Synthesis Essay the Crucible
Christian Dickmann
Miss. Shaw
Period 2
10/21/12
Synthesis Essay on the Crucible The Crucible, set in Salem, Massachusetts in 1692, takes place in an era when religion was a part of the government. Religion, wasn’t just the common Sunday “get together”, but defined the role of an individual in society. This wasn’t an advantage for John Proctor, he had many of his own believes and keep to him. This led to his downfall, but was John Proctor innocent or were the religious expectations of the church too harsh? I believe the religious expectations of the church were preposterous and unjust to the people of Salem. During the time period of the “Salem Witch Trials” in 1692, there were believes that the devil was present in the small village. The main cause of this outbreak begin with Abigail Williams, a girl with has an “Endless capacity for dissembling” (Bonnet) out of a lust for John Proctor and jealousy for his wife Elizabeth Proctor. Witchcraft in Salem started when Abigail and a group of girls were caught dancing in the woods bye Reverend Parris the minister of the church. Abigail wasn’t only caught dancing but drinking blood to kill Elizabeth Proctor. In fear of rumors and being punished for their actions the girls denied everything, some even acted sick. When accused of their actions they said the devil made them and that they saw other people in the village with the devil. The outbreak begins, in a puritan religion this would not be accepted nor tolerated. Something had to be done, and the way to relieve these problems was to hang people guilty. Witchcraft in Salem didn’t just involve a couple people but it involved a whole town. It was more than the accusations of the devil being present in the village but “A long overdue opportunity for everyone so inclined to express publicity” (Miller). This could finally express there long held hatred for their neighbors and take vengeance on them.
The expectations of the Puritan society on the village were
Miss. Shaw
Period 2
10/21/12
Synthesis Essay on the Crucible The Crucible, set in Salem, Massachusetts in 1692, takes place in an era when religion was a part of the government. Religion, wasn’t just the common Sunday “get together”, but defined the role of an individual in society. This wasn’t an advantage for John Proctor, he had many of his own believes and keep to him. This led to his downfall, but was John Proctor innocent or were the religious expectations of the church too harsh? I believe the religious expectations of the church were preposterous and unjust to the people of Salem. During the time period of the “Salem Witch Trials” in 1692, there were believes that the devil was present in the small village. The main cause of this outbreak begin with Abigail Williams, a girl with has an “Endless capacity for dissembling” (Bonnet) out of a lust for John Proctor and jealousy for his wife Elizabeth Proctor. Witchcraft in Salem started when Abigail and a group of girls were caught dancing in the woods bye Reverend Parris the minister of the church. Abigail wasn’t only caught dancing but drinking blood to kill Elizabeth Proctor. In fear of rumors and being punished for their actions the girls denied everything, some even acted sick. When accused of their actions they said the devil made them and that they saw other people in the village with the devil. The outbreak begins, in a puritan religion this would not be accepted nor tolerated. Something had to be done, and the way to relieve these problems was to hang people guilty. Witchcraft in Salem didn’t just involve a couple people but it involved a whole town. It was more than the accusations of the devil being present in the village but “A long overdue opportunity for everyone so inclined to express publicity” (Miller). This could finally express there long held hatred for their neighbors and take vengeance on them.
The expectations of the Puritan society on the village were