Mccarthyism and the Witch Trials

A detailed Summary of Mccarthyism and the Witch Trials


It is hard to believe how one single person can gain so much power. Enough power to falsely accuse many people of something they are not. Through the fear of a society one person can control everyone and everything. Senator Joseph McCarhty had that power for four years. McCarthy was not well-liked but he learned how to be feared through his accusations of communism against many U.S. government officials. Abigail Williams was feared by the town of Salem, Massachusetts through her accusations of witchcraft against many respected townspeople. Arthur Miller used literary devices in The Crucible to represent the ideals of a Puritan society and to convey the hidden parallels suggesting history repeats itself through the destructiveness of McCarthyism and the Salem witch trials.

Miller relied heavily on metaphors within The Crucible to show that the Puritan's ways and attitudes were not always as pure as they claimed. "It's winter in here yet"(Miller 51). This quote metaphorically represented the coldness and separation between the characters John and Elizabeth Proctor. John P


system was. It was ironic that the Puritans who stayed faithful, honest, and never lied about being something they were not, were killed. Those who went against their beliefs and untruthfully claimed to be witches were the ones who kept their lives. Ironically the Puritans were anything but pure. Joseph McCarthy should have lived during the Puritan era, he would have fit in perfect.

roctor has tried to make amends with his wife for the affair he had with Abigail Williams. Miller wrote this to show there are always flaws within a society; even the puritans made mistakes. "It's warm as blood beneath the clods"(50). Miller used this for two purposes: one represented what

Irony was used in The Crucible to show the connections of McCarthyism in 1950 to the Salem witch trials in 1692. "Are you drunk Marshal?"(124). Marshal Herrick was a representative of the law in Salem and was ironically found drunk on the job. Miller wrote that to show how careless the law could be. During the McCarthy era congressional committees often abused their powers of investigation which also showed how careless

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Approximate Word count = 745
Approximate Pages = 3 (250 words per page double spaced)

Category: History

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