The Crucible and Salem Witch Trials

For this next week, you are going to be reading the first half of a play called The Crucible by Arthur Miller. There are some audiobook versions available online through Youtube or Audible if you are an auditory learner or just want some help following along as you read. Now, The Crucible takes quite a bit of testimony from our Salem Witch Trials, which we will examine in class next week, but it was written in a much more modern era. As you listen to this or read it, think about the greater symbolism this story and the historical event can have on other events in history. Do we have "witch hunts" in contemporary society? Do these "witch hunts" measure up to the catastrophe of the Salem witch hunts? In other words, where do we draw the line between symbolism or metaphor and hyperbole? Check the time frame of this play's publication and Miller's religious background and political views. What might he be pointing at as a witch hunt in his era?



One cool fact about Miller if you haven't found it during your own research: He was Marilyn Monroe's third husband. :)




One other fun fact: I once played Abigail Williams in this play in high school. I still remember most of my lines 20 something years later...