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The Crucible

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The Crucible
The Sinful Three In Arthur Miller’s, The Crucible, the Salem Witch Trials were filled with the same sins that were also shown in modern-day McCarthyism. In comparison, McCarthyism was a post-WWII investigation of Communists in the United States Government that involved blatant lies given by Joseph McCarthy that can relate to the lies shown by the townspeople of Salem during the Witch Trials. Specifically, three of the townspeople showed their sins the most; Abigail Williams, John Proctor, and Thomas Putnam. The sins of wrath and lust were shown by Abby during the Witch Trials that she started. Second, Proctor showed much pride during the trials as well as revealing his previous lust for another. Lastly, Thomas Putnam is a greedy man with gluttony for land and shows it in his attitude towards some townspeople. Therefore, the three townspeople mentioned in Arthur Miller’s, The Crucible, will be punished for their sins whether they seek penitence or not. Abigail Williams first begins to show her sinfulness by having a relationship with a married man; John Proctor. It eventually comes back to hurt both of them in the Witch Trials when John confesses to Danforth to help prove that Abigail is faking her witchcraft and that she is trying to accuse John because she is jealous of his wife. It then backfires as his wife Elizabeth Proctor, lies about the affair (Miller Act III). Secondly, she shows wrath by attempting to accuse Mary Warren of witchcraft in open court as well. Abigail tries to say that Mary has taken the soul of a yellowbird in the courthouse and is making Abby and the other girls feel pain (Miller Act III). Both her wrath and lust show how she was trying to seek penitence by confessing work with the devil to Judge Danforth in order to keep her goodness. So, in the end, the Witch Trials proved to punish her emotionally as Abigail eventually flees Salem with another girl and all of Reverend Parris’ money. As mentioned in the prior paragraph,


Cited: Miller, Arthur. The Crucible. 2012. McDougal Littell: National Literature Grade 11. N.p.: n.p., 1953. 132-208. Print.
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