I have also decided to elaborate on the themes of hysteria, intolerance, integrity and choosing a scapegoat.
For my setting, I will rely heavily on a combination of two world events that, in different aspects, were similar to the Salem witchhunt. These two events were the fallout of the September 11 terrorist attacks on the World Trade Centre in the US, and the SARS outbreak in 2003. However, in my setting, not only do these two events occur at the same time, the tension produced has increased greatly as compared to the last time when they occurred.
Setting the Scene
The play takes place two years into the future. A recent spate of terrorist bombings and other activities worldwide, as well as a sudden epidemic of a fatal virus which has no cure has left the world in a state of chaos and confusion. Many have died or have had their lives put at risk.
Similarly, after the terrorist activities of Sept 11, where Muslims living in the US were looked upon with a degree of mistrust and hatred, the situation has now escalated worldwide. Again, Muslim extremists have made headlines by sending suicide bombers to public areas in many countries, killing and wounding countless victims. Now they are treated with contempt everywhere, with no attempts made by people to conceal their hatred and loathing for this group of people. However, Muslims are not the only group and there are many other extremists worldwide who have participated in the violence. The world governments have assigned spies across the globe to look out for possible terrorists, and this has led to a situation where people can accuse anyone they want without fear of reprisal, at the same time diverting attention from themselves.
Likewise, during the SARS crisis, where many people had to be quarantined under suspicion of being infected, people now suspected of carrying the virus have to be quarantined under close inspection for many hours. This situation has caused mass hysteria, as many people have fallen, victims of the deadly virus.
Themes
The main themes I have chosen to focus on
What I feel are the main themes of the play I will focus on, how the setting will affect theses themes.
Themes: intolerance, hysteria, reputation, morality, intergrity
I feel that the proposed setting will enhance and add depth to the play, because modern viewers will be able to identify with the events portrayed, as most, if not all of them have lived through the Sept 11 attacks and seen the effects it produced, as well as experiencing the SARS crisis. I also feel that because having two ongoing crises at the same time, the sheer complexity of the situation will closely resemble that of a real-life one.
Hysteria → has not really happened so much, closest that came to it was SARS. Intolerance for muslims, all stereotyped and viewed with suspicion and etc. in SARS everyone in contact had to be quarantined
