Introduction to
McCarthyism
Warm Up
• Answer the following questions in a 2-3
sentence response. You have 1 minute for each
question.
• What motivates/initiates anger?
• “There is nothing to fear but fear itself” Franklin D. Roosevelt
– What does this quote mean? Explain in 2-3
sentences
Is there a relationship
between anger and fear?
It is often said that fear
motivates people to be angry.
• 9/11: Americans were angry about this tragedy and
took action out of fear that more Americans would
lose their lives.
• Student fights: Students fight to prove that they
aren’t afraid but they are still driven by the fear of
their reputation being ruined for not fighting.
• Bullies get angry at others because they are afraid
people will see their true feelings and imperfections.
• During Hurricane Ike people got angry at others due
of lack of ice and food because they were afraid they
would not be able to feed their families.
Other Examples?
What can you tell me about
the government in the
United States?
Democracy
• Democracy is defined as government in which the
supreme power is vested in the people and
exercised by them directly or indirectly through a
system of representation usually involving
periodically held free elections.
• In other words, the government is made for the
people by the people. While people are not directly
involved in government, they are represented. Who
represents the people in a democracy?
Characteristics of Democracy
• Democracy rests upon the principles of majority rule and
individual rights
• Democracies understand that one of their prime functions is
to protect such basic human rights as freedom of speech and
religion; the right to equal protection under law; and the
opportunity to organize and participate fully in the political,
economic, and cultural life of society
• Democratic societies are committed to the values of tolerance,
cooperation, and compromise.
• Citizens in a democracy have not only rights, but also the
responsibility to participate in the political system that, in
turn, protects their rights and freedoms.
The economic system in this
democracy is called
CAPITALISM
• an economic system in which investment in and ownership of
the means of production, distribution, and exchange of wealth
is made and maintained chiefly by private individuals or
corporations, esp. as contrasted to cooperatively or stateowned means of wealth.
• In other words, individuals can own things and get wealthy.
They have the ability to sell goods (anything you can touch –
cars, makeup, shoes) or services (any service you provide) free
of government intervention.
• In a capitalist society, you have a small amount of rich, and
small amount of poor, and a majority are somewhere in the
middle.
Another Economic System:
Communism
• a theory or system of social organization based
on the holding of all property in common, actual
ownership being ascribed to the community as a
whole or to the state.
• (often initial capital letter ) a system of social
organization in which all economic and social
activity is controlled by a totalitarian state
dominated by a single and self-perpetuating
political party.
Characteristics of Communism
• Government controls the spread of wealth
• Everyone is supposed equal. Everyone
has equal things.
Capitalism
Communism
1. Government does not
get involved with the
distribution of goods
and services.
2. Individuals own
property
3. You have an economic
class system: upper,
middle, and lower
classes.
1. Government controls
the spread of
wealth/goods and
services.
Economic
Systems
2. Property is owned for
the collective/group
3. There is no class
system; everyone is
financially equal.
Answer this question to
yourself and for yourself:
In a “perfect” state, which
economic system is the BEST?
Consider this:
• Why might Americans prefer capitalism over
communism?
• How might Americans feel about communism?
• How do you think Americans would feel if
someone tried to force communism on them?
Game
• Object of the game
• To begin the game, you receive a slip of paper.
Secretly to see whether the paper is blank or
has a red dot. Then, hide it in your pocket and
DO NOT show it to anyone during the game.
• Non-dots win the game by forming the largest
group of students who are all nondots.
• Dots win the game by being the only dot in a
group.
Procedures
• Once the game starts you will have approximately five
minutes to form groups.
• You can ask others whether they are dots or non-dots, but
players may not reveal their slips of paper during the game.
• You do not have to join a group, but you cannot win the game
unless you are in a group of at least two people.
• You can be a part of a group only if that groups agrees that you
are a member.
• If you suspect that someone is a dot, report your suspicion to
the teacher. He will deal with the accusation appropriately.
Tips of Strategy
• During the game, you will have to ask
classmates whether they are dots. Because
everyone will deny being a dot, look for
classmates who act suspiciously.
• If you are a dot, try to draw suspicion away
from yourself and on to others.
Review
• Procedures:
– Once the game starts you will have approximately five minutes to form
groups.
– You can ask others whether they are dots or non-dots, but players may not
reveal their slips of paper during the game.
– You do not have to join a group, but you cannot win the game unless you are in
a group of at least two people.
– You can be a part of a group only if that groups agrees that you are a member.
– If you suspect that someone is a dot, report your suspicion to the teacher. He
or she will deal with the accusation appropriately.
• Remember:
– Non-dots win the game by forming the largest group of students who are all
nondots.
– Dots win the game by being the only dot in a group.
• You have 5 minutes only…BEGIN
McCarthyism
• The use of careless, often false, accusations and
methods of investigating that violate civil liberties
(freedoms).
• Originates from Senator Joseph McCarthy’s hunt for
“pinkos, radicals and Communists” in the 1950’s
• Sen. McCarthy accused the Democratic
administration of supporting Communists during a
time when America was in a struggle with the Soviet
Union and growing Communism.
McCarthyism (continued)
• Playing on Americans’ great fear of Communism,
McCarthy summoned hundreds of Americans to
testify & threatened to brand them as Communists if
they didn’t.
• Mass hysteria grew and the “witch hunts” began
• Several Hollywood writers, actors, and other famous
people were questioned; many were “blacklisted” and
10 were sent to prison for refusing to answer
questions.
McCarthyism
•The Committee questioned Arthur
Miller in 1956, who admitted to
attending Communist meetings 10 years
earlier to learn about it.
•Miller refused to answer questions about
other people who attended those
meetings, and he was held in contempt
of court.
McCarthyism
•He appealed and 2 years later won his
case.
•McCarthy was eventually condemned
by the Senate for misconduct and
abuse of power.
Similarities Between the
McCarthy Hearings and The
Crucible
• Anyone opposing
McCarthy was
suspected of
communism and
often brought
before the Senate
committee
• Anyone opposed to
the Salem judges
was suspected of
trying to
undermine the
court & was
“probably a witch”
Similarities Between the
McCarthy Hearings and The
Crucible
•Panic led to
“witch hunt”
for
Communists
•Panic among
Puritans led to
“witch-hunts”
for the Devil’s
agents
Similarities Between the
McCarthy Hearings and The
Crucible
•Americans in
the ’50’s feared
Communism
•Puritans feared
the Devil & his
agents in the
1600’s
(Miller’s intentional use of these
similarities makes this story an
allegory.)
The Majestic
• A new love. A new hometown. Peter Appleton is
having the time of his life…by living someone else’s
life.
• Jim Carrey plays Peter, a Hollywood screenwriter
who stumbles into tiny Lawson, California, with his
memory blanked out by an auto accident. There,
he’s mistaken by the citizenry to be a long-lost war
hero…an identity that Peter also comes to believe
while restoring the town’s shuttered movie palace
and romancing the girl he's supposedly left behind.
It’s perfect life and, perhaps, the perfect lie. But the
truth is bound to surface.