Show How Miller Creates and Sustains Tension in the Crucible

“Show How Miller Creates and Sustains Tension in The Crucible”

Arthur Miller is considered to be one of the greatest playwrights of recent times, and was responsible for classics such as Death of A Salesman, All My Sons and The Crucible. The Crucible was written in 1953. The play’s theme of hysteria and fear within average citizens is similar to that created by Joseph McCarthy in 1950, often called McCarthyism. McCarthy was responsible for creating fear in America that Russian Communism would take over the world thus crushing the American Dream. Miller was disgusted by the way that people were forced to name names, and in response to this he decided to write the Crucible. Miller noticed the parallels between the witch hunts of the 1600’s and the present day McCarthyism situation, and wrote this play in response.

The play is filled with tension, created by forces which come together to produce a highly dramatic chain of events all leading one after the other.

The first example of tension in the play happens immediately. We are introduced to the character Reverend Parris. Parris is kneeling, weeping at his daughter’s sick bed,

“Out of here!”

This is when Parris shouts at his servant, Tituba, who enquires about the child’s health. It shows how tense Parris is and also about how worried he is, he is also worried as he himself knows that the girls were dancing in the woods and this is a sure sign of witchcraft. He is also scared as both he and the doctor cannot do anything to help cure Betty, and so are left powerless watching her. Maybe this may indicate to Parris, especially as he is a reverend and thus a holy man, that her problems are more supernatural than that of a sick person.

“you might look for unnatural things for the cause of it”

This displays one of the most important causes of tension in the play, how characters blame all that happens on the supernatural. Another example of this is when Mrs Putnam blames her babies death upon the supernatural.

The overture tells us that Salem was built upon and around savage lands. It also speaks of the bad times they endured,

“snuggling against the raw Massachusetts weather”

Miller wants us to believe that this was one of the main elements that led them to become so superstitious and fearful of anything that is new or unknown to them. He views the villagers as quite primitive beings. I believe that this reflects Millers’ personal views about McCarthyism and also about his followers. Another idea is that Abigail is Joseph McCarthy and the dumb villagers his followers and supporters.

Another way Miller creates tension is by displaying how the characters become more afraid as the play develops,

“chanting gibberish”

This displays the type of irrational fear that the interrogations by Hale have brought upon the people especially Parris. Tituba may have just been singing her old Barbados songs.

Tension is also built from the community. There are a lot of personal conflicts. For example Mrs Putnam is described as,

“twisted soul”

She says that someone else sees Abigail flying. In short she is spreading rumours. She is also another cause for tension.

The fact that the characters follow a stringent Puritan code which often seems to make some of the characters feel immensely guilty. Some characters break these rules which make them feel guilty. An example of this is the relationship between Abigail and John Proctor. They have had an affair which breaks one of the most important Puritan rules. Abigail can now see that in village there is a great hypocrisy,

“I never knew the lying lessons I was taught by Christian women and their covenanted men”

Some characters are not satisfied with Parris’ work in the community. Putnam complains that in return for his services Parris expects too much. Proctor really disapproves of the way that Parris conducts his services. He resents the fact that he tries to make Salem’s small parish into a rich church that it is not.

“without he have golden candlesticks upon the alter.”

Proctor thinks that Parris would be more suited to life in a cathedral not a small village