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Gabriela Utra
Mrs. Pye
English 101
6 November 2020
Allegory of McCarthyism
The play, The Crucible, written by Arthur Miller, is an allegory of McCarthyism. In the
play, mass hysteria is caused by the belief that witchcraft is spreading throughout the village of
Salem, Massachusetts. Many factors contributed to the hysteria created. Accusations were made
with word around the town being the only credible source of evidence. McCarthyism was very
similar to this. Citizens of the United States were fired from their work positions or even
executed because they were thought to be members of the communist party. There was no
evidence to support either of the actions taken. The Crucible can be proven to be an allegory for
McCarthyism because of its representation of McCarthyism’s elements such as the First Red
Scare, Senator Joseph McCarthy, and the House Committee on Un-American Activities.
In The Crucible, many of the villagers in Salem, Massachusetts were concerned that
witchcraft was taking control of their village. To put an end to this, the witch trials began. Many
people were accused of witchcraft with the only evidence being speculations heard around the
town. There were many who were captured from their homes and tried in court. They were all
found guilty and sentenced to execution. The only way to avoid execution was to confess to a
false accusation. Much like The Crucible, McCarthyism caused the same panic. The First Red
Scare was when citizens of the United States feared the many communist revolutions of Europe
would take place in the United States. Communism was so feared that, in 1919, United States
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Attorney General A. Mitchell Palmer and FBI Director J. Edgar Hoover conducted searches of
many private offices and homes without official warrants. If the people working in these places
or living in these homes were suspected of being members of the communist party, they were
tried or even deported if they were foreigners (“The Red Scare”). Both The Crucible and
McCarthyism led unofficial searches that caused the downfall of many honest and innocent
people of the different times.
Abigail Williams, one of the main characters of the play, was the cause of much of the
hysteria. She was one of the characters that began the trend of making false accusations. In the
play, she claims that she has seen many villagers with the devil. She then gathered her group of
friends who continued to cause this hysteria by falsely accusing others. These children became
officials of the court and participated in each hearing. This is much like Senator Joseph
McCarthy. During his time in office, there were many suspicions that there were communist
groups trying to infiltrate the United States and overthrow the democracy. His idea was to save
America from communism, but instead he “identified those were Communists or Communist
supporters, including accusations and personal attacks based on insufficient evidence” (“Senator
Joseph McCarthy and”). He added to the hysteria by creating a list and announcing it to the
country on February 9, 1950 (“Senator Joseph McCarthy and”). This list contained the names of
250 people the senator reported as communists. His confidence made him seem credible, so
many Americans believed in his words.
In The Crucible, the leaders of the court in which the witch trials were held were Deputy
Governor Danforth and Judge Hathorne. As villagers were accused, they would be tried in the
court. During these hearings, the leaders would take into great account the words of Abigail
Williams and the other girls in her group. Most of the tried and condemned would deny that they
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were witches while others would confess to avoid hanging. Similarly, the House Committee on
Un-American Activities (or the HUAC) led the hunt for communists in America. They highly
considered Senator Joseph McCarthy’s accusations. Then, they would try the accused, and many
would deny they were communists. For example, the HUAC had convicted a man named Alger
Hiss for perjury. He had “denied under oath the passing of documents to a self-confessed Soviet
agent” (O’Reilly). Many in the Salem witch trials had also been arrested or executed for
contempt of court or the attempt to undermine the official court.
In summary, different factors of this play can show how it related to McCarthyism. The
Red Scare related to the heavy paranoia and hysteria seen throughout the play. Senator Joseph
McCarthy was represented as Abigail Williams, a girl that accused others to make herself look
better in the eyes of others. Lastly, there was the House Committee on Un-American Activities,
which was tied into the play as the court led by Deputy Governor Danforth and Judge Hathorne.
These points show how The Crucible is an allegory for McCarthyism.
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Works Cited
O'Reilly, Kenneth. "House Committee on Un-American Activities." Dictionary of American
History, edited by Stanley I. Kutler, 3rd ed., vol. 4, Charles Scribner's Sons, 2003, p.
178. Gale In Context: High
School, https://link.gale.com/apps/doc/CX3401801945/SUIC?
u=006bhs&sid=SUIC&xid=ecdfd7b9. Accessed 4 Nov. 2020.
"Senator Joseph McCarthy and His Supporters." Gale In Context Online Collection, Gale,
2011. Gale In Context: High
School, https://link.gale.com/apps/doc/EJ2181500198/SUIC?
u=006bhs&sid=SUIC&xid=ba280f64. Accessed 3 Nov. 2020.
"The Red Scare." Gale Encyclopedia of U.S. History: War, Gale, 2009. Gale In Context: High
School, https://link.gale.com/apps/doc/EJ3048500223/SUIC?
u=006bhs&sid=SUIC&xid=149ce564. Accessed 3 Nov. 2020.
