Essay on Dramatic Tension in The Crucible by Miller

Dramatic Tension in The Crucible by Miller The Crucible Coursework Excitement, nervousness, stress, anxiety, suspense, unease, and apprehension are all forms of dramatic tension that Miller creates throughout the Crucible. Dramatic tension is created by Miller throughout the Crucible in many ways. Straightaway, the title of the play, â€Å"the Crucible† implies to the audience of the tension that is to come in the play. Miller names the play â€Å"the Crucible† to represent the puritanical society of Salem, the historic people of Salem wanted to purify each other from the Devil’s work, they even went to the extent of killing their fellow neighbours in order to purify them. The variety of characters involved in the witch trials all†¦show more content†¦This lead to a constant atmosphere of suspicion; a â€Å"two man patrol† was sent out during times of worship to spy on and take the names of, those who were either lounging beside the meeting house or working in their fields. Miller uses this suspicious atmosphere of accusing people of witches in Salem as an allegory for the times of accusing people of being a communist spy in America in the 1950’s. Miller describes the people of Salem as unreasonable, stubborn and ridiculously protective of their children. Miller shows this ignorance when he says that the people of Salem believed they held â€Å"the candle that would light the world† and that â€Å"their church found it necessary to deny any other sect its freedom, lest their New Jerusalem be defiled and corrupted by wrong ways and deceitful ideas†. Dramatic tension is established by Miller at the beginning of Act 3 of â€Å"The Crucible† because the audience is aware the trial will decide the fates of the people of Salem that we have got to know in the first two acts. The tension is heightened almost immediately because Francis Nurse tells Judge Danforth that the girls are frauds. From this point we are made aware that the girls’ testimony will have a significant influence on the trial. In Act 3 there are two occasions where Miller uses stage craft to create tension. In the beginning of the Act, Miller only lets the audience hear the characters’ voices; he doesn’t allow theShow MoreRelatedDramatic Irony in the Crucible862 Words   |  4 PagesEnglish 10, essay The Crucible, option 2 In â€Å"The Crucible†, Arthur Miller uses dramatic irony to create anxiety, frustration and to demonstrate the tension between the people about the lies of witchcraft in Salem. I. The author creates tension in the story by using Abigail who accuses innocent people of witchery. 1.) Abigail wants Elizabeth to get hanged so she can be back with John again. 2.) Abigail turns herself against Mary Warren after she confessed in court. II. The author createsRead More‘The Crucible’ as an Allegory for McCarthyism Essay1007 Words   |  5 Pages‘The Crucible’ is an allegory. An allegory is a story with an obvious meaning but if you look deeper into it, there is another meaning. In this case, the obvious meaning is the Salem witch-hunt and the hidden meaning is McCarthyism. McCarthyism started in the early 1950’s and it was governmental accusations with no evidence. Joseph McCarthy started doing trials on those he thought were communist, but he had no evidence for it. This is the same as the witch trials in The Crucible. Arthur Miller wroteRead More Analyze how Arthur Miller creates dramatic tension at the end of Act 31300 Words   |  6 PagesAnalyze how Arthur Miller creates dramatic tension at the end of Act 3 of The Crucible. During this essay, I will be explaining how Arthur Miller creates dramatic tension at thee end of Act 3 of his novel, The Crucible. I will be organizing this essay in paragraphs by points. Here are the main points I will be analyzing: - Setting - Stage Directions - Characters and Language - Comparing thee witch trials to the McCarthyism Proctor brings Mary to court and tells Judge DanforthRead MoreEssay about Themes in The Crucible1294 Words   |  6 PagesThemes in The Crucible In the crucible Arthur Miller takes the chilling story of the Salem witch hunt in 1692 and combines it with the issues of McCarthyism in the 1950s. The play reflects Miller’s ideas and opinions about McCarthyism and what he thinks are the similarities to the Salem witch hunts. Proctor is the main character Millers uses to reflect the unfairness of the Salem and McCarthy trials and how the truth died in the 1950s. This makes Proctor’s role very dramatic and excitingRead MoreHow Does Arthur Miller Create Drama and Tension in Act 1 of ‘the Crucible’?1661 Words   |  7 PagesHow does Arthur Miller create drama and tension in Act 1 of ‘The Crucible’? The Crucible is a play, which explores the witch- hunting hysteria that happened in Salem 1692. Miller uses this â€Å"organized mass-hysteria†[1] to comment on his own similar experience during the 1950s. Through â€Å"The Crucible†, Miller is able to draw an analogy between the hysteria of the Salem witch-trails and its modern parallel of the anti communist ‘witch-hunts’ which occurred due to the HUAC-House of un-American CommitteeRead MoreThe Crucible By Arthur Miller998 Words   |  4 Pagesmotivated by jealousy and spite. The Crucible is a four-act dramatic play production that was first performed on January 22, 1953. Arthur Miller used dialogue within the characters to cover the multiple themes; conflicts and resolutions, plus the few directions for the different actions of the play. The Salem Witch Trials were intended to be performed as the play however, when read, it can be more carefully examined and broken down to analyze the techniques. Miller, the playwright, uses literaryRead MoreTension in Arthur Millers The Crucible Essay991 Words   |  4 PagesTension in Arthur Millers The Crucible Though The Crucible is set against the background of the Salem witch trials in 1629, it reflects the McCarthy anti-communism trials of 1950s America. The citizens of Salem (Massachusetts) had Puritan beliefs and were very religious. Due to their strong Christian beliefs, there was a great fear that people could form compacts with the devil and they even believed witchcraft and supernatural events really existed. Arthur MillerRead MoreThe Bravest of Individuals Is One Who Obeys His or Her Conscience, 871 Words   |  4 Pageswill lead to the right choices in life. Two examples of literature that strongly support this quote can be found in Of Mice And Men by John Steinbeck, as well as The Crucible by Arthur Miller. The use of literary elements, such as rising action, dramatic irony, mood and foreshadowing. In Arthur Miller s, The Crucible, John Proctor is faced with a life or death situation. Even though John Proctor virtually has the choice of which path to follow, life or death, there are many other variablesRead MoreEssay on Tension in Act One of Arthur Millers The Crucible1236 Words   |  5 PagesTension in Act One of Arthur Millers The Crucible Miller builds up the tension using theatrical effects, language, the relationships of characters and the plot development, the structure of the act. He makes us visually aware of the tension using these tools. He needs tension as the story of the crucible is about witchcraft. Miller draws in the character of Proctor as himself, as Miller was caught up in communism in America and fought to maintain his dignity, as ProctorRead MoreMillers Presentation of the Theme Of Greed And Envy within The Crucible1071 Words   |  5 PagesMillers Presentation of the Theme Of Greed And Envy within The Crucible The Crucible was written in 1953 by Arthur Miller in the time of the cold war, although the play was set in 1692. The play is about a town called Salem in America and about the witch-hunts that took place there. Because it was written in this time period there is a feeling of mistrust, greed and envy echoed in the play. Arthur Miller plays on these feelings and produces a theme of greed and envy that