English 10/11
Name_______________________________
The Crucible Webquest
1A. Who is Arthur Miller?
Read through the biographical information as well as the Timeline in the links below to
answer the following questions.
http://www.imdb.com/name/nm0007186/bio
http://www.theatredatabase.com/20th_century/arthur_miller_timeline.html
1. What is Miller’s full name?
2. Where was he born?
3. In what year?
4. When did he die?
5. Where did Miller attend college?
6. What did he study?
7. Name another play Miller wrote besides The Crucible.
8. Why was Miller brought before the House of Un-American Activities Committee?
9. Whom did Miller marry soon after he appeared before the HUAC?
10. What do Mary Slattery, Inge Morath, and Agnes Barley have in common?
11. Why do you think Miller was motivated to write The Crucible?
1B. Characters
Who are some of the main characters in The Crucible? Click here to find out. (If you want
to read the summary of the play, go ahead. However, it’s not required for those who like
some element of surprise).
http://www.sparknotes.com/lit/crucible/characters.html
Describe the following characters:
1.
2.
3.
4.
5.
John Proctor
Elizabeth Proctor
Abigail Williams
Mary Warren
Rev. Parris
6. Rev. Hale
7. Tituba
2. Puritan Life in Salem Village
Use the website below to answer the questions and learn more about Puritan Life
http://www.personal.psu.edu/users/n/d/ndw1/salem2/Background.html
1. Why did the Puritan's leave England and venture to a new land?
2. Explain how the Puritan's felt about freedom of religion.
3. How important is the church in Puritan society? Explain.
4. What is excommunication?
5. Why were church leaders so influential/powerful in Puritan communities?
6. How does religion today compare to the Puritan's idea of religion?
7. Why was witchcraft often the explanation for illness?
8. What scientific explanation was given by Caporeal as to the cause of the mysterious
behavior in Salem?
3A. Salem Witch Museum website. Click on “The Salem Witch Trials of 1692.”
Go to the Salem Witch Museum and read about the historical background of what
happened,
http://www.salemwitchmuseum.com/
1. The daughter and niece of whom became sick in 1692?
2. 19 people were ______________, one man was ________________, and seventeen others
died ________________ as a result of the witch trials.
3. What four factors “created a fertile ground for fear and suspicion” in the Massachusetts
Bay Colony, according to the article?
a.
b.
c.
d.
4. A “belief in the power of the accused to use their invisible shapes or specters to torture
their victims” is known as what type of evidence?
3B. McCarthyism link
Miller wrote The Crucible in the 1950’s, when something called McCarthyism was
something of a modern-day witch hunt that affected Miller directly. Click on this link to
McCarthyism and read up on it http://www.pbs.org/wnet/americanmasters/database/mccarthyism.html
5. Who was Joseph McCarthy?
6. What was his public accusation?
7. W________________ and E________________ were labeled Communist sympathizers, and
this made it difficult for them to continue working.
8. Name three artists mentioned in the article who were singled out as Communists.
a.
b.
c.
9. In what way can The Crucible be seen as an allegory for McCarthyism?
4. Putting it All Together- Choose one of the following activities to complete with your group.
1.
Create an Ad campaign for a new presentation/film version of the play. Design a poster,
create a slogan, include the cast members for each major character.
2.
Research a recent news story in which someone claimed to be falsely accused of a crime.
Briefly summarize the events, what the accusations were, and the outcome of the
incident. Compare and contrast this event to the Salem Witch Trials.
3.
Stage an interview with Arthur Miller. Write questions to ask Miller and research the
answers. Present the interview to the class.