The Crucible

Though there isn't a lot of symbolism in the story, the events in the play itself are an allegory for the intolerance of Mccarthyism For a decade spanning the late 1940s to the late 1950s, the American government was intensely suspicious of the possible influence of communism on citizens and institutions. The FBI accused thousands of people of “un-American activities” and monitored many more; these people’s careers and personal lives were frequently destroyed. More often than not, there was little to no evidence to support the accusations. Similarly, in The Crucible, there is little evidence that much witchcraft activity is going on, but once accusations started flying, many innocent people get caught in the web of hysteria. Lives are destroyed and people die based on zero evidence. John Proctor is a moral, righteous man, who slipped into sin and is racked with guilt throughout; he is the first to sense what is happening. In Act 1, he argues fearlessly against Parris. In Act 2, he confesses to adultery to save his wife and others who have been accused of witchcraft. And at the end, when offered a chance to save himself and confess his own imaginary crimes, he is sorely tempted and almost goes through with it, as surely any ordinary person would. His ultimate goodness is revealed, however, when he refuses to give names of those he has seen with the Devil. Proctor himself doesn't recognize this goodness, however, until the very end, when he rips his signed confession to pieces rather than have Danforth post it in the village. I especially enjoyed the irony of signing confessions to avoid prosecution. If Proctor will only confess his guilt, then he is set free. Those who maintain their innocence, such as Rebecca Nurse, are executed. This can make sense only in an atmosphere of unlimited power and arrogance. Danforth incredibly believes that he can save Proctor's very soul by forcing him to confess to a lie. The Crucible shows us the consequences that can result from a person in power that holds such dangerous illusions.

Act 3

In this chapter it was mainly about reputation and integrity. Since the judges view themselves as allied with God and therefore always right, they can’t accept or even comprehend anyone disagreeing with them. Parris supports the court and gives into the hysteria to protect his reputation. Like Abigail, he’s reversed his denials of witchcraft. Danforth is a more open-minded judge than Hathorne, slightly more willing to accept the possibility he could be wrong. In a society built on social order, any deviation implies that you’re against that order. No one can tell if you’re religious, so they judge you by whether you seem religious. That’s why reputation is so important in Salem. Danforth tests Proctor’s motives and Proctor proves his integrity by refusing to be satisfied with the protection of just his wife.The accusations attack people’s reputations. Proctor tries to combat the attacks with proof of good reputations.Hysteria makes the townspeople actually believe and fear witchcraft. Proctor sacrifices his reputation to prove that Abigail is lying. In the process, he regains his integrity: he tells the truth to try to help the innocent but Elizabeth doesn’t know it was Proctor who confessed his adultery. She dooms both Proctor and the other innocent people by trying to protect Proctor’s reputation rather than following her own natural instinct to preserve integrity. 

Act II Response

Act two of The Crucible was very ironic, in my opinion. In the beginning of this Act, John Proctor and his wife are arguing. Abigail is trying to ruin the relationship between Proctor and his wife Elizabeth but ironically it brings them closer. I also think it’s unfair on the poor level of defense one is allowed to have, no lawyers can be given out, etc. One cannot prove themselves wrong because their proof is how we have no proof that we are innocent. That is also an ironic way of thinking in this act. John Proctor also says his wife is a woman of no lie when his wife had just lied in order to keep Proctor’s name intact. Knowing Proctor’s history it is also ironic on how the only amendment he forgot to mention was Adultery. This Act to me was mostly focused and goes more into depth on the character of Proctor. What really bothers me though is how rapid false accusations are being made without reasonable proof.

Word Count : 171

Notes

1.  Walt Disney was born to a family in poverty, perhaps emotionally more than economically. His father Elias constantly changed jobs and seeked success in one of those many, but always found bitter failure. He never spared any time towards his children, resulting in all his children leaving him at the earliest moment possible. Disney left at age sixteen to join the Red Cross ambulance corps during World War I, where he discovered his artistic passion, leading him to open a commercial artist shop. (8)
2. His family bought a farm and his father struggled to raise his family. Four years of back-breaking work and the family sold out their farm, barely breaking even on his investment. It was four years work with nothing to show. The family then   found themselves in Kansas City in 1910 when Walt was 8. When Walt lived on the farm, he had his first exposure to movies in a nearby theater.  Movies had just come into existence around 1895 and 1896. (9)
3.  He created more than 81 feature films and hundreds of shorts. He earned more than 950 honors, including 48 Academy Awards. He founded the California Institute of the Arts, and he built Disneyland.Within 7 weeks, a million visitors had visited Disneyland, making it one of the biggest tourist attractions in the US. Attendance was 50 per cent ahead of predictions and guests were spending 30 per cent more than expected. (4)
4. At age 22, Walt experienced bankruptcy after the failure of a cartoon series in Kansas City. He headed to Los Angeles with $40 in cash, and an imitation-leather suitcase containing only a shirt, two undershorts, and two pairs of socks and some drawing materials. Feeling that others did animation better, his goal was to be an actor out in Hollywood. It never occurred (4)
5. The vision of an amusement park grew in Walt’s mind as he traveled through the US and Europe and visited attractions of all kinds. He visited county fairs, state fairs, circuses, carnivals, and parks. He was distressed at operations where things were run down and ride operators were hostile. And he loved the spotless Tivoli Gardens in Copenhagen, with bright, upbeat music, excellent food and drink, and warm, friendly employees. Walt was convinced that an amusement park would be successful in the United States if it offered a “good show” that families could enjoy together, was clean, and had friendly employees. (3)
6. The Walt Disney Company started in 1923 in the rear of a small office occupied by Holly-Vermont Realty in Los Angeles. It was there that Walt Disney, and his brother Roy, produced a series of short live-action/animated films collectively called the ALICE COMEDIES. The rent was a mere $10 a month. Within four months, the staff moved next door to larger facilities, where the sign on the window read "Disney Bros. Studio."(11)
7. Walt was personally involved with all aspects of designing the studio. From the layout of the buildings to design of the animators' chairs, nothing was left to chance. His main concern was to produce a self-sufficient, state-of-the-art production factory that provided all the essential facilities for the entire production process.
8. In 1937, the Walt Disney Studios released its first fully animated feature film, Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs, and pioneered a new form of family entertainment. This website shows Disney;s progress throughout these seven decades on his productions.(11)
9. Walter Elias Disney, fondly called 'Walt Disney', was a film producer, voice actor, director, animator, entrepreneur and philanthropist. He is accredited with revolutionizing animated movies and bringing about many changes in the way they were filmed. (11)
10. Walt Disney had the inherent talent to make beautiful drawings that were the works of his vivid imagination. At the age of seven, he even sold some of his best drawings to his neighbors. Recognizing the fact that the talent of drawing was inherent in him, he decided to fine-tune his art. Therefore, he joined an art academy in Chicago to sharpen his skills in drawing.(12)

 11. Although he was rejected from the Army, Disney didn't give up on his mission to serve the people. He, along with one of his friends, joined the Red Cross Society. He acted as a volunteer, while working with the organization. In the meantime, he also practiced drawing and sketching and kept on developing new ways to represent ideas. He even decorated the ambulance of Red Cross Society, which he drove, with cartoons, sketches and drawings. (12)

 12. Walt Disney designed, built and opened a theme park in Anaheim, California. The amusement park was opened to public on 18 July 1955. The entire idea behind the construction of the theme park came in the mind of Disney when he visited the Griffith Park, with his daughters Diane and Sharon. The park is currently operated by the Walt Disney Parks and Resorts, a subsidiary of The Walt Disney Company.

 13. Walt Disney was diagnosed with lung cancer, after many years of chain smoking. He was given treatment at Providence St. Joseph Medical Center, during the critical stages of his disease. He breathed his last on December 15, 1966, at Burbank, California. (13)

 14. It was not until the decade of the '90s, however, that Disney growth became truly phenomenal. In January 1990, Disney Chairman Michael D. Eisner unveiled an ambitious ten-year building plan. He called it The Disney Decade. By mid-decade attendance passed 500 million guests. Investment increased to five times its 1980 total.(13)

15. Disney’s Animal Kingdom -- a whole new species of theme park with 13 animal-themed adventures opened in 1998. A greatly expanded Asia section opened in 1999.  In other parks, '90s attractions included: at Epcot - Innoventions, “Honey, I Shrunk the Audience,” high-speed Test Track and the highly creative Journey Into Your Imagination; at Magic Kingdom - Splash Mountain, “Legend of the Lion King,” The Many Adventures of Winnie the Pooh, Buzz Lightyear’s Space Ranger Spin and New Tomorrowland; at Disney-MGM Studios - Star Tours, “Voyage of the Little Mermaid,” “Jim Henson’s Muppet*Vision 3-D,” “Disney’s Doug Live!”, “Bear in the Big Blue House,” “Sounds Dangerous Starring Drew Carey,” “Fantasmic!”, Sunset Boulevard with The Twilight Zone Tower of Terror™ and Rock 'n' Roller Coaster Starring Aerosmith. (12)

16. More than 100,000 employees and local guests visited Magic Kingdom before a month-long series of events beginning Oct. 1. Mickey Mouse led the official first visitors, William Windsor and his family, into Magic Kingdom. The climax of the grand opening was Oct. 23-25, with a gala concert by the 60-nation World Symphony Orchestra under direction of Maestro Arthur Fiedler.(14)

17. During its original construction and during the first decade of operation, Walt kept his own hand on the design of Disneyland. The first actual rendering of the park, drawn by Herb Ryman, was personally directed by Walt. The drawing was instrumental in securing the balance of the financial backing Walt needed. The design of Sleeping Beauty's castle, so named because the movie by that name was soon to be released.

18. Soon after the opening of Disney World, Roy Disney retired and the Disney Company was taken over by Card Walker. Walker ran the company until 1984. The company languished during those years. Almost no new attractions were added to the parks and the animation studios fell into a doldrums of epic proportion. Disneyland and Walt Disney World became museums that displayed the history of Walt Disney. (14)

 19. Walt Disney bought the 43 square miles of Central Florida swampland for Disney World for $5 million, or about $185 an acre. Disney World has closed three times, all in anticipation of hurricanes: Sept. 15, 1999, for Floyd; Sept. 4-5, 2004, for Frances; and Sept. 26 of that same year for Jeanne. (15)1

20.  10,000. That was the number of people in attendance for Disney World's soft opening on Oct. 1, 1971. 
21. the grand opening later that month — which included performances by Julie Andrews, Bob Hope and Glen Campbell — was televised nationally. Today, the Magic Kingdom alone averages about 47,000 visitors a day.(15)

22. Walt Disney began his legacy with Steamboat Willy on November 18, 1928, at the Colony Theater in New York.
23. Dave Smith wrote: This was the first synchronized sound cartoon, and it was a huge success. Reviewers commented on the cleverness of the cartoon, the advantage that sound brought to the medium, and the fun personality of Walt Disney's new character, Mickey Mouse.
24.He planned to finish it in eighteen months at a cost of $250,000; it took five years and $1.7 million. By the mid-1960s, it had earned $22 million.
25. Disney World contains the Magic Kingdom, Typhoon Lagoon (water park), Pleasure Island (nightly entertainment), Epcot, MGM studios, and a nature preserve.
26. Disney envisioned Epcot as an experimental city of the future, but after Disney died, Epcot was developed into a year-round world's fair. The MGM studios in California have been replicated on the grounds of Disney World in Florida.
27. Some shows are now taped in Florida, and some animated films are drawn there. There are so many different rides and shows to see in Disney World that one has to rush just to do everything in a week. Now even more people can go to the unique theme parks because a wildly successful Disney park was built in Japan, and last summer a park opened just outside Paris, France.
28. Two hundred-forty million people have seen a Disney movie, and 800 million people have read a Disney comic book or magazine.
29. The work of Walt Disney continues sixty years later with Beauty and the Beast, which was nominated for an Oscar award last year, and Aladdin, the Disney Studio's latest animated film.
30. Disneyland and Walt Disney World became museums that displayed the history of Walt Disney. Walt Disney was diagnosed with lung cancer, after many years of chain smoking. He was given treatment at Providence St. Joseph Medical Center, during the critical stages of his disease.
31. Eisner unveiled an ambitious ten-year building plan. He called it The Disney Decade. By mid-decade attendance passed 500 million guests. Investment increased to five times its 1980 total. Soon after the opening of Disney World, Roy Disney retired and the Disney Company was taken over by Card Walker. Walker ran the company until 1984. The company languished during those years.
32. Disney World emphasized cleanliness and demanded respectable workers to meet the public. The staff scraped up the gum and hosed down the streets
33. Even now the releases of the earliest Disney movies like Snow White and Fantasia (1940) are popular and profitable. Disney's nature films and live-action films also appealed to the family market. Television, a mass media vehicle, encouraged Disney to extend his message into individual homes. The primary reason that Disney went into television was because his brother, Roy, would not allow him to take money from the company to build his theme parks.
34. NBC and CBS did not want the shows because they were too different from their regular fare, but ABC was third in the ratings and was eager for programs that would increase ABC's share of the audience. Disney produced weekly one-hour shows that were incredibly successful, and each promoted Disneyland or a Disney movie.
35. Disney made changes that began in 1920 when he first used the newest mass media vehicle moving pictures for short animated films, and ended with television programs, high-tech, full-length animated films and amusement parks where families can be entertained for a week

Crucible Response

The first two acts of the Crucible were interesting, in the aspect of seeing the conflict between reason and religion. The play reminds me of two main historical events, the Cold War and the Revolutionary War. In the cold war it was assumed you were a communist, and as a result you were blackmailed. The same issue occurred between the loyalists and patriots. False accusations and sudden assumptions are made in The Crucible without reasonable proof. I thought it was unfair how they accused Elizabeth of witchcraft against Betty because of finding a needle in a poppet. What surprised me the most however is how people lie to get out of trouble. Being so religious, and focused on being good, i would expect them to tell the complete truth. This is not the case though in The Crucible, people begin to believe their own lies, and follow through with it as long as it gets them out of trouble. The crucible ties many themes together but overall it demonstrates what   monsters humans can become.