 "." | 2008-09-25 |
| - Reviewed By scoutcraftpiratess |
| Okay, so all sorts of historical details are altered for the sake of character drama, but so what? It does not change the fact that this is one heck of a great play that offers it all: romance, betrayal, psychology, murder, and more, all set in a sleepy little Puritan town obsessed with witches that has become the victim of the "games" of a few young girls. br /br /While I would hardly recommend it to someone going for deep facts of the Salem Witch Trials, this still draws on historical characters and does an excellent job of portraying them as real people. You feel for them, even the ones you hate. br /br /"The Crucible" is well-named as the pot that heats everything up, and Miller takes minor events and shows how they become the tragedy that was the witch trials.br /br /This is an incredibly powerful and important story that teaches messages as the drama entertains. |
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 "Courtesy of Mother Daughter Book Club.com" | 2008-07-02 |
| - Reviewed By User: A1NSJ7IFI4IZ4Q |
| The Crucible by Arthur Miller is a great book to read with a mother-daughter book club. It provides an outlet to talk about issues the girls are covering in school, and to find out about how their perspectives differ from those of their moms. The issues of witchcraft and socially sanctioned violence against a targeted group seem eerily relevant to some of the things going on in our world today. This book challenged all of us to think about the most important things in our lives and what we're willing to sacrifice to achieve a higher cause. |
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| "Prompt service" | 2008-07-01 |
| - Reviewed By User: A2WEBUJ43SW9K0 |
| Daughter needed it for a project for an accelerated class. It came in time and she was able to complete her assignments with a new book. |
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| "The Devil is Precise" | 2008-04-29 |
| - Reviewed By duibuqi |
On my walk through the LoA edition of Arthur Miller plays I bypass The Enemy of the People, the Ibsen adaptation, which I think is a waste of everyone's time, and go straight to the Crucible, which I had never read, nor watched on stage or screen. Very odd. It is a truly gripping piece of modern classic stage writing.
Of course AM needed to educate us always, so this story is not just a story about the witch trials of Salem, when perfectly harmless people, including some citizens of standing in the community, got identified as witches and hanged for it. (Which somehow looks like progress over the burnings in Europe.)
No, this is generally about fundamentalism and totalitarianism and theocracy, and more specifically about McCarthy and I wouldn't be surprised if it was also about the Ayatollah Khomeini, whatever you may say regarding anachronisms, and the Taliban. Let's not forget the Cultural Revolution of China.
If I seem to mock the play just a little bit, I haven't made up my mind yet, not quite. There is something strangely wrong in the tone of the dialogues. Can't quite nail it. Anachronistic for sure; is that all? Have to think about it.
The message that AM put into his morality tale is that power and property interests are behind the maddest manifestations of disinterestedness and righteousness. That was sure true in the other historical witch hunts that we know about. Whether it is an accurate reflection of the Salem case, I do not know. (I will definitely look for the DVD and give DDL a chance for redemption in my eyes.)
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| "moving and thought-provoking" | 2008-04-09 |
| - Reviewed By User: A1OYRL2CPB8BIG |
| I really enjoyed reading this classic tale. I found it interesting from an historical and literary point of view. It forces you to think about very real moral dilemmas, like what you might or might not give your life for. |
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| "An exciting re-creation of the Salem witch trials" | 2008-01-22 |
| - Reviewed By User: A9594O30TR4FP |
Miller's Crucible is worth reading because of its valuable lessons and interesting plot. The story is suspenseful up until the last moment and is especially intriguing as it is set in the midst of an actual historical event. Exploring the Salem witch trials, Miller recreates the scenario in a vivid way and ponders the conflicts that led to the witch hunt.
Applying this historical event to the McCarthyism of his era, he provides insight upon the Red Scare. Miller chose to use the witch hunts because of the many parallels between it and the Red Scare. Miller saw the strongest resemblance between the procedures of the trials held during the two periods of hysteria. Another area where Miller created more parallels was in the ambiguous evidences used to accuse a person. Because the social events of the time and the witch trials were so alike, Miller was able to use "The Crucible" as a way to express his thoughts of the era.
Also, Miller's style is easy to read and comprehend as he allows the character to speak in a modern fashion.
The Crucible is gives much insight on the Salem witch trials, the Red Scare, and modern events. This play is engaging and one that can be finished in a matter of hours. |
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| "History and Literature in one book...any better?" | 2008-01-22 |
| - Reviewed By User: AIKSUSO0OE656 |
When is lying justifiable? Is it good in certain situations but bad in others? The Bible explicitly says, "Thou shall not lie," but most nowadays choose to neglect that rule and seek our own good, whether it be by telling the truth or by lying. Arthur Miller's The Crucible is memorable in that it illustrates the malicious extent of a person's lie. Miller recounts a person's desire to destroy one another by using false accusations to highlight the destructive result of humanity's egoistic nature.
A look at the period in which the book takes place is crucial in understanding the immorality behind the punishments those accused of witchcraft received. Set in the early 17th century America, the enticing play quickly build up climax as the characters struggle to fit in their superficial society of the Puritans. Those latter strongly believed that any contact with evil spirits merits death. The presence of a sinner in the midst of the community would mean danger and melancholy to all. Therefore, it was crucial to spot the guilty and remove him/her.
Since the firm Puritan belief of the seventeenth century upheld witchcraft as a direct contact with devils, and if not Lucifer himself, the accusations of Abigail and her associates cause great hysteria in the calm city of Salem. By falsely accusing others of being involved in witchcraft, Abigail succeeds in fooling the deputy who then orders many venerable citizens to burn at the stake.
It is also interesting to realize that Miller passed through a period that exactly parallels that found in his play. Driven by the impulsive McCarthyism ideology of his era, Miller parallels the anti-Communist fervor of the 1950's with the false accusations of the Salem Witch trials of the 1690's in order to highlight the outlandish prejudice of both eras.
Senator John McCarthy eliminates Communist compellers from the United States by ensuring that all those partaking of the Communistic party be severely punished. As in the case with the Salem Witch Trials, people in the 1950's accused others of Communistic involvement in order to escape their awaited severe punishments.
In both eras, the policy of encouraging others to confess resulted in great hysteria and settled long-held vendettas. In the 1950's, those who refused to confess were forever blacklisted, and in the 1690's, they were condemned and hanged. In both eras, it is evident that the envy of the miserable toward the happy is what caused many people to sell others.
Overall, the book is enticing and holds many moral lessons that the reader must deduce after seeing the consequences of the characters' actions. If you want to discover some history as well as enjoy a book where you will be able to see yourself, then I strongly recommend this play for you. |
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| "Insightful Play" | 2008-01-22 |
| - Reviewed By User: A17PASQFUDDXK0 |
| This short play dives deep into the minds of those who participated in the Salem Witch Trials during the 1600's. Miller focuses entirely on human emotions as he attempts to discover the real reason for these ridiculous witch accusations. "The Crucible" is intriguing and mind-bottling as readers realize the severity of the trials. Many people's lives were changed and it leaves one to question: "Why didn't anyone verify the claims?" The play centers around a man named John Proctor and his relationship with the young Abigail Williams. John commits adultery, cheating on his wife Elizabeth with Abigail. In the Puritan society, adultery is a major sin in which the individual would face a severe punishment if convicted. When Proctor tells Abigail he does not love her, she takes revenge by accusing Elizabeth of doing witchcraft. The claims are absurd, yet not a single person in the town attempts to clear Elizabeth's name. Abigail uses her manipulative powers to get the other girls in on her plan. The play shows that both fear and revenge can cause people to do horrible things. The townspeople are involved in this "witch hunt" and add to society's ignorance. They fail to challenge authority even though they know what is right. I found this book engaging as I tried to fathom the events that occurred in Salem, Massachusetts. Miller does an excellent job of trying to understand why this happened. I learned that Puritan society was weak and that many individuals feared speaking out against authority. The entire Puritan society was based on control. By instilling fear in people, the Puritan leaders could maintain leadership over the rest of them. This is a great read if you want to try to understand history and apply it to our world today. |
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| "Meaningful Tragedy of Human Nature" | 2008-01-22 |
| - Reviewed By User: A1S5PU4URBKC02 |
Miller's "Crucible" amazingly parallels the McCarthyism era and provides a frightful yet realistic account of the possibilities caused by human desires. Its short length combined with its easy-to-understand language allows the readers to become fully absorbed in the plot.
During the period of anti-communism, suspicions were placed among all types of people, ranging from outcasts of society to the most-trusted educators. The hysteria of the Red Scare spread rapidly through the belief of a necessary social conformity. Despite questionable evidence combined with exaggerated threats, suspicions were often deemed credible in a court of law. Consequently, once suspected, few individuals were able to completely clear their reputation. As with the witches accused, suspected Communists were given the chance to escape punishment through confession and identification of other Red Sympathizers. This gradually led to false accusations of others to save oneself, resulting in the condemning of many innocent individuals. Paralleling the Salem Witch Trials to the persecutions of the McCarthyism era, Miller emphasizes the ability of mass hysteria to overpower the apparent irrationality of the Red Scare.
Miller's outstanding use of historical context further emphasized the power of human nature to cause the spread of mass hysteria. When looking at the "Crucible" as a play, it seems too surreal and frightening to be true. Any reader could easily mock the people of the community for being naïve and hanging nonexistent witches. However, the scary irony that Miller uses is the fact that the whole scenario has happened before in history, numerous times. Not only did the settlers of Massachusetts hang supposed "witches", but also people in the twentieth century have allowed mass hysteria to spread unjustifiably.
"The Crucible" is an exciting play that fully grasps the attention of its readers. It is not only an entertaining book for any occasion, but is also a meaningful retelling of a tragedy of human nature.
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| "Intriguing and Engaging" | 2008-01-21 |
| - Reviewed By jeka724 |
Exciting and eventful, The Crucible by Arthur Miller is a joy to read. Arthur Miller succeeds in bringing the thrill of each event in the play. Filled with wonderful imagery and actions, The Crucible remains one of my favorite plays.
Miller is able to create masterful scenes through the dialogue of the characters. He can set the tone and mood of the setting through how the characters talk. This allows readers to actually envision the setting and feel as if they too are part of the play.
The characters are wonderful in that they are not one-dimensional, and they appear very real. Each character feels very human- as if the reader has already met the character before. It is interesting to see each character have a different persona and different motives, which leads to an interesting and complex plot. Because each character has a different motive, it makes the plot much more interesting as there are also added subplots which entice the reader to know more about each individual character.
The events that occur in the play contribute greatly to the overall excitement of the story. The accusations are extremely vivid, so readers can feel the fear and the hysteria the town itself is feeling. They appeal to the senses as readers begin to feel engaged in the story.
If you want to read a short, engaging play, The Crucible is the way to go.
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