Fill in the Blanks and Then Answer the Questions Below

THE CRUCIBLE

ACT III

SALEM’S COURTROOM

By Act III, the hysteria in Salem has intensified. However, the witch hunt of 1692 that Arthur Miller portrays is really a reflection of the communist witch hunt that he lived through during 1950s America.

Fill in the blanks and then answer the questions below.

By ______, the United States was involved in a ______with the Communist nations, particularly ______. Fear of the Communist threat to the American way of life caused______Senator ______’s rise to power. McCarthy launched a crusade against the internal subversion or ______by charging that many “known Communists” were working in the State Department. He attacked General of the Army ______and leveled charges against the ______and ______administrations for “treason,” which is ______. Re-elected to the Senate in ______, McCarthy attacked many of ______appointments and zealously investigated ______in the media. Over 320 ______were blacklisted after facing accusations of Communism. These investigations were labeled “______” by those who remained level-headed in the face of mass hysteria. McCarthy’s power came to an end in ______, when the Senate voted to condemn the senator ______.

In the 1950s, The Crucible was widely viewed as a ______play, attacking the “witch hunt” tactics of the anti-Communist hearings held by the Wisconsin senator. Audiences of that time, well aware of the madness of McCarthyism, found striking relevance in one of the play’s notable lines—“______” Arthur Miller, however, draws only the broadest ______between the witch hunts in 1692 and those of the McCarthy era. The mood of ______and ______permeating both was similar, as was the way______were hurled at any who dared ______the proceedings. The Crucible, however, has timeless appeal as gripping drama and is as powerful today as it was in the 1950s. Miller did not deny the obvious ______of his play, but he insisted that he was concerned with the larger problem of the dangers of ______.

Find five quotes from Act III that reflect the McCarthy hearings, list their page numbers, and copy them below.

1. ______

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2. ______

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3. ______

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4. ______

______

5. ______

______

Based on your notes above and the information that was presented in the video, how would the following characters from The Crucible most likely be involved in the McCarthy hearings? Explain.

FOR EXAMPLE:

Hathorne/Danforth: They would most likely be members of the House of Un-American Activities Committee because they are on panel of judges conducting the “witch” trials in Salem just as there was a panel of congressman who questioned people about their “communist” ideas.

Abigail: ______

______

______

Parris: ______

______

______

Giles Corey: ______

______

______

John Proctor: ______

______

______

Mary Warren: ______

______

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