Red Scare

"BLACKLIST" MEAN TODAY

People who are suspected to be untrustworthy or have unwanted opinions so they are put on a privet list to prevent them from working.

"BLACKLISTING" DURING THE RED SCARE

A list of people that were prevented from working because after being accused as a communist they refused to be interrogated. Blacklisting was putting people on a list if they did not testify in front of the HUAC. They were not allowed to work during this time.

WHAT WAS McCarthyism

Being wrongfully accused of communism and demanding that you expose or also convict other friends and associates. If you don't agree with them, then your life is ruined and if you agree to their false accusations then you are also punished. In summary, its when people suspected other people of being communists and were punished regardless of their response.

HYSTERIA

Fear and emotions that overwhelm the person to the extent that it is unmanageable and is expressed in their behaviors. When someone shows how overwhelmed with fear or emotion they are.

ARTHUR MILLER DURING THE RED SCARE/McCarthyism

He divorced his wife to marry Marilyn Monroe and was then accused by HUAC and due to her fame, the interrogation would ruin their careers. Francis Walter, HUAC chairman, offered to let Miller off if he got Francis a photoshoot with Marilyn, which he refused. Miller was then questioned by the committee but refused to name anyone so he was convicted of contempt and a year later overturned on appeal. Marilyn and Miller later divorced.

TURNED THE PUBLIC AGAINST MCCARTHY

He started investigating the army for communists.

IMPORTANT TO KNOW BEFORE WE START READING HIS PLAY ABOUT THE SALEM WITCH TRIALS, THE CRUCIBLE

His own experience of being wrongfully accused makes him feel angry towards the accusers. He is a morally sound man because he refused to use his wife to escape conviction since he knew he wasn't guilty and didn't succumb to the pressure to name other people. I think this is important to know because this idea of McCarthyism is actually present in many different forms throughout history.

HUAC

House Un-American Activities Committee

HE INVESTIGATION OF SUSPECTED COMMUNISTS AS A "WITCH HUNT." WHY DO YOU THINK THIS COMPARISON TO THE SALEM WITCH TRIALS IS MADE

In the video, they are subpoenaing hundreds of people to be investigated by people like HUAC but if they failed to corporate then they would be jailed for contempt, fired, or blacklisted. This is similar to the Salem witch trials because when women were accused of being a witch, neither accepting or denying being a witch prevented them from being killed. I think they made this comparison because McCarthyism was derived from the fear that other people were communists. The Salem Witch trials were similar in which it was derived from the fear that other people were witches.

COULD SOMETHING SIMILAR HAPPEN AGAIN, OR HAS IT ALREADY HAPPENED

It is able to happen again because depending on the circumstances it is almost human nature to become suspicious of the people around you. I think that something similar could definitely happen again. Just like after the first world war people said there would not be the second one, but there was. The situations always come back around in different ways. I don't know if something similar has happened after these incidents but I know it could happen again.

HYSTERIA IS USED TO DESCRIBE BOTH THE SALEM WITCH TRIALS AND THE RED SCARE/McCarthyism

The constant fear or anyone around you accusing you of being a witch or a communist is present in both the Salem Witch Trials and the Red Scare. The people become more and more obsessed with everything they do and how it may be perceived while also watching everyone around them for any sign of suspicion. The invasive paranoia was caused by the constant fear of what could happen, ultimately creating a mass hysteria.

ALLEGORY

The secret meaning behind certain characters and events. These symbols are used to reveal moral, spiritual, or political meanings. A story that has hidden meanings/symbolism behind characters and plot events to convey a certain meaningful message. Allegory: "..work that conveys a hidden meaning—usually moral, spiritual, or political—through the use of symbolic characters and events."

WHAT WAS THE RED SCARE

Two times in America after both World wars, people were afraid that communism would spread and become apart of the united states government, so people started accusing others of being communists (red-baiting).