...Research Analysis over Abigail Williams Arthur Miller said in an interview once, “ I took creative license with her character to make the connection between sexuality and politics more dramatic,” (Shmoop). This is one of the reasons Arthur Miller made Abigail Williams in The Crucible so different compared to the real Abigail. Abigail Williams was an 11-year -old girl who lived in Salem and worked for the Proctor family, John and Elizabeth, before the time of the Salem Witch Trials of 1692. Before the trails even started, Abigail and her cousin, Betty Parris, got into fortune telling their future like who they would marry and what their social status would be. After a while they got the other girls in town to start playing their fortune telling...
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...Nwobi 1 Odera Nwobi AP Language & composition September 21, 2014 CRR #1- The Crucible I. Author/Introduction Arthur Miller; an American playwright, born in the early 1900’s, 1915 to be precise. He was born into a very wealthy family. He was not very wealthy for a very long time, after the stock market crash in 1929. He had to do odd job to be able to pay for his college. After college, he career was a little rocky after his first play The Man Who Had All the Luck closed after four performances. After a while, his show All my Son earned him his first award. He wrote over 50 different works ranging from plays, novels, articles. His best play was Death of a Salesman which earned him a lot of fame. Another popular play he wrote was The Crucible. This play was a reflection of the Salem witch trial back in 1692. He was considered a communist because he advocated principles of equality among the classes, and social justice. He was married three times. He was once married to the popular actress Marilyn Monroe. Arthur Miller died in 2005 at the age of 89. II. Vocabulary Gibberish- meaningless or unintelligent talk. Trepidation- trembling or quivering movement. Subservient- serving or acting in a subordinate capacity. Shudder- to tremble with a sudden convulsive movement as from horror, fear, or cold. Calumny- a false and malicious statement designed to injure the reputation of someone or something. Titillated- to excite or arouse agreeably. Sniveling- to weep...
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...How is Religion Presented in The Crucible? Arthur Miller presents religion both through narration, which is examined in this analysis, and through the words of his characters. In the opening to The Crucible, Arthur Miller provides some background insight into the Puritan faith, writing that the Puritans believed that their religion was the only right way in life. In coming to America, the Puritans wanted to take advantage of the opportunity to spread their belief to more people. Miller writes, "They believed, in short, that they held in their steady hands the candle that would light the world. We have inherited this belief, and it has helped and hurt us." The Puritans were quite arrogant people. They felt that their faith was "held in their steady hands," implying that Puritanism can bring order and stability to anybody who accepts the religion. They felt that any other religion was wrong and wanted to rid the world of these thoughts. This is paralleled in contemporary American society, seen in the idea that the country has the duty to bring the rest of the world to what they believe is the right way to live. Both the Puritans and contemporary Americans want to change the world by infiltrating their beliefs, shoving them in the faces of everybody, whether the other people are open for change or not. In his account following the entrance of Reverend Hale, Miller argues that the Devil is an essential element of the world because it provides an opposing force to God. The...
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...Drama is created by placing ordinary people in situations of crisis or conflict Explore some dramatic techniques used to create drama in the crucible In his play, The Crucible, Arthur miller presents an allegory for McCarthyism through the use of the Salem With trials of 1692. In the crucible, miller uses many techniques to create drama to influence the decisions of the ordinary townsfolk. Drama is created by placing key protagonists in situations of conflict. The intolerance of puritan society towards new or different practices is one of the ways that miller creates drama. Another factor is the maintenance of personal reputation and the consequences of conflict upon this status. By manipulating ordinary people, hysteria also creates a large sum of drama. Through an analysis of Intolerance, reputation and hysteria, this essay will explore how conflict creates drama. In a puritan society, not meeting the social norms was seen as treason and heavily persecuted. This lead to an intolerance of anyone who did not worship god, and dissent lead to beliefs of Satanic activity. Judge Danforth quotes in act three page 85 "You are either with the court or against it". Miller uses tone to foreshadow what is yet to come in the the text. The tone of this sentence shows that the witch trials are the ultimate form of intolerance and hanging...
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...Task One Reading and Defence of The Crucible Prepared for Ms. Mussig Prepared by Maya Young English Extension Part One: The Reading Created from the mind of the world renowned playwright and author Arthur Miller, is the horrifying story of deceit, accusation and guilt of The Crucible. Written in 1953, The Crucible is a confronting play that explores the unfathomable true events that took place in the small religious village of Salem, Massachusetts in 1692, where by members of the Salem community began accusing others of dealing with and practising the magic of the Devil. These accusations are what led to the Salem witch-trials. Through this play Miller is able to emphasise the absurdity of these trials, which resulted in the hangings of twenty innocent people. I personally came across The Crucible through my English Extension class. To be perfectly honest, when I first picked up this text, I was unsure of what to expect. Apart from reading Shakespeare, I had never been exposed to reading in the playwright form. I did not know what my approach to the play was going to be or how I would react to reading it, or if there was a certain way in which I was supposed to be affected by it. I also had yet to read a text written by Arthur Miller, so I was unaware of his style of writing and again did not know what to expect from it. After finishing the play for the first time I was satisfied that I had thoroughly enjoyed reading the story, whilst developing a love...
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...Literary Analysis: A Character from The Crucible By looking at The Crucible by Arthur Miller, one can infer that the character, John Proctor, reveals the theme of reputation and integrity. These are important because refusing to lie to protect one’s reputation can stop hysteria from spreading. In The Crucible, John Proctor was more worried about his reputation for his family to live with than he was concerned with his own life. Basically, the idea of John Proctor protecting his reputation motivates him to deny that witchcraft exists in the village. Proctor had stated his worry by saying, “The town is mumbling witchcraft” (1.1.511-512). Proctor says this in reference to Reverend Hale walking through town with a stack of books for researching...
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...When analyzing the character of Giles Corey in The Crucible, it is probable that the reader portrays him as a comical hero on the surface. However, the perception of Giles Corey that Arthur Miller, the author, wants the reader to realize goes a lot further than being just a comical hero. Throughout the play, the changes and development of Giles Corey are displayed through both his actions and his words. Upon closer examination of these actions, it is without a doubt that Giles Corey can be defined as a dynamic character. When Giles said, “More weight” (Miller 1227) , he revealed how he changed from someone who is outspoken and foolish in the beginning to someone who becomes a tragic hero by defending his family and friends. He accomplished...
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...The Crucibles Analysis: The Crucible is a fictional play that was later converted into a movie written by Arthur Miller. The storyline is a dramatized versions of the Salem Witch Trials that took place in Salem Massachusetts during 1692. Miller magnified the films historical events by showing how quickly paranoia, dishonesty and fear can escalate amongst the characters in the town of Salem. During the17th century time period, Salem was a puritan based community that lived in an extremely restrictive society. The system of the government was a theocracy. They believed they were chosen by God for a special purpose in this world. The puritans viewed the world in terms of good vs evil. They were required to faithfully attend church and study the word of God. If they failed to comply with those terms, they were accused of practicing the devil’s magic. In the film, several of the village girls were caught dancing in the forest outside of Salem in the middle of the night. One of the characters in the film, Betty had lost consciousness during the ritual and remained in a trance ever since. The town’s physician examined Betty and could not determine why she was unconscious. He suggested she was bewitched. In the puritans eyes, dancing and singing chants were frowned upon and viewed as unholy. Many believed if an induvial danced and chanted in the forest they were practicing witch crafts. The people of Salem in the witch trials were swayed by momentary feelings and were falsely accusing...
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...Analysis Abigail will stop at nothing to get what she wants no matter the cost or consequences. She is a jealous and deceitful woman in the Crucible by Arthur Miller. Miller writes about how she tries to manipulate people in order to get what she she desires. Her actions in the short story “The Last True Witch Hunt” further prove these characteristics about Abigail and how she behaves. In act one Abigail was talking to the other girls who were involved in the incident in the woods. She said to them “Let either of you breathe a word, or the edge of a word, about the other things, and I will come to you in the black of some terrible night and I will bring a pointy reckoning that will shudder you”. (p. 1244) Abigail is threatening the girls that if they were to tell anyone about what they were really doing in the woods that night she would harm them. This shows that Abigail is willing to threaten her own friends in order to protect herself. In my short story about Abigail she is willing to get another woman killed in order to be with her husband, exactly like she attempted to do in The...
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...The Crucible Critical Analysis Shakespeare believes that a tragic hero has potential for greatness, but is ultimately destined to fail. The character falls from greatness because of their ‘tragic flaw’. In Arthur Miller’s play The Crucible, the protagonist John Proctor is portrayed as the tragic hero. He fits this description for a number of reasons. His tragic flaw or Achilles heel, like many other tragic heroes is his pride. Compounded with conflicts with circumstances, this tragic flaw leads to Proctor’s loss of life and arguably the loss of his eternal life as well. One of the major requirements to being a Shakespearean tragic hero includes having a tragic flaw. Proctor places a great deal of importance on his pride or what he considers dignity and self-respect. He lets pride overshadow his life and actions. He would rather maintain his pride or die. As the play nears its end in Act Four, it shows that he would rather give up his life, rather than post his fake confession on the church doors for the public to see. He states, “Because it is my name! Because I cannot have another in my life... How may I live without my name? I have given my soul; Leave me my name!” (Miller, 133). John is too prideful and unwilling to stain his reputation. He prefers to die rather than have his name stained because of a fake confession. He wants to leave his name intact for his family. Another example of this is illustrated in Act Two, where Elizabeth urges Proctor to go...
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...English 11 AP The Crucible Literary Analysis The Crucible, a novel by Arthur Miller is a historical fiction novel that takes place during the year 1692. The novel is written in the format of a play and takes place in the small town of Salem, Massachusetts. The town consists of a tight knit highly religious society. The situation and circumstances that the community is in encourages the development of several different themes in the story. Religion, integrity, and respect and reputation are all important themes in the novel. Religion is one of the main reasons that the novel its self is able to play out and develop. The main plot of the story revolves around religion and the actions that the characters take out either for or against the things that they are taught and that they are expected to follow. The community is a group of extremely religious Puritans; in their minds and opinions there is only one thing that is important: God. To the community the only thing that should matter to people is being on God’s good side and being the best Christians they can be. The only things that have an important value are upholding religious beliefs and developing the best relations they can with God and the church. If the people of Salem hadn’t been so religiously uptight then the Salem witch trials probably wouldn’t have even occurred. Also, during the witch trails the only thing that people had as proof of innocence or guilt was religion without religion their points would have...
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...In a character analysis, the writer explains how a character and his or her conflict(s) helps readers understand a major theme. Whether it is a major or minor character, either one can illustrate important key themes. In a short story, novel, poem, play, etc., based on a character’s words, thoughts, and actions, one can comprehend their value, and the strengths and weaknesses of their personality. In The Crucible, Miller, Arthur. John Proctor, the play’s tragic hero and a man that lived during the Salem witch trials of 1632 through 1962, is a farmer and tavern keeper living in Massachusetts. John Proctor, known to be an honest, upright, and blunt spoken man is a kind soul that lacks the intention of forgiving his evil sin of adultery with Abigail Williams. Trapped in an unbreakable belief due to his affair, John Proctor believes he damaged the relationship with not only his wife, but with the Man, he praises mostly, God. Battling with his secrets, John must soon reveal to the city and lose...
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...THE SIGNET CLASSIC EDITION OF WILLIAM SHAKESPEARE’S MACBETH LINDA NEAL UNDERWOOD S E R I E S E D I T O R S : W. GEIGER ELLIS, ED.D., ARTHEA J. S. REED, PH.D., UNIVERSITY OF GEORGIA, EMERITUS and UNIVERSITY OF NORTH CAROLINA, RETIRED A Teacher’s Guide to the Signet Classic Edition of William Shakespeare’s Macbeth 2 INTRODUCTION William Shakespeare developed many stories into excellent dramatizations for the Elizabethan stage. Shakespeare knew how to entertain and involve an audience with fast-paced plots, creative imagery, and multi-faceted characters. Macbeth is an action-packed, psychological thriller that has not lost its impact in nearly four hundred years. The politically ambitious character of Macbeth is as timely today as he was to Shakespeare's audience. Mary McCarthy says in her essay about Macbeth, "It is a troubling thought that Macbeth, of all Shakespeare's characters, should seem the most 'modern,' the only one you could transpose into contemporary battle dress or a sport shirt and slacks." (Signet Classic Macbeth) Audiences today quickly become interested in the plot of a blindly ambitious general with a strong-willed wife who must try to cope with the guilt engendered by their murder of an innocent king in order to further their power. The elements of superstition, ghosts, and witchcraft, though more readily a part of everyday life for the Renaissance audience, remain intriguing to modern teenagers. The action-packed plot, elements...
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...UNIVERSITY OF GEORGIA, EMERITUS and ARTHEA J. S. REED, PH.D., UNIVERSITY OF NORTH CAROLINA, RETIRED A Teacher’s Guide to the Signet Classic Edition of William Shakespeare’s Romeo and Juliet 2 INTRODUCTION William Shakespeare’s Romeo and Juliet is an excellent introduction to Shakespearean drama; teenagers can relate to its plot, characters, and themes. The play’s action is easily understood, the character’s motives are clear, and many of the themes are as current today as they were in Shakespeare’s time. Therefore, it can be read on a variety of levels, allowing all students to enjoy it. Less able readers can experience the swash-buckling action and investigate the themes of parent-child conflict, sexuality, friendship, and suicide. Because of the play’s accessibility to teenagers, able readers can view the play from a more literary perspective, examining the themes of hostility ad its effect on the innocent, the use of deception and its consequences, and the effects of faulty decision making. They can study how the characters function within the drama and how Shakespeare uses language to develop plot, characters, and themes. The most able students can develop skills involved in literary criticism by delving into the play’s comic and tragic elements and its classically tragic themes: the role of fate and fortune, the inevitable nature of tragedy, and the isolation of the tragic hero. This teacher’s guide will be divided into several parts: (1) a brief...
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...Philosophy of Science (All Science, not just social science) During the time of the ancient Greeks—that is, Socrates and Plato, but before them and after them as well, the study of “philosophy” (Greek for “love of wisdom”) began. At that time, philosophy included both the natural and physical sciences as well what we know as philosophy today. The development of philosophy created a tension between philosophy, science, and religion. Remember that Socrates was put to death for allegedly questioning the existence of the official state-worshiped gods. This tension between philosophy, science and religion continued through the 1400’s and 1500’s when the European “Enlightenment” emphasized the concept that both “rational thought” and “science” was separate from religion. Today, they are still generally in tension. Whether these methods of gaining knowledge are consistent or not is constantly debated among scientists, theologians, and philosophers. Science=observation of the physical universe which includes (beginning in the late 1800’s) the study of human behavior using our five senses (sight, hearing, taste, touch, smell); Religion=the study of the “divine” (i.e., god, however a person conceives of that notion, and it’s implications) Philosophy=the study of questions unanswerable by science through the use of “reason” (rational thought) alone. Thus, there are 4 different philosophical views on how humans can obtain knowledge: 1. mysticism/divine revelation—a...
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