Also during Act 3 tension is created through Arthur Miller’s description of the characters. He describes the characters as the audience will see them, and it gives the audience an insight into the characters’ personalities. Judge Hawthorn’s description is “a bitter, remorseless Salem judge.” This makes the audience think he is ruthless and unforgiving and it makes them fear for the people in the court such as Proctor and Giles Corey. Danforth, a court official, is described as “a grave man in his sixties, of some humour and sophistication that does not, however, interfere with an exact loyalty to his position and cause,” also “on his appearance silence falls”. This silence creates tension because it shows that Danforth has a lot of respect and whatever he says will be noticed. His description makes him sound very serious and not likely to take the case lightly, which as this point in the play could be either good or bad for Proctor.
Arthur Miller uses stage directions throughout Act 3 to create tension. Stage directions tell the characters how to move, what tone of voice to use, what body language to show and how to interact with the other characters. All of these movements and actions demonstrate their feelings and portray their emotions to the audience.
Throughout the play Arthur Miller uses stage directions to show facial expressions, which again portray the characters emotions. Examples of this are when Danforth is “wide-eyed”, showing that he is shocked and surprised. Also when Mary Warren is “staring in horror”, this tells us that she is terrified and this builds up the suspense. From these facial expressions the audience is made aware of the characters’ feelings, often leading to tension and apprehension.
The stage directions in The Crucible also include the tone of voice that each character should use to say their lines. In Act 3 some tones of voice cause suspense because they show how the character is feeling. This varies throughout the Act, sometimes angry and at other times quiet, depending on the character. A good example of how tone of voice clearly portrays emotion is near the start of the Act as Giles Corey attempts to clear his wife’s name. Through this set of stage directions we see how he slowly breaks down as he loses hope, “beginning to plead…beginning to weep…through helpless sobs.” This tone of voice shows Giles’ desperation.
The way that characters interact with each other creates tension because the actions they use towards each other gives hints as to their past history and any hidden secrets, for example John Proctor and Abigail’s affair. An example of how characters reactions to each other creates suspense is, “Without warning or hesitation, Proctor leaps for Abigail and, grabbing her by the hair pulls her to her feet.” This comes after Abigail has accused Proctor of witchery and just before Proctor tells the court about their affair. His actions towards her tell the audience that he and Abigail have some history, and creates anticipation that something is about to happen. Another example is when Elizabeth is questioned in the court and “glances at Proctor for a cue.” This creates tension because the audience sees that Elizabeth knows about the affair with Abigail, but has to wait to see if she confesses.
Some of the stage directions written by Arthur Miller do not tell the characters exactly how to act and what to do, but instead the author states the emotion which has to be put across to the audience. This causes tension in some places because the audience can see the seriousness or effect of certain situations on the characters and how it affects their feelings. One such occasion is when Proctor’s wife is accused of witchcraft and the court is asking him whether his wife kept “poppets”. The stage direction here is “furious”, which is the emotion that this actor must portray. This could create tension, as the audience sees how angry this accusation makes Proctor and they wonder whether Elizabeth is actually innocent, and what Proctor is going to do next in his rage. Throughout Act 3 these simple stage directions such as “patiently” and “horrified”, tell the audience a lot about the plot and cause tension.
The way, in which Arthur Miller uses language, particularly punctuation also causes tension in this Act. He uses lots of exclamation marks, so certain phrases are more noticeable than others due to the more marked tone of voice. Exclamation marks are used for shouted phrases that are important to the play as a whole. Examples are, “My proof is there!” and “Private vengeance is working through this testimony!”.
Another common way in which Arthur Miller uses language to create a dramatic effect is that he makes the characters interrupt each other. Examples are, “…They’re sporting, they-!” and “Mary how-?”. The cutting off of these phrases causes suspense because the audience is left wondering if some vital evidence has been withheld.
A further way in which the playwright creates tension through his use of language is that the characters repeat some lines. The repeated phrases are mostly shouted, and they are some of the most important lines in the scene, such as, “I am with God, I am with God” and “How do you call heaven? Whore! Whore!” These phrases are repeated so the audience acknowledges them and remembers them. This causes tension because the audience realise the significance to the play as a whole.
The Crucible is named after a small dish used in science for heating and purifying metals. It is an appropriate title for this play because the village is purified from witchcraft. Also at the end of Act 4 when John Proctor is hung he has come through a hard time, and his spirit is purified because he has kept to the truth and his beliefs.
The whole message of this play is one of small town prejudice and injustice. This prejudice leads to certain people being falsely accused, and lots of innocent people are then hung. The injustice of these killings leads to tension and unease in the village of Salem. Arthur Miller uses his talent and techniques as a playwright to successfully put across this tension to the audience, particularly in Act 3 of this 4 Act play.
