Crucible The Role of Hypocracy in the Puritans
Many things are not as they seem, and the world of the Puritans in the late 1600s is certainly no exception according to the famous writer Arthur Miller. ... Arthur Miller unravels the motivations of their society in his play, The Crucible in which he tells of the witch-hunt that occurred in Salem. ... The staunch Puritans are frequently portrayed as a strikingly hypocritical people ruled by their own desires for power and control in the theocracy versus the true facets of their faith. The Puritans first display their hypocrisy by placing power obtained through land, and social position above the basic tenants of faith. ... Displaying his primary interests in himself, as opposed to the common good of his congregation and community, Parris says to his neighbor, Putnam, “They will howl me out of Salem for such corruption in my house,” (The Crucible, Act 1, Scene 1). ... This concept of using accusations to serve personal satisfactions and gain power and prestige in the community becomes a major sign of the hypocrisy of the Puritans during the trials. ... This desire for power is also expressed as a sweeping mob mentality which overrides reason and perpetuates hypocrisy in the everyday lives of the Puritans. ... Although in the play Rebecca Nurse’s execution is barely addressed, her death seems especially poignant and further accentuates the extremity to which hypocrisy has driven the Puritans. ... Puritans are forced to consider which would be the greater sin— lying and confessing or refusing forgiveness and ultimately facing death. This corrupt and bleak prospect represents the largest hypocrisy of the Puritans through their dishonest accusations and their forced confessions of innocents. Those who stick fast to their faith and beliefs, holding their integrity with more value than their lives, bear their crucible (their death as a proclamation of their innocence) along with the lies of the Puritan theocracy.