The Crucible Topics for Further Study
by Arthur Miller

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Topics for Further Study

(Drama for Students)

What is your perception of the girls' allegations in the play? Do they really believe in witchcraft or are they fabricating the events?
Is John Proctor a tragic figure? Compare his fate to that of such tragic literary figures as King Oedipus in Sophocles's Oedipus Rex and the title character in William Shakespeare's Hamlet.
Examine the historical facts regarding the Salem Witch Trials and Joseph McCarthy's hearings. In what ways does Miller employ these facts in the service of his drama. How do the two historical events compare to each other?
What purpose do Miller's authorial prose inserts in the text serve?
Miller said that "McCarthyism may have been the historical occasion of the play, not its theme." What other political and social events do you perceive the play addressing?

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Analyze what a good name means to some of the characters in The Crucible.

The importance of having a good name is stressed throughout this play, and is a definite theme that you can analyse. Consider the way that reputation is so important to so many characters in Salem,...
What are some good thesis statements for an essay on The Crucible?

This answer depends on the topic you truly want to write about. Are you writing a literary analysis paper, a persuasive paper, or an informative essay? I find some of the most common topics in The...
Why did Arthur Miller write The Crucible?

Miller wrote his play about unwarranted persecution in response to the "Red Scare" of the 1950s, in which many artists (himself included) were accused of Communist ties or at least Communist...
What's a good hook for the first sentence of my 5 paragraph essay on The Crucible?

It's difficult to help you with an attention getter without knowing the specific topic of your essay--what aspect of "The Crucible" are you writing about? You can always start your essay with a...
Teaching The Crucible to general-level 11th gradersI'd be interested to hear anyone's experiences...

My co-teacher and I taught this last spring to a class with kids of various ability levels. They liked it quite a bit, and I think a good part of the reason was that we made the political climate...