McCarthyism and
The Crucible
Connections –
Research Paper
America vs. Russia
• post-WWII – America
and Russia uneasy
• based on opposing
ideologies
– capitalism
– communism
• each rapidly
expanding political
influence through
Europe and the
developing countries
Capitalism
• capitalism:
– an economic system characterized
by private or corporate ownership
of capital goods, and by prices,
production, and the distribution of
goods that are determined mainly
by competition in a free market
Communism
• communism:
– a : a theory advocating elimination of
private property
– b : a system in which goods are owned in
common and are available to all as
needed
– c : a totalitarian system of government in
which a single authoritarian party
controls state-owned means of
production
The Cold War begins…
• began in 1947
• both powers began to view each
other as deadly enemies
• Cold War
– 1 : a conflict over ideological differences
carried on by methods short of sustained
overt military action and usually without
breaking off diplomatic relations
– 2 : a condition of rivalry, mistrust, and
often open hostility short of violence
especially between power groups
• in America
– anyone who had ever flirted with
socialist or communist beliefs
– seen as a traitor to the “American way of
life”
• socialism
– any of various economic and political
theories advocating collective or
governmental ownership and
administration of the means of
production and distribution of goods
The Beginning
• took its name from the
McCarthy hearings in early
1950’s
• actually began with publication
of Attorney-General’s List in
1947
– published by the House UnAmerican Activities Committee
(HUAC)
Attorney-General’s List
• contained names of people with ties
to communist organizations
• this list later expanded to become
“The Black List”
– thousands of people were forbidden to
work in their professions
• HUAC held hearings to investigate
charges of “un-Americanism”
• continued through McCarthy era
– often times more damaging than the
McCarthy hearings themselves
The 1950’s
• Chinese Revolution had just
been won
• Russians had exploded their
first atomic bomb
• Korean War had just been won
Enter McCarthy
• Senator Joseph
McCarthy
• famous with
accusation that for 20
years, the democratic
government had been
nurturing the growth
of communism in
America
• senate hearings were
set up and the
collective persecution
of leftists began
Allies torn apart
• during WWII, America and
Russia had been allies
• fought together against fascism
• McCarthyism changed all of that
Anti-communism hysteria
• under McCarthyism, anticommunism hysteria became so
intense and so irrational, even
moderate liberals referred to it
as a…
WITCH HUNT
McCarthy and HUAC
Hearings
• both followed a similar pattern
• each “witness” took the stand
– asked whether they had ever had
any dealings with communists
– refusing to answer = arrest
• if he/she denied the charge,
prove innocence
– give names of those who did have
communist connections
Hearings Cont’d.
• if he/she confessed to having
once attended a leftist meeting
or supporting the leftist cause
– show that he/she had reformed
– naming others who had attended or
contributed
• these new people named were
then called into the hearing as
new witnesses
Hearings Cont’d
• few witnesses had the courage
to stand up to the McCarthy and
HUAC committees
• most willingly gave names
• if they didn’t know any names,
they repeated rumours or lied
• “They lied not to save their lives,
but to save their swimming
pools”
The Arts in America
• McCarthy hearings focused on
the arts in America
• 1950-1954
– several artists were imprisoned for
refusing to testify
– of these, “The Hollywood Ten”
• thousands of writers, musicians,
actors and directors
– “blacklisted”
– forbidden to work
Results
• some left the country, changed
professions, or changed names
• some resumed their careers
when the blacklist was lifted in
the 1960’s
• for most, the damage was
permanent
The Beginning of the End
• McCarthy’s power collapsed under its
own weight
• government and arts purged over and
over
– old lists became tired and worn
• accusations became wilder and wilder
– American army had become disloyal
– powerful generals were traitors
• public became skeptical of the
charges
Enter Arthur Miller…
• public opposition increased
• a number of well-known
witnesses challenged the
authority of the HUAC and the
McCarthy hearings
• including…
ARTHUR MILLER
…and The Crucible
• first performed in January 1953
• a slap in the face for McCarthy
by a leading American
playwright
– McCarthyism called a witch hunt
• parallels between the Salem
court and the McCarthy and
HUAC hearings were clearly
drawn
The Relation
• similarities between the Salem
hearings and the McCarthy and
HUAC hearings:
– during the hearings due process of
law was abandoned
– hysteria spread through lies and
rumors
– witnesses forced into dishonest
confessions
– forced to falsely accuse their
friends and neighbors
All who oppose…
• McCarthy and HUAC
– people opposed to hearings were accused
of working for the “Red Devil”
(communism)
• Salem
– people opposed to the trials were accused
of working for the Devil himself
• both in Washington and Salem:
MANY INNOCENT PEOPLE
SUFFERED
The Crucible and
today’s society
• Salem Witch Hunt and McCarthy era
both history
• The Crucible still has political
meaning in our time
• every age and society has its
repressions (to prevent the natural or
normal expression, activity, or
development of)
• trying to limit various freedoms
• authority of the state vs. freedom of
the individual
“The Crucible’s themes … are timeless.
As long as governments continue to
distort the truth, individuals with
courage and integrity will continue
to challenge them. The choice
between freedom and repression is
always with us” (“McCarthyism and
The Crucible 14) (MLA)
OR…
(Coles Editorial Board, 1998) (APA)
Bibliography Information
APA
Coles Editorial Board, (Ed.). (1998).
McCarthyism and The Crucible. In Coles
Notes: Arthur Miller’s The Crucible (pp. 1214). Toronto: Coles Publishing Company
MLA
“McCarthyism and the The Crucible”. Coles
Notes: Arthur Miller’s The Crucible. Ed.
Coles Editorial Board. Toronto: Coles
Publishing Company, 1998. 12-14.