce during this time. The depiction of the character’s hopelessness was very evident, making the reader hope that some form of miracle would happen so that the nightmare that was happening to those people would somehow stop. It was clear to the reader where the root of the problem started, yet, it was not resolved. Abigail could have been exposed for the fraud that she was. However, resolution of the problem was not possible because that would mean clearing the misunderstanding and exposing Abigail for what she has done and intended to do. That would give the story a happier ending with no innocent people going to the gallows. But Abigail and her friends had to escape and Proctor had to be hanged, otherwise, the story would not reflect the horror of the time and what actually happened in Salem in the 17th century.
Miller’s writing and portrayal of the evil nature of man was compelling and realistic. He has an understanding of what truly drives people to do the things that would harm others. The author was known for his ability to portray the everyday reality of the American society in an unidealized manner. He presented truth starkly without trying to dull its impact. If society was foolish, he was able to present it without fear of hurting sensibilities. If a man died a horrible death, he had no qualms writing about it. If a man would die because justice was very much flawed, he would not hesitate to expose it. Miller wanted people to understand and acknowledge that life was cruel and that society was deeply flawed; however, people can make it better by acting more sensibly and using more of his intellect rather than believe on superstitions.
In the case of the people who died during the witch hunt in Salem, Miller was able to make the emotional pain surface on the words of Proctor, as well as, the overwhelming anger of the men and women who were forced to confess to something they were not just to save themselves from being hanged. Proctor’s wrath over the helplessness of his situation and of others was easy to guess from how the characters have spoken. Proctor’s declaration of “it is enough!” showed in a few words the different emotions consuming him at the moment when he was supposed to be delivered from his sins[10]. The reader will easily imagine himself being on the shoes of the accused and feel the same emotions at the wrong and ridiculous allegations. Danforth’s reaction to Proctor’s outburst was also reflective of how naïve society was in handling the situation. Danforth and many other Puritans like him seriously believed that someone who dabbled in witchcraft would be saved if they confessed to the sin. A modern person would be aghast at the naivety of Salem’s population and the prevalence of superstitions. Yet, it is important to remember that America was young then. The country was still trying to establish itself.
The Crucible, as a whole, is another representation of how Miller used his writing to raise social awareness. He was an advocate of change and making people realize the folly of their ways. For someone living in the modern times, the events in Salem were unbelievable but they happened. It made people realize that society was very much capable of acting stupidly on its whims despite the fact their actions and beliefs ran contrary to what is reasonable, sensible, and intelligent. The story was about an event that took place more than 200 years ago but its lessons and applications remained true at present. The book should be read by the coming generations in order to keep its lessons fresh.
Description of History in the Book
The Crucible should not be read as a faithful recounting of the Salem witch hunt or a perfect allegory of the 1950s frenzy over communism. Miller took liberties with the story and embellished it with his own ideas of what could have prompted men and women to point accusing fingers at others[11]. He delved into the motives of people and created heroes and villains to make the story more appealing to an audience. Miller used real names of those who were involved in the trial and included real events but the facts were changed in many respects so that it becomes a work of fiction rather than of fact.
Personal Opinion
The Crucible, as a work of literature, is highly admirable. It can make the reader want to put sense into the people who have been called upon to stand as judges to the accused individuals. The story can make readers want to cry and beg people to be reasonable. It was painful to think of Giles Corey being pressed to death even if it was only mentioned in passing; hanging was better than being pressed to death. The people of Salem were brutal and cruel, all in the name of a twisted belief in a practice that was not even proven to have existed. Ignorance and over zealotry are very dangerous when combined. The Crucible is a good reminder to people to demand facts and evidence when being asked to make a judgment on anything. It is folly to just take people’s words at face value. Hopefully, society has gone a long way in treating the deviants of society. Overall, I like the book for its literary value although I wanted a happier ending – one where the villainess will be served her just punishment. However, this cannot be the case considering that it would change history and lessen the book’s impact.
Bibliography
Abbotson, Susan C.W. Student Companion to Arthur Miller. Westport, CT: Greenwood Press, 2000.
Budick, E. Miller. “History and Other Spectres in The Crucible,” in Arthur Miller by Harold Bloom (ed.). New York: Chelsea House, 1987.
Martin, Robert A. and Bloom, Harold (ed.). Arthur Miller’s The Crucible: Background and Source. Philadelphia, PA: Chelsea House, 1999.
Miller, Arthur. The Crucible. United States of America: Penguin Group, 1982.
Otten, Terry. “The Crucible to a Memory of Two Mondays,” in The Temptation of Innocence in the Dramas of Arthur Miller. Columbia, MO: University of Missouri, 2002.
[1] Susan C.W. Abbotson,
Student Companion to Arthur Miller (Westport, CT: Greenwood Press, 2000), 7.
[2] Abbotson, 1.
[3] Abbotson, 10.
[4] Robert A. Martin and Harold Bloom (ed.), Arthur Miller’s The Crucible: Background and Source (Philadelphia, PA: Chelsea House, 1999), 55.
[5] Arthur Miller, The Crucible (United States of America: Penguin Group, 1982), 3.
[6] Miller, 49.
[7] Terry Otten, “The Crucible to a Memory of Two Mondays,” in The Temptation of Innocence in the Dramas of Arthur Miller (Columbia, MO: University of Missouri, 2002), 60.
[8] Miller, 122.
[9] Martin and Bloom, 63
[10] Miller, 142.
[11] E. Miller Budick, “History and Other Spectres in The Crucible,” in Arthur Miller by Harold Bloom (ed.) (New York: Chealsea House, 1987), 127