Using your WebQuest
from yesterday,
answer:
 What was the Red
Scare?
 What is McCarthyism?
By Arthur Miller
 Mass hysteria occurs when several people begin to think in the same
way.
 The group members all develop a common fear that often spirals into a
panic.
 The group members feed off each other’s emotional reactions, causing
the panic to escalate.
 How might theocracy lead to mass hysteria?
 Living such a strict life leads to feelings of being trapped
 You are worried that you will be caught for your sins so you blame it on
others until everyone begins pointing fingers
 Can you think of any historical examples of Mass Hysteria?
• Seemingly about the Salem Witch Trials of 1692
• Used trial documents (fictionalized)
• Combined, created or changed characters based upon
•
•
•
•
historical figures
Major trial events are relatively accurate
Was and still is an exploration of mass hysteria,
persecution and power dynamics.
Concerned itself with historical events of the Witch
Trials as they reflected what was occurring in the
McCarthy Investigations of the 1950’s
Criticized the McCarthy hearings of the 1950’s
 1947 - House Un-American
Activities Committee (HUAC)
began an investigation into the
Hollywood Motion Picture
Industry
 Number of writers, directors,
and actors were accused of
holding left-wing (therefore
communist) views
 Ten people refused to answer the
committee’s questions and
became known as the
Hollywood Ten
 Their refusal resulted in being
blacklisted from work in motion
pictures or television
 1950, Joseph McCarthy, a
Republican senator from
Wisconsin, made a speech
claiming to have a list of 205
people in the State Department
that were known to be members
of the American Communist
Party
 Later he reduced this figure to 57
 McCarthy began receiving
information from his friend, J.
Edgar Hoover, about other
politicians (mainly Democrats)
and government employees with
suspected communist affiliations
 For the next two years
McCarthy's committee
investigated various
government departments
and questioned a large
number of people about their
political past
 It became clear to witnesses
that the only way of showing
that they had abandoned
their left-wing views was by
naming other members of
the “Communist Party”
 1953 - McCarthy began
investigating communist
infiltration into the military
 Known as the Army-McCarthy
hearings
 Exposure helped illustrate the fear
and suspicion that arose during this
era.
 Anti-communist hysteria of the
era became known as
McCarthyism
 The McCarthy era of the Cold
War is now thought of as
America’s “Second Red Scare”
 The Crucible explores the elements of McCarthyism
through the Salem Witch Trials
 The Salem Witch Trials occurred in 1692 when a group
of young girls accused their neighbors of witchcraft
 http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JU8GvfeaOMo&fe
ature=related
 As we read The Crucible we will discuss the different
possibilities for the Salem Witch Trials!
In what ways did people convey mass hysteria during “The Second Red Scare”?
In what ways might we see people experiencing mass hysteria in The Crucible?