The Crucible Act 1
List three different definitions of the word "crucible."
"A vessel, usually of earthenware, made to endure great heat, used for fusing metals, etc.; a melting-pot" "Used of any severe test or trial" "A place or situation in which concentrated forces interact to cause or influence change or development"
The Salem Witch Trials became a way for people to:
A way for the oppressed girls to avoid punishment (they said witches made them dance and conjure in the woods). A way for people to steal their neighbors' land. A way for people to steal others' wives, husbands, or possessions. A way for people to get revenge on those they disliked.
"I never knew what pretense Salem was, I never knew what lying lessons I was taught by these Christian women and their covenanted men."
Abigail Williams
"There be no blush about my name."
Abigail Williams
When Abigail is questioned by Reverend Hale, who does she blame? What proof does she offer?
Abigail blames Tituba and her proof is that she was speaking Barbados, so she couldn't understand how she was talking with the devil. Additionally, she says that Tituba made Betty and herself sell themselves to the devil, and she says that Tituba forced her to drink blood. She also says that Tituba makes her laugh during prayer, and that Tituba makes her have corrupted dreams.
How does Abigail feel about John's wife, Elizabeth?
Abigail is jealous of Elizabeth and thus despises her.
"...I have laid seven babies unbaptized in the earth."
Anne Putnam
"How high did she fly, how high?"
Anne Putnam
The play, The Crucible, was written by ______ and was published in 1953.
Arthur Miller
________ was one of the people in the entertainment industry who was blacklisted.
Arthur Miller
"You drank a charm to kill Goody Proctor!"
Betty Parris
What do they suggest is Betty's problem?
Betty was caught in the woods & was practicing witchcraft.
As the play begins, why has Reverend Parris sent for a doctor?
Betty won't wake up. This happened after bring caught by her father dancing in the woods with other girls from Salem.
What ultimatum is Tituba given?
Confess to witchcraft, bless the Lord, and name others who are witches with her (or she will be hanged).
Who is Betty?
Daughter of Rev. Parris
Conflict Between John Proctor vs. Reverend Parris
Doesn't like his preaching style. Parris thinks that Proctor is the head of a faction against him.
What has Elizabeth Proctor said about Abigail?
Elizabeth knows that Abigail and her husband had an affair, so she fired her from their service. Abigail believes that Elizabeth has spread "rumors" about the affair.
What is the Putnams' grievance over land?
Francis Nurse sold land to John Proctor; Thomas Putnam accuses Proctor of taking trees off his land. He wants all the land he can steal from people as possible.
Who is Rebecca Nurse?
Francis Nurse's wife. Rebecca is a wise, sensible, and upright woman, well respected in Salem by most of the Salem community. She has 26 grandchildren.
"It discomfits me! Last night - mark this - I tried and tried and could not say my prayers. And then she close her book and walks out of the house, and suddenly - mark this - I could pray again!"
Giles Corey
How does Hale confuse Tituba?
He asks many questions which forces her to lie to save herself.
How does John Proctor feel about his relationship with Abigail?
He does not want to continue his relationship because he cannot forgive himself.
What is John Proctor's relationship to Abigail?
He had an affair with Abigail when she was a former servant at his house.
Who is Reverend Hale, and what does he accomplish?
He is a reverend who is summoned to Salem to identify witches. He puts the majority of Salem in jail, but later realizes that there is no witchcraft in Salem-only corruption. He leaves and returns later.
Who is John Proctor?
He is a well-respected farmer in Salem who regrets having an affair with Abigail. He doesn't like Rev. Parrish, so he doesn't go to church, and his absence in church spurs controversy.
What is unusual about Giles Corey?
He never attended church before he married his wife. He reports that his wife reads books that he does not know about. Also, he files lawsuits regularly.
Why is the issue of Parris's salary raised?
He wants more money and he isn't honest.
Why is Thomas Putnam such a bitter man?
His brother was qualified to be Salem's minister, but Parris was chosen instead and he wants more land and therefore, more power.
"But I will cut off my hand before I'll ever reach for you again."
John Proctor
"I never give you hope to wait for me."
John Proctor
Who is Giles Corey?
John Proctor's friend.
"Abby, we've got to tell. Witchery's a hangin' error, a hangin' like they done in Boston two year ago!"
Mary Warren
What is John's relationship to Mary Warren?
Mary is his servant.
Miller wrote the play to detail the Salem Witch Trials of the 1600s, but also in response to the intense investigations and false accusations during the ________ Era of the 1950s.
McCarthy
"Have you tried beatin' her? I gave Ruth a good one and it waked her for a minute."
Mercy Lewis
"Now look you, sir. Let you strike out against the Devil, and the village will bless you for it!"
Mr. Putnum
About what does Parris question his niece Abigail?
Parris asks Abigail what she had done in the forest with Betty because Parris saw the girls dancing in the woods.
Why is Parris so worried about the evidence of witchcraft being discovered in his own house?
Parris wants to remain minister and fears any evidence that may harm his reputation.
Who is Tituba?
Parris's slave from Barbados.
What is the source of the conflict between Parris and Proctor?
Proctor questions Parris's beliefs and morals. He sees that Parris is more concerned with keeping his position as minister than with practicing his true religion and devotion to God.
"There is a prodigious danger in the seeking of loose spirits. I fear it. I fear it."
Rebecca Nurse
"Let me instruct you. We cannot look to superstition in this. The Devil is precise; the marks of his presence are definite as stone."
Reverend Hale
"But if you trafficked with spirits in the forest I must know it now, for surely my enemies will, and they will ruin me with it."
Reverend Parris
"I regard that six pound as part of my salary."
Reverend Parris
"You will confess yourself or I will take you out and whip you to your death."
Reverend Parris
Who is Abigail?
Reverend Parris' niece who had an affair with John Proctor and wants to take Elizabeth's place as John's wife.
Who does Tituba accuse of being a witch?
Sarah Good and Sarah Osborn
Conflict Between John Proctor vs. Self
Self-guilt for still thinking about Abigail: guilt and temptation.
What does Ann Putnam ask Tituba to do?
Seven of her children had died and she wanted to find out what was happening with Ruth as well. She knew that Tituba could contact the dead which meant that she could contact her deceased children to find out "who had killed them".
Why does Abigail say she was dismissed by the Proctors?
She did not conform to being Elizabeth's slave, which caused the Proctors to let her go.
Why is Mrs. Putnam so eager to prove there is witchcraft in the village?
She has lost all but one of her children shortly after they were born and wants someone to blame (a scapegoat).
Who is Mercy Lewis? How is she described?
She is a maid in the Putnam's home. She was also in the woods. She is described as being "a fat, sly, merciless girl of 18".
What does Rebecca Nurse think is wrong with the girls?
She thinks that the girls are faking witchcraft to get attention.
What threat does Abigail make to the other girls?
She threatens to hurt them physically if they tell others about what had happened
What is Abigail's motivation for going to the woods?
She wants to curse Elizabeth Proctor so she can be with John Proctor.
What rumors have circulated the town regarding Betty Parris?
That Betty had flown over Ingersoll's barn and was able to descend as elegantly as a bird. This rumor is insinuating that Betty had been affected by witchcraft.
What advice does the doctor send back?
That he can find no medical reason for her illness, and he should look for an "unnatural reason." He also says that there is no cure for Betty and Ruth's condition.
Who is Ruth? What is wrong with her?
The Putnam's daughter. She is sick like Betty (she won't awaken).
How and by whom are the other villagers accused of witchcraft? What is the motivation for the girls' accusations?
The girls shout names as accusations. The girls do not want themselves to get in trouble, so they blame others.
What were Abigail and the girls doing in the forest when Reverend Parris saw them?
The girls were dancing and some of them were not wearing clothes. There was a frog in the pot and Tituba was chanting. He also heard screeching.
Who is Reverend Parris?
The minister in Salem.
Conflict Between John Proctor vs. the Putnams
The proper ownership of a piece of timberland where Proctor harvests his lumber (land dispute).
Conflict Between John Proctor and Abigail Williams
They have been in a secret relationship while John was still married to his wife Elizabeth. This happened when Abigail was his servant in the home. Abby wants to continue the relationship, but John wants the relationship to end and never be spoken of again.
Conflict Between The Putnams vs. Goody Osburne
They have lost several children when she helps birth them (midwife).
What does the conversation between Abigail, Mercy Lewis, Mary Warren, and Betty reveal about their recent activities?
They were in the forest dancing, Abigail drank blood, and Mercy Lewis was naked.
"He say Mr. Parris must kill!"
Tituba
"My Betty be hearty soon?"
Tituba
Why do Abigail and Betty start accusing people?
To get the blame off of themselves completely and they also want the same power that Tituba has.
Why does Parris suggest calling Reverend Hale?
To see if Hale' experience with witch trials would show that there is no witchcraft.
Who are Ann and Thomas Putnam? What is their motivation for suggesting witchcraft?
Wealthy and suspicious of everyone; Ann lost 8 babies
Is the crucible is a work of fiction?
Yes
"McCarthyism" is a term used to describe ________.
an intense period of suspicion in the US during the 1950s (Supposed communists infiltrating the government)
Joseph McCarthy, a Senator from Wisconsin, claimed that ________ had infiltrated the Department of State. Allegations turned into obsessive "_________," and people from all walks of life were accused. The reputations of many were ruined during this "witch hunt."
communists; witch hunts
The hysteria began with several girls, bored with their Puritan lives, who went into the woods to "____" love spells and hexes based on stories of voodoo and magic, as told by a servant from the West Indies.
conjure
The girls then began experiencing extreme fits of ____, _____, and ____.
convulsion. hallucination, and screaming
Puritans believed that witches and witchcraft were sins. During the Salem Witch Trials of 1692, the Puritans ___, ___, and ___ people for supposedly practicing witchcraft. They believed that witchcraft was "entering into a compact with the _____ in exchange for certain powers to do evil." Witchcraft was a SIN! (So is adultery, premarital sex, and even dancing...but we'll talk about that later!)
persecuted, convicted, and killed; devil
The Puritans came to America to escape ________.
religious persecution
The Salem Witch Trials were a prime example of how fearful the Puritans were of the _____ world.
supernatural
A doctor concluded that the only explanation for their symptoms was ______. In order to claim their own innocence, the girls began to accuse others of witchcraft, who then began to falsely accuse others, and so on.
witchcraft
In 1956 and 1957, Miller was called before the House Un-American Activities Committee and was asked to give the names of _______.
writers involved in Communist activities
