SSO om The Crucible og hekseprocesserne i Salem | Engelsk B

Abstract This essay attempts to discover the potency of Arthur Miller’s play, The Crucible, as a critique of McCarthyism in 1950’s USA. This is achieved, firstly, through an explanation of the term Puritanism and its origins, which characterizes the Puritans of New England as colonists who left their nation to found a new society in which their lives were dedicated to the service of God, a brief summary of the witch hunts and trials of Salem, Massachusetts in the 17 century, and secondly, through the analysis and interpretation of The Crucible, with a primary focus on the development of John and Elizabeth Proctor, as well as their growing bond to one another, and finally, through a discussion of how the different elements, of which The Crucible is comprised, share similarities with elements of the period of the Red Scare and McCarthyism. It is then concluded that Arthur Miller’s play from 1953 can justifiably be regarded as a direct critique of the phenomenon in USA in the 1950’s, known as McCarthyism.

Introduction to the Essay For all intents and purposes, this essay seeks to summarize the Salem Witch Trials of 1692, to analyze and interpret The Crucible with a primary focus on the book’s main characters, John and Elizabeth Proctor, as well as to discuss the potency of Arthur Miller’s play as an indirect critique of McCarthyism in 1950’s USA, and finally, to reach a conclusion based on the discussion and background knowledge presented before it. Introduction to Puritanism and its Origins In the late 16 century, the rise of Puritanism was at its utmost prominent stage, although still young. This religious reform movement was started by a group of devout Christians in England, who thought that the level of dedication and piousness of the current English Christian community was much too unsubstantial in its devotion to God. Initially, the term ‘Puritan’ was a name used by people opposed to the concept of Puritanism as a spiteful means of addressing the members of the aforementioned religious reform movement However, this term was later adopted as a personal identifier by the members, themselves, which likely led to the term’s survival to this day.