My Thoughts on "The Crucible"

-
While reading and learning about the history in "The Crucible," I had many questions. The play is about the Puritans and the Salem witch trials. We learned about the Puritan's beliefs and how extensive they were. I was constantly wondering where they got these ideas from. For example, where did they get the idea that its wrong to sing or dance. I wanted to know the origin of their strict ideas and beliefs, because they seemed very unbelievable.
Just from reading half of Act 1, the irony is obvious. For example, the town is very strict, yet one of the main characters is having an affair with a married man. Isn't this against a commandment in the Bible? Why wouldn't there by consequences conducted by the town for having an affair? Also, even though they know about previous witch accusations and how strict the town rules are, many women went into the forest and conducted mysterious activities that they know would name them witches. Why would all these women conduct these activities that were deemed wrong by their community? Overall, the irony and the Puritan's extensive ideas both bring up many questions.

Comments

  1. PaulaDecember 3, 2017 at 10:18 AM

    I agree, it is hard to understand why the Puritan's frowned upon singing and dancing, both of which are considered normal activites to us nowadays.

    ReplyDelete
  2. UnknownDecember 4, 2017 at 12:40 PM

    Yeah, I completely see where you are getting at. It seems as if the people aren't as strict with punishment as the overall rules of the Puritans claimed to be. Good job overall!

    ReplyDelete

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Symbolism of the Swimming Pool in "The Great Gatsby"

-
In "The Great Gatsby," the pool may have numerous symbolic definitions. First, it can symbolize Gatsby's dreams and wealth. Gatsby never uses the pool until the end of the book. Instead, he just shows it off to people who come to his house. The only reason he throws parties is to show off his wealth in the hopes that Daisy would come. When fall approaches, Gatsby tells his servants not to drain the pool, symbolizing his attempts to hold onto his dreams, including having Daisy. It is clear that his dream of Daisy is almost unobtainable by this time, but he is still trying to hold onto it. His death in the pool represents the death of his ability to have Daisy, and thus cherish his wealth. The pool can also have a biblical symbolism of the baptism and cleansing of Gatsby. He repeats many times that it is his first time using the pool. He also takes off his expensive clothes which represent materialism. He is being cleansed from the materialism of the 1920's and the mat...
Read more

The Ending of "The Crucible"

-
The ending of "The Crucible" is a bit sad and confusing. Parris and Hale both want John Proctor to confess so he won't be hung, but he can't. I was confused as to why it is such a big deal for him to confess. He would be able to live just by writing down that he was "with the Devil." I assume that it was just the time period and how strict their religion was that caused it to be so hard for him to confess. Even though Parris was the one calling Proctor out for being a liar, he wants him to confess now. I think the reason for this is because he doesn't want to be responsible for a life lost, and because Abigail left out of the blue and took Parris' money. Abigail seems to be running away from her problems. She puts all her effort into making up lies to make herself look better in the town, and then she just runs away, leaving all that behind. I assume it is because nothing is going to be left for her. She probably realizes that John Proctor hates he...
Read more