The Best and Worst of the Crucible

The Best and Worst of the Crucible

  • Submitted By: chaea4u2
  • Date Submitted: 03/01/2009 11:50 AM
  • Category: Book Reports
  • Words: 1573
  • Page: 7
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In the play “The Crucible”, by Arthur Miller, the reader is introduced to a time similar to the author’s own. This time is 1692, the Salem witch trials. The author shows how vengeful and greedy even the purist of human beings can be at another’s expense. Through conflict, symbolism, and characterization, Miller reveals that trying times will bring out the best and worst of people. Some will stand up for what is right, others will lay down and hope the problem goes away, but the worst of people will stab their neighbor in the back personal gain. He shows that history has begun to repeat itself in the form of the Red Scare and that it must be stopped.
Conflict in the play revealed how strong the accused were. However, this was not physical strength, but spiritual strength. The conflict of the accused occurred in their minds. This conflict was whether they should acknowledge the lie that they were a witch, thereby saving their own lives, or face the noose while retaining their dignity. To the Puritans, claiming to side with the devil was a crime against God. Many chose to save themselves and ask for God’s forgiveness while others claimed they would be damning themselves by such a lie. One of the condemned was the reputable Rebecca Nurse, “it is a lie; how may I damn myself? I cannot, I cannot” (Miller 147). Rebecca never thought spitefully of her condemners even though they eventually brought upon her death. She encouraged others to not confess. The other side of the accused were people like Sarah Good. Miss Good strongly denied being a witch when she was accused; but the girls’ acting slowly broke down her will, “I feel the skin on my skull begin to creep, and I feel a clamp around my neck and I cannot breath air” (Miller 60). Mary Warren and others claimed Sarah was choking them in the court. Under the mounting pressure she finally decided to choose jail over the gallows. However, in claiming to be a witch she lost what little respect she...

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