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Crucible Essay

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Dylan Gates
Mr. Woody
4 November 2012
Accelerated English 2
Crucible Essay

Straying from Puritanism The Crucible, by Arthur Miller, was produced in 1953. To this day, the play remains very popular. In this play, Miller talks about a witch-hunt that took place in 1962 which compares to the “Red Scare” that went on in Washington, D.C. in the 1950s. Miller writes about a Puritan village with a Christian religion that seems to be forgotten when under pressure. Puritans are taught to stick to their Christian beliefs, and in The Crucible, they simply stray away from the beliefs and violate them to save their own life. One instance where they go away from their puritan beliefs is that the people of Salem drift away from each other and turn on each other. One very strong belief of Puritanism is that unity among them strengthened their community. In a Puritan community, they take care of each other’s needs and look out for their neighbors. In The Crucible, they certainly do not take care of one another. In fact, it is the complete opposite. Almost everyone in the play becomes very egocentric. This is all the effect of the accusations of witchcraft in Salem. Another instance where they stray from their Puritan religion is that they break many of the Ten Commandments. The Ten Commandments are the ten basic rules that shall not be broken by any means by a firm Christian believer. One of the ten commandments they break during the play is killing. The bible clearly states in Exodus 20:13, “Thou shalt not kill.” The Bible states it very concise. Puritans are taught to take these commandments very seriously. Puritans believe that the bible is a plan for how one is to live their life. In this play, Tituba and many others who are accused of witchcraft are killed without much evidence or thought. This accusation of Tituba from Mrs. Putnam is a blatant lie and starts the

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