The invented witch hysteria in Salem, Massachusetts, declined the lucid and
emotional constancy of its citizens. This browbeaten the population’s weakest
traits, and insecurities. The understandable breakdown in Salem’s social order
led to the disaster which saw twenty above suspicion people hung on the charge
of witchcraft. Arthur Miller, author of The Crucible, used panic to introduce
personality flaws in susceptible characters. (Debbie Chun, 1999)
An unbending social system, fear, and bewilderment were evident conditions that
became common previous to and during the witch trials. These circumstances only
contributed to the tragedy in Salem. The separation of the Puritan society
created an unbending social system that did not allow for any difference in
lifestyle. The severe society that was employed at this time had a harmful
effect on the Proctor family. John Proctor, a hard working farmer who had a bad
period the year before and stressed this year was infrequently absent at Sunday
service. This was owed to the fact he needed to be inclined to his crops. Also,
Proctor did not have the same opinion with the appointment of Mr. Parris as the
newest minister, and so did not have his last child baptized. With the latest
fad of witchery and twirling accusations, John Proctor was easily accused of
being a messenger for the devil by the indication of his disenchanted servant
Mary Warren, who in the past committed lying under oath. The court who heard the
indication easily accepts it since she is a church going person, while John
Proctor somewhat deviates from the custom. This transfer of culpability is also
obvious when the truth is first exposed about what the girls were doing in the
woods. The girls were not liable. The responsibility was place on Tituba, the
"black" slave who was said to have "charmed" the girls. Abigail swears, "She
made me do it". (Richard Hayes, 1953)
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It is clear that in the Puritan society that whatever did not be conventional to
what the ample had decided as proper, then the deviated, but innocent, were to
responsibility. This do contributed to the disaster in Salem. The terror of what
was unknown created nervousness within Salem’s population that additional to
Salem’s social demise. The situation surrounding the witch trials gave
inhabitants something to blame the paranormal on. The condemning of Tituba was
mostly due to this. When Tituba took the girls into the woods, and they
performed their ceremony, amazing the Puritans were not get to know to, she
convicted of witchery. Along with Tituba, Martha Corey was accused only because
she would not let Giles to read them. Giles also affirmed that I tried and tried
and could not say my prayers. And then she closes her book and walks out of the
house, and suddenly marks this I could pray again! This proof of witchery is
ridiculous. The only thing that is true is that Giles was not allowed to read
the books, and because he did not what the books restricted, he feared them.
This type of reaction all through the community to the supernatural, and what
was not known indicted many people, and added to the tragedy in Salem. The state
of accumulation bewilderment in Salem created a society of individuals who were
only worried with what was good for them, so that they would not be the next one
concerned in the witchery scandal. This state of affairs is clearly evident
after Hale becomes privy to the true story of what occurred in the woods.
Abigail dumps Tituba, and accuses her of sending her courage on me in church;
she makes me laugh at prayer, and Abigail also says Tituba comes to me every
night to go and drink blood. Abigail responds like this only to save her from
being supposed of witchery. At the end of Scene One, many community members are
accused of consorting with the devil.
These names were given by all of the girls there that took part in the rite in
the woods, in an effort to return to the graces of God and to be affirmed
bewitched. This was an ordinary reaction that many had when blamed of witchery.
It led to confrontations which rutted neighbor versus neighbor and husband
versus wife. The fever which created this state of affairs aided in the bad luck
proceedings in Salem. The evident obliteration of Salem’s social order was due
to rigid conditions on deviation, fear of the unknown and mass confusion.
(Richard Hayes, 1953)
These conditions left Salem vulnerable to an obvious epidemic such as
witchcraft. The vulnerability that Salem fell victim to was the cause of a great
disaster which saw twenty townspeople hung at the hands of the condition. The
Crucible written by Arthur Miller is a story of a great disaster which
highlights a free man’s brave and never-ending fight against mass pressures to
make him bow down in conventionality and shows how hysteria can be used for evil
purposes in an ambiance were there is a belief in freedom and right of dissent.
It seems that the Puritan society and our modern society are the same with this
issue. Both societies are frightened to do something different, but until a
person or a group of people does it, then everybody follow the bandwagon. It
shows us that society is the followers while the people are the leaders making
the changes for all of us.
Works Cited
Chun, Debbie. "The Red Scare and the Salem Witch Hunt." Electric Soup. 11 Nov.
1999.
Hayes, Richard. "Hysteria and Ideology in The Crucible." Commonweal 57. Feb.
1953.
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