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The Crucible and the McCarthy Era

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Arthur Miller's play, The Crucible, captivated audiences through its parallel plot of the Salem Witch Trials to the McCarthy Trials. Miller wrote the screenplay in 1952 after being accused of communism to the United States. During the early 1950s, Miller was a famous playwright with many successful plays. Joseph McCarthy, a former U.S. Senator for Wisconsin, started the era known as the "Red Scare  many individuals were accused of being communists and soviet spies. The fine arts society blacklisted Miller after the accusations due to the fear of being associated with a communist. Miller used his personal experiences from this event to inspire his next play. The Crucible was a humbly viewed production and reflected Miller's interpretation of what actually occurred during the "Red Scare . Miller used political parallelism, animalistic symbols, and motifs of McCarthyism in The Crucible to explain the real occurrences of the period known as the McCarthy Trials. The use of political parallelism in the play displays Miller's view on how the Salem Witch Trials were similar to the McCarthy Trials. The McCarthy Trials were held on the bases of punishing communist in the United States. Communism after WWII defied the structure of our government. This threat toward the government was similar to what lead to the moral panic of the Salem Witch Trials. The government of Salem, Massachusetts during 1692 was based on the puritan religion. The work of the Devil was seen as witchcraft. The Devil appeared to be what created the panic of the townspeople. Symbols of animals are constant throughout the play. These symbols are not only of physical animals, but the symbols also pertain to the animal characteristics of the characters themselves. Abigail Williams was the main antagonist of the play. Her character interacts with many of the animal symbols of the play. In Act I Abagail told John Proctor, "I know how you clutched my back behind your house an

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