We can guess from the circumstances that Parris enslaved Tituba in Barbados, probably when she was 12 or a few years older. all rights reserved, History U: Courses for High School Students, Cotton Mathers account of the Salem witch trials, 1693, Located on the lower level of the New-York Historical Society. Miller sums up his experience with the benefit of hindsight: "I am glad that I managed to write The Crucible, but looking back I have often wished I'd had the temperament to do an absurd comedy, which is what the situation deserved. For many peopleespecially New Englanders (wicked or not) and fans of Daniel Day-Lewis or Winona Ryder (stars of the 1996 movie version of Arthur Miller's The Crucible)17th-century Salem, Massachusetts, comes to mind when they hear the word witch hunt.The persecution of witches goes back to ancient times, but it was during the 16th and 17th centuries that witch hunts intensified. First performed in January of 1953 at the height of America's red scare, The Crucible is first and foremost a political argument, relating the Salem witchcraft trials to their contemporary equivalent in Miller's time, the McCarthy hearings. They simply used accusations of witchcraft and magic to prove their moral and doctrinal superiority over the other side. But the reason as to why Arthur Miller felt the need to write The Crucible in the first place was because the unfortunate reality that history seemed to have repeated itself again. Witch hunts The theological worldviewderived from the early Christian fear of Satan and reinforced by the great effort to reform and conform that began in 1050was intensified again by the fears and animosities engendered by the Reformation of the 16th century. Parris beat Tituba to try to get a confession from her. The Devil was deeply and widely feared as the greatest enemy of Christ, keenly intent on destroying soul, life, family, community, church, and state. By this time, I was sure, John Proctor had bedded Abigail, who had to be dismissed most likely to appease Elizabeth. In that examination, Tituba confessed, naming both Sarah Osborne and Sarah Good as witches and describing their spectral movements, including meeting with the devil. How Rye Bread May Have Caused the Salem Witch Trials. That Abigail started, in effect, to condemn Elizabeth to death with her touch, then stopped her hand, then went through with it, was quite suddenly the human center of all this turmoil. The drastic effects of the Little Ice Age reached a height between 1560 and 1650, which happened to be the same period in which the number of European witch hunts reached their height. Miller completely discounts the idea that these events are caused by supernatural forces, and instead seeks to show how everyday difference between the members of the Salem community and the all-common emotions of anger, envy and greed are responsible. It certainly was not deemed to be a threat, even by the leaders of the Catholic Church, who simply denied its existence. List their beliefs. The Salem witch trials proved to be one of the most cruel and fear driven events to ever occur in history. Salem Witch Trials | The First Amendment Encyclopedia The "parochial snobbery" as well as a "predilection for minding. Throughout this article, it mentions the persecution of witches today in communities around the globe, mentioning the flashbacks of similar strategies that were used in the past, doing different types of tortures.In Modern days, recent generations have abandoned wonderful traditions. This was a Puritan village. Log in here. The "parochial snobbery" as well as a "predilection for minding other people's businesses" helped to make Salem a prime place for the trials to emerge and the charges of witchcraft to emerge on such a wide scale. What happened, we should ask, that enabled such widespread, fallacious, and at times frantic persecution and prosecution to take place? An author named Arthur Miller wrote the play The Crucible based of the true events of the Salem witch trials. Again, the so-called witches made for the perfect scapegoats. However, it must be taken into account that different regions experienced a flare-up of witch trials for a variety of localized reasons. Sometimes this magic was believed to work through simple causation as a form of technology. In Greco-Roman civilization, Dionysiac worship included meeting underground at night, sacrificing animals, practicing orgies, feasting, and drinking. Educators go through a rigorous application process, and every answer they submit is reviewed by our in-house editorial team. Classical authors such as Aeschylus, Horace, and Virgil described sorceresses, ghosts, furies, and harpies with hideous pale faces and crazed hair; clothed in rotting garments, they met at night and sacrificed both animals and humans. Those who were unhappy with their lot and envious towards of who were not now had the chance to voice their suspicions and take revenge against them. As competition flared up following the Reformation, churches turned towards offering salvation from sin and evil to their congregations. He says they were caused by everyone being paranoid of the witches. Its interesting to look at this in the context of what was happening in Millers real life. The Crucible Act One: An Overture Flashcards | Quizlet Its hard to imagine that there was once a time when witches were not seen as cackling women with pointed hats, black cats, and bubbling cauldrons. Moving crabwise across the profusion of evidence, I sensed that I had at last found something of myself in it, and a play began to accumulate around this man. Aligns with CCSS.ELA-Literacy.RI.11-12.5- Analyze and evaluate the effectiveness of the structure an author uses in his or her exposition or argument, including whether the structure makes points clear, convincing, and engaging. Although accusations of witchcraft in contemporary cultures provide a means to express or resolve social tensions, these accusations had different consequences in premodern Western society where the mixture of irrational fear and a persecuting mentality led to the emergence of the witch hunts. What are the reasons Miller gives for the Salem witch hunts? Members of the community claimed to have seen a person's spirit performing witchcraft, a crime that would cause a person to be sentenced to death. Many historians see its publication as a watershed moment in witch-hunting history. From the 14th through the 18th century, witches were believed to repudiate Jesus Christ, to worship the Devil and make pacts with him (selling ones soul in exchange for Satans assistance), to employ demons to accomplish magical deeds, and to desecrate the crucifix and the consecrated bread and wine of the Eucharist (Holy Communion). For example, The Monsters Are Due on Maple Street, an episode of Rod Serlings Twilight Zone series, may provide students and teachers an opportunity to examine the phenomenon of mass hysteria. Margaret Atwoods theory that societies under a lot of stress will give in to a person or a group proves a struggle between weak people giving into stronger people. Even though the clergy and judges in the Middle Ages were skeptical of accusations of witchcraft, the period 130030 can be seen as the beginning of witch trials. In each paragraph these traits will be further explained. Written in the early 1950s, Arthur Miller's play "The Crucible" takes place in Salem, Massachusetts, during the 1692 Salem witch trials . Already a member? In counties divided along religious lines, such as Germany, however, there were many trials and executions. To fully understand what caused the witch-hunt, one must analyze the triggers behind these feelings. In The Crucible, Arthur Miller presents a city named Salem, with contradicting people. The witch trials offer a window into the anxieties and social tensions that accompanied New England's increasing integration into . and Quakers; and between American Indians and Englishmen on the frontier. Witches sought to gain or preserve health, to acquire or retain property, to protect against natural disasters or evil spirits, to help friends, and to seek revenge. Maryse Cond, a French Caribbean writer, published "I, Tituba: Black Witch of Salem" which argues that Tituba was of Black African heritage. We now know that some of the accused were pre-teens. This began the Salem Witchcraft Trials. Many teachers use The Crucible alongside their discussion of McCarthyism. In the article Are You Now or Were You Ever, Arthur Miller claims that the McCarthy era and the Salem witch trials were similar and he does this through his choice of diction, figurative language, and rhetorical questions. Miller cites the reason for the witch-hunts to be "a preserve of manifestation of the panic which set among all classes when the balance began to turn toward greater individual freedom" and "a long overdue opportunity for everyone so inclined to express publicly his guilt and sins." What does the overture imply about human nature? Puritan Americans viewed physical wants and desires as a threat to society and work of the Devil. An additional activity would be to ask students to compare two or more recorded or live productions of Arthur Millers The Crucible to the written text. Miller wrote the play during the . Read the document introduction and transcript and apply your knowledge of American history in order to answer these questions. The Crucible shows how fear can inspire hysteria, intolerance, and paranoia and mirrored what was happening in America in the 1950s when a different kind of witch hunt was afoot. Two of the accused women confessed to being witches and were reprievedparadoxically, if you admitted to being a witch, you were freed. Through works of literature such as the Malleus, witches were broadly blamed for the effects of the Little Ice Age, thus becoming a scapegoat across the Western world. In Act 1, what explanation does Miller give as to why the witch hunts Arthur Miller felt as if it were a . No satisfactory explanation for the preponderance of women among the accused has appeared. In about 1689, Tituba and John Indian seem to have married. Some of the trial takes place in the actual courtroom, but the metaphor extends beyond the courtroom scenes. The girls accused a lot of people and got a lot of people of hang for being witches. Aligns with CCSS RL.11-12.3 - Analyze the impact of the authors choices regarding how to develop and relate elements of a story or drama. Tituba was among the first three people accused of being a witch during the Salem witch trials of 1692. (2021, January 5). The number of trials and executions varied widely according to time and place, but in fact no more than about 110,000 persons in all were tried for witchcraft, and no more than 40,000 to 60,000 executed. The town of Salem in The Crucible, can relate to our nation today, through the way we target the Muslim religion as terrorist. Its origin lies in the establishment of a theocracy by the inhabitants of Salem, which combined state and religious power. Women were certainly more likely than men to be economically and politically powerless, but that generalization is too broad to be helpful, for it holds true for societies in periods where witchcraft is absent. Historical Context Essay: Arthur Miller and the Red Scare The next day, Betty and Abigail named Tituba as a cause of their behavior. We have been advised by some Credible Christians yet alive, that a Malefactor, accused of Witchcraft as well as Murder, and Executed in this place more than Forty Years ago, did then give Notice of, An Horrible PLOT & against the Country by WITCHCRAFT, and a Foundation of WITCHCRAFT then laid, which if it were not seasonably discovered, would probably Blow up, and pull down all the Churches in the Country. Why did Arthur Miller write The Crucible? Upon these people, the blame could be laid for all hardships endured by Puritan society. Clearly, both definitions apply to the title of the play. Most readers are unfamiliar with McCarthyism. Most scholars agree that the prosecutions were not driven by political or gender concerns; they were not attacks on backward, or rural, societies; they did not function to express or relieve local tensions; they were not a result of the rise of capitalism or other macroeconomic changes; they were not the result of changes in family structure or in the role of women in society; and they were not an effort by cultural elites to impose their views on the populace. How can history be dramatic, and how can drama bring history to life? Judicial torture, happily in abeyance since the end of the Roman period, was revived in the 12th and 13th centuries; other brutal and sadistic tortures occurred but were usually against the law. It makes one wonder why older men continuously try to have relationships with them, huh? Have a tip or story idea? There was bad blood between the two women now. John Hale, were called in by Parris. In act 4 of The Crucible, why does John Proctor decide to confess but refuse to sign a written confession? Miller transforms Tituba, a young Native American girl, into an African slave who led a group of young women into the forest to participate in magic rites. Very few accusations went beyond the village level. It would, over time, grow to be synonymous with mass hysteria, panic, and paranoia, referenced by those who believe themselves to be victims of unjust persecution; Salem. The accusers is constitutionally finding scapegoats to back up their culpability. The witch-hunt also provided those who were greedy for land, such as the Putnams, to seek satisfaction. Tituba was accused by the young girls of appearing to them (as a spirit), which amounted to an accusation of witchcraft. Emailus. "What are the reasons Miller gives for the Salem witch hunts?" With The Crucible, Miller extrapolated that, citing womens instability when it came to the instability of an entire community. Children were often accusers (as they were at Salem), but they were sometimes also among the accused. Widely influential, it was reprinted numerous times. The visible role played by women in some heresies during this period may have contributed to the stereotype of the witch as female. Throughout the past ten years social media has rocketed with hashtags and live protests in order to promote the current social-issues that have been overlooked. []. Although these figures are alarming, they do not remotely approach the feverishly exaggerated claims of some 20th-century writers. It investigated whether the charges resulted from personal animosity toward the accused; it obtained physicians statements; it did not allow the naming of accomplices either with or without torture; it required the review of every sentence; and it provided for whipping, banishment, or even house arrest instead of death for first offenders. Retrieved from https://www.thoughtco.com/tituba-salem-witch-trials-3530572. Latest answer posted November 22, 2020 at 10:36:50 AM. By the 14th century, fear of heresy and of Satan had added charges of diabolism to the usual indictment of witches, maleficium (malevolent sorcery). These beliefs changed drastically, however, towards the end of the Middle Ages, as witchcraft came to be associated with heresy. The witch roused Samuel, who then prophesied. This unrest also contributed to the witch-hunting hysteria in another way. 2023. Who are the experts?Our certified Educators are real professors, teachers, and scholars who use their academic expertise to tackle your toughest questions. The gradual demise during the late 17th and early 18th century of the previous religious, philosophical, and legal worldview encouraged the ascendancy of an existent but often suppressed skepticism; increasing literacy, mobility, and means of communication set the stage for social acceptance of this changing outlook. The Reformation, Counter-Reformation, war, conflict, climate change, and economic recession are all some of the factors that influenced the witch hunts across the two continents in various ways. They believe that witches work with the devil and that they can see the devil and his followers. In The Crucible by Arthur Miller, what does the author mean by his statement that "the Salem tragedy developed from a paradox"? What was it about the time period that made such hysteria, and ultimately tragedy, possible. She is a former faculty member of the Humanist Institute. Accessed 4 Mar. Students put themselves in the place of the playwright to answer: Aligns with CCSS.ELA-Literacy.RH.11-12.3- Evaluate various explanations for actions or events and determine which explanation best accords with textual evidence, acknowledging where the text leaves matters uncertain. Accusations similar to those expressed by the ancient Syrians and early Christians appeared again in the Middle Ages. Instead, they were just one very small chapter in the much longer story of the witch hunts that took place all across Europe and America in the early modern period, with the European witch hunts reaching a height between 1560 and 1650. Many social and religious factors triggered . Their father had, of course, been persecuted in England. In essence, these infamous witch hunts took place because people came to believe that witches conspired to destroy and uproot decent Christian society. A Brief History of the Salem Witch Trials - Smithsonian Magazine Through their reactions to the witch trials, characters in Arthur Millers The Crucible portray two major themes of self-preservation and mass hysteria. Tituba served as a housekeeper. As Headley puts it, John Proctor is portrayed in The Crucible as a tragic hero, a fundamentally good man whose life is ruined to execution first by the unwillingness of his wife to sleep with him, and then, when hes succumbed to temptation, by the accusations of a hysterical girl. In her conclusion about that particular play, Terrible things happen, The Crucible confirms, when you believe women.. Some have speculated that this was a way of deflecting further suspicion of himself or his wife. ", Latest answer posted October 02, 2020 at 10:46:39 AM. A combination of multiple different forces came together to create the circumstances in which these witch hunts took place, so there are numerous reasons to consider. Accusations originated with the ill-will of the accuser, or, more often, the accusers fear of someone having ill-will toward him. why did the witch-hunts occur? | The Crucible Questions | Q & A Weakness, hypocrisy, vindictiveness: only few of the many words that describe the guilty desires and revenge that lingered among the town of Salem. She confessed to witchcraft and accused others. Those who did believe saw witchcraft as something to be availed of at best and dismissed at worst. Older women were more frequently accused of casting malicious spells than were younger women, because they had had more time to establish a bad reputation, and the process from suspicion to conviction often took so long that a woman might have aged considerably before charges were actually advanced. believed to have inspired Shakespeares Macbeth, Eve, Pandora and Plato: How Greek Myth Shaped the First Christian Woman, How Leonardo da Vincis Notebooks Transcend Time, Marco Polo: Renowned Merchant, Explorer & Travel Writer, How Protestant Reformation Shaped Modern Education, Macbeth: Why the King of Scotland was More Than a Shakespearan Despot. While people were being falsely accused of witchery without definite facts. Moreover, just as the growth of literacy and of reading the Bible helped spread dissent, so did they provoke resistance and fear. George Burroughs and the Salem Witch Trials, Mary Easty: Hanged as a Witch in Salem, 1692, M.Div., Meadville/Lombard Theological School. With our Essay Lab, you can create a customized outline within seconds to get started on your essay right away. It was also believed that they rode through the air at night to sabbats (secret meetings), where they engaged in sexual orgies and even had sex with Satan; that they changed shapes (from human to animal or from one human form to another); that they often had familiar spirits in the form of animals; and that they kidnapped and murdered children for the purpose of eating them or rendering their fat for magical ointments. Prior to the beginning of the early modern period, before the devastating impact of the Black Plague transformed European institutions and the political dynamic of the entire continent, many people throughout Europe may have believed in magic. How Does Arthur Miller Use Witch Hunts In The Crucible But since the controversy included withholding salary and payment in firewood, and Parris complained about the effect on his family, Tituba probably would also have felt the shortage of firewood and food in the house. Arthur Miller's . Analysis. When they did accuse witches, Calvinists generally hunted fellow Calvinists, whereas Roman Catholics largely hunted other Roman Catholics. The witches and judges of Arthur Miller's "The Crucible" The dramatic changes of the characters show how people in late 1600s managed to get through the accusations of witchcraft and moreover how the accusers and or condemners were able to handle the chaotic event. The legal use of torture declined in the 17th and 18th centuries, and there was a general retreat from religious intensity following the wars of religion (from the 1560s to 1640s). The Protestant Reformation and Catholic Counter-Reformation heightened the fear of witchcraft by promoting the idea of personal piety (the individual alone with his or her Bible and God), which enhanced individualism while downplaying community. Samuel Parris moved to Salem Village in 1688, a candidate for the position of Salem Village minister. In 1374 Pope Gregory XI declared that all magic was done with the aid of demons and thus was open to prosecution for heresy. But there was one entry in Upham in which the thousands of pieces I had come across were jogged into place. The witch-trials provided release and the outcome was tragically unpleasant. In The Crucible, with Hales transformation Miller is emphasizing that humanity will always seek redemption, the truth will triumph the lies, and people will constantly try. The doctor diagnosed the cause of the afflictions as "Evil Hand.". EDSITEment lesson Dramatizing History in Arthur Millers The Crucible, offers an engaging series of activities for students to examine the ways in which Miller interpreted the facts of the witch trials and successfully dramatized them. Miller argues that the fundamental nature of Salem's construction made it a community where the Witch Trials were inevitable. A " witchcraft craze " rippled through Europe from the 1300s to the end of the 1600s. In the writing of Arthur Miller he chose to place the focus of the book around the witch trials that took place in Salem in the 1400s. Elizabeth Proctor had been the orphaned Abigails mistress, and they had lived together in the same small house until Elizabeth fired the girl. eNotes Editorial, 6 June 2016, https://www.enotes.com/homework-help/what-reasons-miller-gives-salem-witch-hunts-360670. The outbreak at Salem, where 19 people were executed, was the result of a combination of church politics, family feuds, and hysterical children, all in a vacuum of political authority. Someone paid seven pounds for Tituba's release. He also portrays the accusers as teenagers when many were in fact much younger. Updated on January 31, 2020. Millers play helps one understand what the Salem Witch Trials did to peoples emotions and mentalities. Witchcraft | Definition, History, Varieties, & Facts | Britannica Therefore, to create unity, one also had to exclude and prohibit those who could threaten it. Christian theologians and academics entwined together the superstitious worries people held about the supernatural with Christian doctrine. To find out what was causing the afflictions, a local doctor (presumably William Griggs) and a neighboring minister, Rev. Immediately Abigail cried out her fingers, her fingers, her fingers burned . People thought without a trace of logic, accusing and punishing innocent, witches, left and right. After the magistrates finished their examination of Tituba, she was sent to jail. Across New England, where witch trials occurred somewhat regularly from 1638 until 1725, women vastly outnumbered men in the ranks of the accused and executed. In The Crucible, by Arthur Miller, he shows us four ingredients that create a mass hysteria.