COMMON MODULE: Key Information Flashcards
What is a ‘Crucible’ and how does it link to the play?
Crucibles are used in the chemical process of calcination, involving the purifying of particles through intense heat.
The witch hunts highlight individuals with moral integrity and contrastingly those that manipulate situations for their selfish pursuits.
What are ‘Golden Candlesticks’ and how does it link to the play?
It is symbolic of the deep rift between Proctor and Parris. Proctor views Christianity as an inward state of spirituality while Parris regards it as an outward expression including attending church and knowing the commandments.
How does the symbol of the ‘Golden Candlesticks’ allude to Miller’s context?
Draws the American audience to the hypocrisy and superficiality of Senator McCarthy, mirroring Parris. He poses communism as a high risk in order to provoke paranoia for the self-serving purpose of retaining his leadership.
Symbol of name and reputation.
Miller employs this recurring motif to symbolise the importance of how it signifies one’s identity and position in society.
How is the symbol of hot and cold expressed in the play?
Abigail is associated with heat and passion, a character motivated by a violent sort of obsession with John.
Elizabeth is associated with coldness, one motivated by love and the obligation she made to her husband.
What are frontier texts and how is this notion implemented in the play?
Frontier towns were often isolated; freed from oppression and an opportunity for disobedience. Miller maintains the lawless and morally ambiguous nature of the frontier through the hysteria of the town. By doing so Miller is able to explore the inconsistencies of human behaviour as an isolated collective.
Setting: Act I
The attic of the parish minister is characterised as a private, familial, yet a highly political space. This is evident as it symbolically becomes ‘a court’ of examination.
Setting: Act II
Proctor’s house perpetuates the scene’s intimacy which features only three characters. Here, tension continues to intensify as the home transforms into a battleground for man and wife.
Setting: Act IV
Miller harnesses seasonal imagery. During the final act, autumn acts as a symbolic representation of the renewal and ‘cleansing’ of Salem.
Character analysis of John Proctor: integrity and honour.
John Proctor illustrates the human experience of vanity.
During Act I, Proctor’s reputation was well perceived, but his own sense of self was permeated with guilt and resentment. By Act IV, he realises the importance of personal integrity by not caving into the demands or expectations of others.
Character analysis of John Proctor: relationship with Mary.
This relationship characterises his violent side. John loses control over his life as the play progresses. However, Mary represents one of the few factors he can still control.
Character analysis of Abigail Williams: femininity.
As a result of the strict and oppressive Puritan society, Abigail emerges as a young rebellious teenager willing to to claim power as a female. In order to seize agency, she accuses those who threaten her own desires.
What does Miller critique about authoritarian societies?
The play is a critique of the absolutism of theocracy with an inevitability of conflict arising when communities and individuals live in a repressive society.
Authority: paradoxes.
The authoritarian structures that aim to hold society together paradoxically becomes the real danger. When individual freedom is suppressed, the atmosphere is infected with suspicion, insecurity and paranoia.
A supposed devotion to God ironically gives rise to a festering of personal grievances.
Reverse authority.
Though Danforth is the most powerful official figure in court, Abigail manipulates him easily with her performance as a victim of witchcraft.
