The Crucible
By Arthur Miller
Setting of the Play: The Crucible by Arthur Miller is a play based upon the events in 1692, which led to the
Salem Witch Trials, a series of hearings before local magistrates to prosecute over 400 people accused of
witchcraft in colonial Massachusetts, between February 1692 and May 1693.
Reaction to the “Communist Scare”: The play was written in the early 1950s during the time of McCarthyism,
when the US government blacklisted accused communists.
McCarthyism is a term describing the intense anti-communist suspicion in the United States in a period that
lasted roughly from the late 1940s to the late 1950s.
During this time many thousands of Americans were accused of being Communists or communist
sympathizers and became the subject of aggressive investigations and questioning before government or
private-industry panels, committees and agencies. The primary targets of such suspicions were government
employees, those in the entertainment industry, educators and union activists. Suspicions were often given
credence despite inconclusive or questionable evidence, and the level of threat posed by a person's real or
supposed leftist associations or beliefs was often greatly exaggerated. Many people suffered loss of
employment, destruction of their careers, and even imprisonment. Most of these punishments came about
through trial verdicts later overturned, laws that would be declared unconstitutional, dismissals for reasons
later declared illegal or actionable, or extra-legal procedures that would come into general disrepute.
In 1952, Elia Kazan appeared before the House Un-American Activities Committee (HUAC) and, under fear of
being blacklisted from Hollywood, named eight black men from the Group Theatre who in recent years had
been fellow members of the Communist Party. After speaking with Kazan about his testimony Miller traveled
to Salem, Massachusetts to research the witch trials of 1692. The Crucible, an allegorical play in which Miller
likened the situation with the House Un-American Activities Committee to the witch hunt in Salem, opened at
the Beck Theatre on Broadway on January 22, 1953. Miller and Kazan had been close friends throughout the
late 1940s and early 1950s, but after Kazan's testimony to HUAC, the pair's friendship ended, and they did not
speak to each other for the next ten years.
HUAC took an interest in Miller himself not long after The Crucible opened, denying him a passport to attend
the play's London opening in 1954. Kazan defended his own actions through his film On the Waterfront, in
which a dockworker heroically testifies against a corrupt union boss. Miller was in turn to respond with the
play A View from the Bridge, in which another dockworker's decision to inform on two illegal immigrants is
based on ignoble, self-serving motives. Eventually Miller did have his case overturned and his passport
returned. His feelings about HUAC never changed.
About the Play: Initially the play was met with hostile reviews-it was picketed by various right-wing groups
for its obvious mockery of the McCarthy trials and by the American Bar Association for its portrayal of judges
as inflexible and supercilious- but a year later a new production succeeded and the play became a classic.
Despite the obvious parallels between the events in the play and the McCarthy proceedings, The Crucible is
really about the nature of moral honesty, the importance of self-awareness and the need for discovery of one’s
own truth, no matter how opposed that truth may be to the society around it.
Today the play is studied in high schools and universities, because of its status as a revolutionary work of
theatre and for its ability to pose questions about human nature and authority that will always need answers.
Anticipation Guide: Prior to reading The Crucible, respond to each statement by putting a plus sign (+) if you
agree, and a minus sign (-) if you disagree. Use a question mark (?) if you are unsure of your belief.
Statement
_____1. Confessing to a crime you didn’t commit in
order to avoid punishment is wise.
_____2. The difference between right and wrong is
clear.
_____3. It is better to die for what you believe in
rather than to lie to save your life.
_____4. There is only one correct way to interpret
the Bible.
_____5. That which doesn’t destroy us only makes
us stronger.
_____6. It’s more difficult to forgive yourself if the
person you have hurt doesn’t forgive you.
_____7. Courage means doing something even
though it can be difficult and fearsome.
_____8. A person is innocent until proven guilty.
_____9. If you commit a sin, you are a bad person.
_____10. Justice is best determined in a court of
law.
_____11. You can always trust a religious leader to
do what is right.
_____12. People are often motivated by greed and
jealousy.
_____13. If a woman is not a good wife, her
husband has every right to cheat on her.
_____14. If a man cheats on his wife, he should
never be forgiven.
_____15. Children who don’t get much attention
often cause trouble so they’ll be noticed.
_____16. People are often motivated by love and
forgiveness.
Act I:
1. In his introduction to the play, how does Miller explain what really motivated the people of Salem to
accuse their neighbors, friends, and relatives of witchcraft?
2. What were Abigail and the girls doing in the forest when Reverend Parris saw them?
3. Why is Parris so worried about the evidence of witchcraft being discovered in his own house?
4. What behaviors of Betty Parris and Ruth Putnam made some feel they were possessed by witches?
5. What does Rebecca Nurse think is wrong with the girls?
6. Why is Mrs. Putnam so eager to prove there is witchcraft in the village? What confession does she
make to Hale?
7. What is the source of conflict between Parris and Proctor?
8. What is the relationship between Abigail and John Proctor?
9. How does Abigail feel about John’s wife, Elizabeth?
10. What is unusual about Giles Corey? What special purpose does Giles Corey serve in the play?
11. Why is Thomas Putnam such a bitter man?
12. Who is Reverend Hale, and what does he accomplish?
13. Why does Tituba confess so readily? What does her confession initiate? How does Hale make Tituba
feel important? Whom does Tituba name as witches?
Act II:
14. What is the source of tension in the Proctor household?
15. What does Elizabeth fear about Abigail?
16. What is happening in the town, and what do John and Elizabeth both know about the court
proceedings? Why won’t John tell the court what he knows?
17. What is the only way a person accused of witchcraft can save his/her life?
18. Where has Mary Warren been? How did Mary “save” Elizabeth’s life, but later cause her to be accused?
19. According to Proctor, what concerns Parris more than his duty to God?
20. Why does Hale come to see the Proctors? In other words, what are his concerns?
21. Which commandment has John Proctor forgotten?
22. Why do Giles Corey and Francis Nurse come to see John Proctor?
23. Explain the following quotes:
a. “Is the accuser always holy now?”
b. “I’ll tell you what’s walking Salem—vengeance is walking Salem!”
c. “We are only what we always were, but naked now.”
24. What does John Proctor demand of Mary Warren?
Act III:
25. Of what does Giles Corey accuse Thomas Putnam?
26. From his actions and statements, what can you conclude about Judge Danforth?
27. Who does John Proctor bring to the court to testify on behalf of Elizabeth, Martha, and Rebecca? Who is
Proctor’s enemy? Who apologizes, but hurts Proctor’s credibility?
28. How does Reverend Hale change as the court proceedings progress?
29. Why will Elizabeth’s life be spared for at least a year? Why does Proctor continue his fight despite the
fact that Elizabeth is safe?
30. What does John Proctor reveal in an effort to discredit Abigail?
31. What two ironic twists does the plot take in this act?
32. Reread and explain Proctor’s last speech in the act:
Act IV:
33. How much time has elapsed between the end of Act III and the beginning of Act IV? How have the
townspeople been affected by the last several months of the court proceedings?
34. What is Parris’ real reason for pleading for postponement of the executions?
35. What makes Danforth anxious to obtain confessions? At the same time, why does he refuse to postpone
the executions?
36. Why has Hale returned to Salem?
37. Why doesn’t Elizabeth beg John to sign the confession? What does Hale mean when he says to
Elizabeth, “cleave to no faith when faith brings blood”?
38. How has Elizabeth changed during her imprisonment?
39. How does Giles Corey die? Why does he refuse to answer the charge?
40. What is John Proctor’s objection to being hanged? What makes John Proctor finally tear up the
confession and decide it is better to hang?
41. What happens to the following characters:
Elizabeth Proctor
Reverend Parris
Abigail
42. What is the epiphany that occurs for each of the following characters?
a. John Proctor:
b. Elizabeth Proctor:
c. Reverend Hale: