Without the knowledge of McCarthy hearings ‘The Crucible’ could be seen as a melodrama and the events in the play may be sensationalised. It is not a melodrama because it is not over dramatic. The McCarthy hearings add realism. The play deals with historical events and characters that had an historical context.
When the play was watched for the first time, the audience would have probably been a mix of communists, anti-Communists and communist sympathisers. Those against communism might have been quite angry as the play made them seem irrational and paranoid. This would have made it tense within the theatre and in America in general once enough people had seen it.
Throughout the play it is apparent that the Community of Salem becomes more divided. In the beginning there were arguments about ownership of land between some of the villagers. As the story progresses people for their own safety and begin accusing their neighbours of witchcraft in order to escape being hanged, or seek revenge.
Hale ‘They have confessed it.’
Proctor ‘And why not, if they must hang for denyin’ it? There are them that will swear to anything before they’ll hang;’
This is like when Abigail accuses Elizabeth Proctor of witchcraft so that
She will know that there will be a clear path to John Proctor whom she had an affair and is now in love with.
Act 3, scene 3 takes place in the court. The main characters from this scene are Abigail, Mary Warren, Danforth and the Proctors. Mary Warren works for the Proctors and is also an official of the court. Proctor treats her like a child and however hard she tries she never wins any arguments, as shown many times before and during this scene. ’I’ll not stand whipping any more!’ and ‘Ill not be ordered to bed no more, Mr. Proctor! I am eighteen and a woman, however single!
In this act it becomes obvious soon after the trials started that many people were going to be falsely accused by their neighbours as a method of revenge, and as an outlet for their maliciousness. When Abigail uses this to attack Rebecca nurse, one of the holiest Puritans in Salem, John Proctor begins his efforts to stop the injustice. This increases when Elizabeth proctor is tried and sentenced to death. This is now John Proctor’s struggle. He must fight to save his wife, his community and eventually himself. In addition, he also has to convince Salem that they are mistaken in believing in Abigail.
Abigail, the antagonist of the play has an extremely tense relationship with John Proctor. This is because they had an affair seven months ago and Abigail still loves him ‘John-I am waitin’ for you every night.’ Page 17, even though it is so obvious the only feelings he has for her are hatred and disgust ‘Abby, I never give you hope to wait for me.’ Elizabeth and John are married they have a trusting honest relationship, so honest that he admitted to his affair ’Like a Christian I confessed’. Since his confession Elizabeth has lost trust in him ‘John, you are not open with me’, to his annoyance. ‘Woman, I’ll not have your suspicion any more.’ How they talk and interact with each other is always tense, keeping the reader gripped to the scene.
Elizabeth hates Abigail, ‘then go and tell her she’s a whore’. because of her and John’s affair. When the two are on stage their interactions with each other are full of dramatic tension. Abigail envies Elizabeth, as she is married to John.
Mary Warren seems to be quite a weak character, displaying signs of fear towards a lot of people. She is terrified of Abigail, ‘She’ll kill me for saying’ that!’ P.65 and, ‘I cannot, they’ll turn on me.’ P.65. She wants to please everyone but she can’t, her actions make things very tense, angering one person but pleasing another one.
Proctor made Mary go forward in court and testify against Abigail. ‘You’re coming to court with me, Mary. You will tell it in court.’ He believes no one is actually guilty of witchcraft and everyone in Salem is merely out for revenge, ‘Oh, it is a black mischief.’ Page 44. He tells Mary she must go to court, where she is one of the officials, and tell them that Abigail, and the other girls and herself were lying in court. Proctor wants to free Elizabeth as Abigail accused her.
Danfoth questions Mary, he is unsure of whether to believe her. Should he accept what she is saying now, or what she previously claimed in court? ‘I will tell you this- you are either lying now, or you were lying in the court, and in either case you have committed perjury and you will go to jail for it. You cannot lightly say you lied, Mary’ Page 82. Miller effectively shows dramatic tension with Mary’s character at this point. She experiences tension within herself as she struggles with her conscience, trying to decide whether she should save herself from Abigail or, save society and all those people who have been falsely accused. Danforth’s questioning continues, repeating the same question over and over, which adds to the tension:
Danforth ‘Has Mr. proctor threatened you for this deposition?’
Mary ‘No, sir’
Danforth ‘has he ever threatened you?’
Mary (weaker): ‘No sir’
Danforth (sensing a weakening): ‘Has he ever threatened you?’
Mary ‘No, sir’
The effect of this method of questioning is that Mary realises she is not being believed, she weakens to his questions and it becomes apparent that her confession will need serious evidence to back it up.
Proctor cannot stand lies, and when Mary claims he made her compact with the devil he can’t believe it. He admits to his affair with Abigail, he believes that by making such a drastic stand he can prove Abigail’s true intentions. ‘A man will not cast away his good name. Surely you know that.’
Miller effectively increases the tension by making John confess the audience or reader becomes gripped to the plot. After he confesses to adultery Elizabeth is brought in to support his confession and Proctor reassures Danforth, ‘that woman will never lie, Mr. Danforth.’ This statement is to have terrible consequences.
As it is common knowledge to John, Hale and the audience that Elizabeth is one of the saintliest of people it comes as a great shock when she denies the charge of lechery between her husband and Abigail so as to save her husband’s reputation.
Danforth ‘Answer my question! Is your husband a lecher?’
Elizabeth ‘No, sir.’
And then
Proctor (crying out): Elizabeth, I have confessed it!’
Elizabeth ‘Oh, God!’
Proctor ‘She only thought to save my name!’
This would have left the audience feeling disappointment and pity for John Proctor. The audience feels that this would have finally destroyed Abigail’s credibility, but Elizabeth’s misplaced loyalty destroys his case.
The immediate events will consequently lead to John Proctor’s death where Mary accuses him of witchcraft. Abigail screams and claims that there is a bird on the beam and that it is attempting to attack her, and that it is Mary making the bird do so by witchcraft. Mary tries to stop her; Abigail repeats Mary’s words and is soon joined by the other girls in copying Mary. This dramatic acting by the girls would have also been visually exciting to watch although quite unbelievable that they are doing this.
Abigail ‘The wings! Her wings are spreading! Mary, please, don’t, don’t-!’
Hale ‘I see nothing, your honour!’
Danfoth ‘Do you confess this power! (He is an inch from her face) speak!’
Abigail ‘She’s going to come down! She walking the beam!’
After being accused by Mary of being ‘the Devils’ man’, John confesses. This would have surprised the audience as he is now lying, that is considered a sin, so as to avoid being hanged and not confessing, as what he knows is the right thing to do. Even though he has lied it makes no difference to him. ‘I am no good man. Nothings spoiled by giving them this lie that were not rot ten long before.’ However he cannot allow Danforth to make his confession officially documented as he worries about his reputation. So he retracts his statement and stands by his strong principles by refusing to confess.
An effective device used in Act 3 to enhance tension is language and subtext. When john proctor says, ‘In her life, sir, she have never lied. There are that cannot weep and them that cannot sing- my wife cannot lie. I have paid much to learn it, sir.’ Page 89. He is talking about his wife, the sub-text of this quote is that he knows his wife cannot lie, she also cannot hear lies. John confessed to his affair knowing his wife would be able to tell if he was lying.
When Danforth questions Elizabeth as to why she fired Abigail, she answers ‘She dissatisfied me. (Pause.) And my husband.’ The pause in the text shows her hesitation, she wants to tell the truth but is unsure of what to do. By saying ‘She dissatisfied me.’ She gives herself time to think, she is telling the truth but being very vague. Although she wants to shame Abigail, she realises that by doing so she would also shame her husband which is the last thing she wishes to do.
In her defence Hale says ‘ Excellency, it is a natural lie to tell… from the beginning this man has struck me true.’ He is saying Danforth is wrong and how can he live with himself knowing that. Hale says he believes in John Proctor and trusts what he says. He cannot understand how Danforth can’t see Abigail is seeking revenge.
Through the use of stage directions the reader can envisage what is happening on stage and see how dramatic tension is being created by Miller. Without them the reader would not be able to picture where the character(s) are positioned and what physical movements that make. Also, by adding stage directions, which display emotions before text it is transformed from blank script to meaningful words.
For instance, when Danforth questions Mary in this scene on page 81, Mary answers ‘no, sir’. The reader has no means to determine how she says this, is she angry? Frightened? Confused? But because Miller has written (weakening) ‘No, sir.’ We understand the full impact of her speech.
Miller’s intentions in this scene are to fully stress how ridiculous the girls’ accusations are. Also insinuating the same for Joseph McCarthy. For the anti-Communists watching or reading the play they would have probably made the connection between Abigail and Joseph McCarthy. If they supported Joseph McCarthy and his manic hunt for communists and sympathisers, then they would have been angry that Miller was making a mockery of McCarthy’s methods.
Arthur Miller wrote ‘The Crucible’ with a moral. By writing ‘The Crucible’ he warned the audience or reader that if they were not aware of history repeating itself, society could be in danger. Such as has been seen during the McCarthy era. As the witchcraft hysteria took place in one of America’s wholesome, theocratic towns, it makes the miscarriage of justice such a mystery even today.
Once combined, the devices and techniques prove to be an extremely effective way of creating, enhancing and heightening the dramatic tension throughout the play. The relationships between the main characters, the sub-text and language uses, the use of stage directions, the significance of allegory and Miller’s intentions are full of dramatic tension. It is, however, difficult to say which technique proved to be the most effective. At the time the play was written the significance of allegory would have more than likely be the most effective technique used. But as the play has been shown many a time since then this effect wore off, being replaced as the most effective by relationships, and stage directions as the most effective method of enhancing the dramatic tension.
