1. The Crucible By Arthur Miller

2. What is this play about?

4. In 1957 the Massachusetts government passed a resolution absolving the descendents of the accused “of disgrace or distress.”

5. Why did it take so long for the court to acknowledge its full responsibility?

7. Crucibles “One dictionary definition of a crucible is a place of extreme heat, ‘a severe test’” (Bigsby xvi). What are some of the “crucibles” in your lives? http://www.rojan.com.au/cache/path/:upload:pages:foundry-crucibles-accessories:mammut-crucibles-in-action1.jpg/crop/1/width/500/height/285/round/15/name/mammut-crucibles-in-action1.jpg

8. Who’s the author?

10. It tells the story of the Salem Witch Trials of 1692.

11. The play is also an allegory of the “witch-hunts” of the House Un-American Activities Committee (HUAC) led by Senator McCarthy in the 1950s.http://1.bp.blogspot.com/_mbWThvBk2kA/SM_VbpqdO1I/AAAAAAAAGd8/gFC7uw2lsVs/s320miller.jpg

12. What is an allegory? Literary terms

13. The Play as Allegory The main purpose of an allegory is to tell a story that has characters, setting and other types of symbols that have both literal and figurative meanings. The difference between an allegory and a symbol is that an allegory is a complete story that conveys abstract ideas to make a point, whereas a symbol is a representation of an idea that can have different meaning throughout a literary work.

15. Both ritualistic hearings.

16. The main point is that the accused make public confession, damn friends, the Devil, and guarantee allegiance to by breaking old vows.

17. Then, the accused are free to rejoin society of decent people.http://www.archives.gov/exhibits/treasures_of_congress/Images/page_23/70b.jpg

18. Allegory For Our Times? Could this play be an allegory for our times? Consider the fight against terrorism as laid out to the world by former President, George W. Bush on November 6, 2001: “You are either with us or against us.” http://www.damonchernavsky.com/Pictures/Pictures_Of_US_Presidents/George-W-Bush.jpg

19. Big ideas.

20. Themes: A Play About Perfection The Puritans: A city on a hill. Belief in unique virtues. Society that seeks to sustain a dream of perfection by denying all possibility of imperfection. “Evil can only be external, for theirs is a city on a hill” (Bigsby xxv).

22. A tragic flaw is an error or defect that leads to the downfall of the hero.

23. This play is a tragedy for an individual and a tragedy for a community.http://www.imdb.com/media/rm3842873344/ch0033207

24. Marilyn In case you thought the life of a playwright was hopelessly un-cool, Arthur Miller was married to Marilyn Monroe from 1956-1961. http://trybecca.files.wordpress.com/2008/08/miller-727882.jpg

25. The end.