preview

Examples Of Hysteria In The Crucible

Decent Essays

In The Crucible, Arthur Miller uses the setting of Puritan Salem, the twisting plot, and developing characterization to propel the play. Arthur Miller takes advantage of the mindset of villagers in Salem at the time. For instance, there was a pressure to be perfect, to never be caught doing anything the reverend wouldn’t approve of. Every action was closely monitored by your neighbors and any other bystander at the time. Next, plot comes into the play by developing a sense of background and history between the characters by using jealousy, fear, and mass hysteria. An example of this would be the jealousy of Abigail Williams. Fear and mass hysteria were brought into play because of the fact that this was the villagers only chance to seek revenge …show more content…

To begin, fear starts the plot by Betty Parris’ mysterious illness supposedly brought on by witchcraft, which was just Betty’s way of dealing with being caught doing something she knew her father, Rev. Parris, would never approve of. In Puritan times, dancing was strictly prohibited and the punishment was whipping, which is stated by Mary Warren in her and Abigail's conversation admitting to dancing, Mary States that she, Abigail, would only be whipped. Secondly, the reader discovers how jealousy affects the plot. For Example, Abigail is jealous of Elizabeth Proctor because of John’s love for his wife, John and Abigail had an affair while his wife was sick. When the girls were caught dancing, the real purpose was a plot to kill Goody Proctor, hence how jealousy starts the plot. Finally, mass hysteria was a key part of the development of the plot. For instance, when Mary Warren tried to admit that all of the accusations were pretense, then the girls of Salem started to claim Mary’s spirit was attacking them, which lead to a panic spreading throughout the …show more content…

To begin, she’s desperate for love and attention, because of the psychological need for parental nurturing after their death. For example, out of all of the men in Salem she chooses a married man. She chooses the married man because of his circumstances, she knows he is vulnerable and willing to become ‘acquainted’ with her which will give her the attention and affection she craves. Next, Abigail is very aggressive towards people she sees as less than her, because of her need for attention she developed an aggressiveness because of rejections, specifically one’s involving John. For example, when Mary Warren tells her to admit only to dancing, Mary says, “...You’ll only be whipped for dancing…” to which Abigail replies “Oh, We’ll be whipped.”, even though Mary did not dance she only watched. Abigail’s attitude of aggression is mostly taken out on Mary Warren since she is John’s new help, the spot she held as she had an affair with John. Finally, one of Abigail's key traits is to be controlling and manipulative. For instance, when they tried to get Mary Warren to testify for perjury, she said that Mary’s spirit was attacking her in the form of a bird. All of the other girls already knew to follow suit, which eventually led Mary Warren to falter and follow along with Abigail’s claims. Abigail’s characterization propels the story by twisting and turning the

Get Access