...The Crucible by Arthur Miller is a play written about the witch trials in Salem, Massachusetts. The story shows how people were accused of witchcraft through the corrupt society and killed for their supposed crimes. The time that Arthur Miller lived was filled with fear of communist infiltration into the government and accusations of people who were thought to be communists. Through his use of the Salem witch trials in The Crucible, Arthur Miller effectively illustrates the lives ruined from accusations during the Red Scare, showing the irrational way of dealing with paranoia and mob mentality leading to these accusations. The paranoia growing in people’s minds led to accusations during both the Red Scare and Salem witch trials. In the 1950s communism seemed like America’s greatest fear. The thought of communists infiltrating the American government was terrifying to Americans. With such fear of something comes paranoia of it. Because of this situation,...
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...“The Crucible” The Crucible is a play written by Arthur Miller and was published in 1953. Arthur Miller wrote this famous play during the well known “Red Scare” when McCarthyism was first established. The similarities between the Salem Witch Trials of 1692 and the Red Scare of 1950 were shown in his writing. Reading The Crucible in high schools today, educates society on the poor judgement of the 1690’s and 1950’s also putting a stop to the chance of it reoccurring in the future. From the 1690’s to the 1950’s, our leaders have made certain decisions that have greatly affected the way we think and act today. The Salem witch trials of 1692 took place in a small farming town in Massachusetts that was categorized as mostly as Puritans. Puritan religion basically opposes anything that is not modest and or proper, this is why it was a big shock when Abigail had told people she conversed with the devil. “I danced for the devil; I saw him, I wrote in his book”. When the town heard this news their fear became overwhelming and they began making...
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...hysteria broke out as young girls accused people of dealing in witchcraft. The accused were punished and killed for these false accusations. Eventually, the town shamefully realized what they had done. The playwright, Arthur Miller, wrote The Crucible as a display of a corrupt Puritan society as well as an allegory of modern American history. Miller demonstrates the government issues and religious conflicts of colonial and modern-day America in his play, The Crucible. Miller’s play reflects the corruption of humanity that is seen throughout American history. Puritan hypocrisy is a major focus of this work which is portrayed at the end of act one when Abigail Williams...
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...The Connection by Kathleen Orozco P. Sepesi English 3.1 December 5, 2011 Outline I. Introduction II. America in the 1600’s A. Puritanism B. Salem Witch Trials III. America in the 1950’s A. Communism B. Joseph McCarthy IV. McCarthyism A. McCarthy Trials (HUAC) B. Blacklisting C. Elia Kazan D. Arthur Miller V. The Crucible A. The Summary B. The theme VI. The Allegory A. Danforth and the HUAC B. Danforth and Joseph McCarthy C. Elia Kazan and Abigail Williams VII. The conclusion The Connection The Crucible written by Arthur Miller has a symbolic meaning. It is an allegory, “a story in which people, things, and events have a symbolic meaning, often instructive.” (Agnes 17). The setting, the Salem witch trials of the 1600’s is similar to the McCarthy trials of the 1950’s. The people, the events, the details relate to one another. Miller purposely wrote his story to instruct the fact that the mentality of the people in the 1950’s was no different than the mentality of people in the 1600’s. In the 1600’s people followed a strict religion known as puritanism. The Puritans believed they were sent by God to purify the world of sin and evil. Because of this they believed they were superior to others. Consequently, when they did sin, they tended to feel guilty and blame others for their faults. This blame and guilt led to one of the most fearful times in America. The Salem witch trials happened during the 1600’s and at a time where everyone...
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...Proctor also having a name in society, land, power, and at first having fear of his social status but instead chooses honesty and integrity. Danforth's motivation is to preserve his status as a judge good in the town before the cause of justice "…, interfere with an exact loyalty to his position and his cause." (Miller 79) Parris's motivation continues to be his reputation. Proctor motivation is to save his wife. Their attitudes towards the witch trials are all different which is how they view law/order/authority as well; Proctor sees it as being extremely irrational but as for Parris and Danforth they see it as a way to bring back order ironically. Miller shows through Proctor that integrity is not putting one's life before group of other out of false allegations and that's what he shows through Parris and...
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...Fear can influence decisions and corrupt ones morality. The fear of death, judgment and isolation all have the capability to make good people do bad things. Arthur Miller portrays this phenomenon in his book The Crucible. In The Crucible there are distinct examples of fear debilitating ones ability to make the right decision. Mary Warrens fear of death resulted in many deaths. John Proctor’s fear of judgment kept him from revealing the truth. Lastly, the fear of the unknown, in the mind of the townspeople, set off a series of devastating events that transpired throughout the book. Furthermore, fear darkened their conscience, and as a result, self preservation became prioritized above all else. Mary Warren, naturally a honest women, wanted to confess to the dancing and conjuring spirits in the woods. However, Abigail disagreed and threatened to kill her and, consequently, fear overtook Mary until she was Abigail’s slave, or rather, a slave to fear (Miller, pg.19). Mary knew the truth, the truth that could have saved lives, but withheld it. She lied and became dishonest, for the reason that she was afraid of being hung as a witch herself. Therefore, she accused John Proctor, an upstanding man, and in doing so, she put him to death (Miller, pg.118). She was terrified of death, and Abigail made that horror something real that she couldn't overcome. So in turn, she took the pressure off herself and took a mans life to preserve her own. Abigail was a dishonest and deceitful...
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...The Crucible This essay will discuss, explain and evaluate the main ideas, themes and interpretations of Arthur Miller’s, The Crucible. It will also explain and evaluate the language Arthur Miller uses and how it contributed to the overall success of the play. The Crucible is set in 1692 in the puritan town of Salem, Massachusetts, a theocratic society, where the laws of the land are laid down by the church. The main idea running throughout the play can be viewed as a direct comparison to McCarthyism which was happening in 1950’s America, in which members of the general public including public figures such as Arthur Miller were brought in and questioned over connections to communism. This can be seen as a direct comparison to people being brought into the Salem courts regarding connections with witchcraft. It was not until Miller saw this comparison that he then felt compelled to write The Crucible as he now felt he could get into the minds of those going through similar circumstances back in the Salem witch trials. Hysteria was the main cause of nineteen deaths in the Salem Witch Trials of 1692, and countless ruined reputations on account of Joe McCarthy. Hysteria does not just appear out of nowhere though. There are driving forces such as revenge and abuse of power that bring about the irrational fear that can take over society. These are the issues expressed in Arthur Miller’s The Crucible. The Crucible is paralleled directly to the Salem Witch Trials and indirectly...
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...Mass hysteria is a condition affecting groups of persons characterized by excitement or anxiety, irrational behavior or beliefs, or inexplicable symptoms of illness. In the play The Crucible written by Arthur Miller shows that mass hysteria can affect anyone on how they act and it had an influence in different societies throughout history like the 2016’s the creepy clowns scaring people, 1940’s the holocaust eliminating jews, and the 1400’s-1600’s European witch hunt finding witches. In the 1990’s the holocaust was a tragic event where many lives were lost. It was caused by a man called Hitler and he was the one who made it all happen. He showed mass hysteria to people about jews. A reason why hitler targeted jews is because a book that came...
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...Tragedy and The Human Conditions Essay: Abusive Power “Nearly all men can stand adversity, but if you want to test a man's character, give him power. ” In a statement by Abraham Lincoln it is identified that the greatness of man is tested by how he utilizes his power. As demonstrated in William Shakespeare's Macbeth, Arthur Miller’s The Crucible, and The Time Magazine article Adolf Hitler, one can see how the abuse of power creates chaos in society. By analyzing the actions of the characters Macbeth, Abigail Williams, and the character Adolf Hitler, it is evident how the misuse of power will lead to the loss of structure in society. “Power tends to corrupt, and absolute power corrupts absolutely.” A statement by Lord Acton which illustrates that those who gain power ultimately become corrupted by it - thus leading one to abuse their power. This statement is well demonstrated in the actions of the character Macbeth, from William Shakespeare’s play Macbeth, in his rise to power from Thane of Glamis to the King of Scotland. Within the first scene of the play, Macbeth is given the gift of knowledge of the future, by the three witches, which he ultimately uses to gain more power. “All hail, Macbeth! hail to thee, Thane of Glamis ... All hail, Macbeth, thou shalt be king hereafter!” (I.iii. 48-50). When given this prophecy from the three witches, Macbeth utilizes this information, once he becomes Thane of Cawdor, to plan the death of King Duncan. The power of knowledge is...
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...In Arthur Miller’s book, The Crucible it provides realistic information about the Salem witch trials. Miller relates the Salem witch trails to the 1950’s issue of accusations of Communism in the United States. Within this book our understanding of the witch trials increases and we can relate the issues to problems world wide. In The Crucible many characters are hung for being a witch. There was not enough accurate evidence to say that there cases where fair. Current events can relate to this situation if there is a place where there are unfair and false accusations against innocent people. Parris the Reverend of Salem, is responsible for bring the witch trials to his town. This also affects his reputation in Salem, which he is very concerned about. The amount of power he has shifts over the course of the play along with the trust of the citizens of Salem. Throughout the book many people become frustrated with Parris which leads him to put fear in himself. Parris is now responsible for the tragedies in Salem because he brought the witch trials to Salem. Many people turn on him throughout the whole entire play. Parris’s reputation in the town of Salem and his position within the...
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...females will do anything to win over the man they dream of, while love can create irrational behaviours of us, it is an important note to never expect that someone else's' feelings will affect you. However other people obstructing the path of this love can create extremely selfish actions, and situations can quickly depend on many others lying - that should not have been involved from the beginning. The people killed as a result of Abigail's actions were convicted of a bogus crime by an effective yet dishonest jury of young youth villagers. John Procter himself had none of this expected to come his way, apart from his affair with Abigail he was known as an exceptional member of the community especially portrayed when he criticized the witch trials even after he becomes convicted of the crime himself. The self inflicted pressures that Abigail places upon herself due to her selfish love of John Procter, result in complex and uncontrollable lies that eventually leads to the social destruction of Salem in Arthur Millers The Crucible. Abigail desires to have power in the court, in this way she can sway the decisions of the Judges and make anyone appear as a threat to Salem. This empowerment causes Abigail to get all girls involved in the court hearings, if all girls follow her lead in making these decisions; then it is these girls that are in charge of the fate of innocent villagers. Elizabeth Procter fears for her life in act two, "Abigail brings the other girls into the court, and where...
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...In The Crucible, the witch trials were a major point of focus. There are numerous acts that needed to happen to lead to the witch trials and the ending of the novel. Girls in Salem had countless expectations, including the expectation to be perfect children. They were trained, even as children, to act like mature adults. The problem is that when a child is forced to act like an adult at such a young age, but aren’t treated as adults, they may feel ignored. When a child is ignored, they do irrational things to get attention, and occasionally, these things can get people hurt. The first step in these witch trial was the unjustifiable and defiant acts. One of the girls had an affair with a man, which meant rebelling against the entire...
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...reproduced by permission of the American Academy of Pediatrics Silber TJ. Treatment of anorexia nervosa against the patient's will: ethical considerations. Adolesc Med State Art Rev. 2011;22(2):283-8, x. Adolesc Med 022 (2011) 283–288 Treatment of Anorexia Nervosa against the Patient’s Will: Ethical Considerations Tomas J. Silber, MD, MASS* Director, Pediatric Ethics Program, Division of Adolescent Medicine, Children’s National Medical Center, Professor of Pediatrics, George Washington University, 111 Michigan Avenue NW, Washington, DC 20010 INTRODUCTION Practitioners of adolescent medicine are frequently the medical consultants responsible for determining the hospitalization of patients with anorexia nervosa (AN), deciding whether they may require nasogastric tube feeding, and potentially recommending measures that may restrict their freedom. Thus the treatment of adolescents with AN can include ethically concerning practices such as privation of liberty, nonacceptance of treatment refusal, and limits on privacy and confidentiality, to name a few. Treating professionals are thus often caught between the conflicting values of respect for patients and their duty to prevent nutritional injury and even death. Therefore there is always a potential tension between obtaining the patient’s trust (fiduciary fidelity) and having to make recommendations that threaten this working relationship (fiduciary protection). In many, if not most, instances of treatment for AN, patients...
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...Leadership & Organization Development Journal, Volume 30, Issue 6, Pages 563-576 This article is © Emerald Group Publishing and permission has been granted for this version to appear here (https://dspace.lib.cranfield.ac.uk/index.jsp). Emerald does not grant permission for this article to be further copied/distributed or hosted elsewhere without the express permission from Emerald Group Publishing Limited. www.emeraldinsight.com A Dynamic Theory of Leadership Development Abstract Purpose - The paper offers a dynamic theory of leadership development. Design/methodology/approach – The paper examines selected leadership literature through the lens of theory building blocks. It identifies the role of the ideal goal in leadership and its importance in developing the psychological aspect of leadership. Findings – The paper posits that leadership is a developmental process, which is based on the type of choice a leader makes. While choice implies that two good options are always available from which to select, one should make choices in accordance with his worldview, looking for affiliation (i.e. the Theta worldview), or looking for achievement (i.e. the Lambda worldview). Consequently, leaders need to recognise that the choices they make for organisational activities have to fit their own worldview. Pursuing the fit between one’s worldview and planned organisational activities ensures that leaders continuously improve their ethical behaviour. The paper concludes with the presentation...
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...INTRODUCTION The plays and prefaces of Bernard Shaw deal with many and diverse themes. At least four, however, concern themselves with evolutionary themes and ideas: Man and Superman, Back to Methusalah, The Simpleton of the Unexpected Isles, and Far-fetched Fables. In Man and Superman, especially the third act, the preface, and The Revolutionist's Handbook and Pocket Companion, Shaw touches on two main themes: the pursuit of man by woman and the direction of evolution, which Shaw sees as leading towards the development of the mind and brain. In Back to Methusalah, Shaw carries forward his vision of evolution as proceeding in the direction of mental development but introduces a seemingly new idea in the last play of the cycle, the antithesis of mind and body. Shaw's dualism receives its most explicit statement in the last play of the cycle although there may be indications of it in the earlier plays. The mind-body antithesis, however, derives as a philosophical problem from Descartes,1 although the antithesis also appeared in the Manichean and Gnostic heresies, the spirit, or mind, being regarded as good and the body as evil. Although the antithesis of body and mind makes its first open appearance in the Methusalah cycle, it is present, at least as an implicit assumption in Man and Superman. Don Juan continually expresses his longing for the life of contemplation, a life which is to be achieved at the expense of the body. We will deal with the presence of the mind body antithesis...
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