The Thought That the State Has Lost Its Mind and Is Punishing So Many People Is Intolerable

“The thought that the state has lost its mind and is punishing so many people is intolerable.” Miller’s accusation of the injustice of McCarthyism is paralleled in his work The Crucible. Just as numerous innocents were accused of being un-American in the 50s era, over 30 innocents were condemned during the Salem witch trials. The accused, regardless of the era, had only two similarities: they were average citizens, and they lived in the same locality before the accusations. In a sense, they were all “Everyman.” While false, “the accusations of the scared could condemn nonetheless.” Arthur Miller uses this accusatory property to his advantage, employing figurative language, dramatic irony, and foreshadowing to illustrate John Proctor as “Everyman,” thus proving to the audience that anyone could be accused.

Miller uses figurative language to illustrate that John Proctor resembles every other Puritan. When speaking about his work, John Proctor says, “This farm’s a continent when you go foot by foot droppin’ seeds in it,” (56) proving his dedicated work ethic and his simplicity. In “Lilacs have a purple smell. Lilac is the smell of nightfall, I think,” (57) Miller implies that Proctor enjoys simple things like nature, which was common in the Puritan era, when the people led simple lives. In the 1950s, the trouble-free lives of the Americans were disrupted by the Communist accusations, similar to how the witch trials affected Salem. Everybody represented the same ideals, motives and fears, therefore the “Everyrman” of each society could be accused Miller portrays John Proctor as “Everyman,” thus proving to the audience that anyone can be accused.

Much like a good television show, dramatic irony adds a level of anticipation to the material; the audience knows what the characters do not. In the quote “It is well seasoned” (56) Miller uses this rhetorical device, to portray the idea that Proctor’s relationship is strained and needs “seasoning”. This along with the quote “Massachusettes is a beauty in the spring” (57) shows that there is turmoil yet people pretend that there are not any problems. From these quotes the audience can infer that while persecuting innocent Americans seems justifiable they recognize that it is truly immoral. By using dramatic irony Miller portrays John Proctor as “Everyman” by expressing that John knows that Salem’s accusations are immoral, but chooses not to act much like the typical audience member of the 50’s era.

The foreshadowing, as seen in Act Two, further shows Proctor as everyman. Miller uses foreshadowing in the quote “No, she walked into the house this afternoon…It hurt my heart to strip her, poor rabbit,” (56) to compare the rabbit with the innocence of the accused. Wonder is then evoked from the audience whether this rabbit represents Proctor later in the play. The stripping also represents the witch trials thus foreshadowing the accusations yet to come. In the same way it illustrates the audience’s risk of accusation, just as Proctor is shown to be at risk as well. This shows that even the innocent are unjustly accused.

Needs concluding paragaph