Book Club
By Elena Black
Hello dear Slytherins!
Goodness! It has been way too long since I've been able to write here! I hope you all have had a nice break!
But you're not here for simple chit-chatting, are you?
No, of course not. No worries though; I have the perfect book for you all this month! Alright, fine, it's a play. A partially historical-fictional one at that matter. But it fits perfectly with this month's theme which revolves around magic. So, without further ado, let me present the piece of literature I've decided to go over this month.
Anyone who has heard about Arthur Miller's play The Crucible understands and realizes what this is about. So before I go into details about the actual play itself, lemme give a bit of background on what it's written about.
The plot of The Crucible is actually a dramatized version of the Salem Witch Trials, which took place in Massachusetts during the years 1692-1693. After the state entered a state of hysteria and chaos, it resulted in a domino effect. As a result, twenty people were found guilty of witch craft and hung at the gallows, with the exception of one poor soul who ended up getting crushed to death.
What I found particularly intriguing, though, was learning that The Crucible was written as an allegory of McCarthyism.
You see, back in the 1950s, many people residing in the United States - citizens or not - were being accused of treason via leaking information to Communists, primarily Russia. From 1950 to 1956, a series of events known as "The Red Scares" were ongoing and this is what is known as the term 'McCarthyism'. In addition to people being accused of betraying the States, many individuals were also believed to be Communists themselves.
So what's wrong, you may be wondering? What was their actual crime?
In essence?
Nothing. Sad, but true; none of those people were really guilty of anything.
This thus goes back to my point in an attempt to help compare and contrast The Crucible and McCarthyism. Both were eras in which multiple, innocent civilians had fingers pointed at them, yet were actually not guilty of doing anything wrong.
Alas, that was just how people were back then. 'Tis a sad, painful truth.
With all of this being said and done, let's go back to the primary topic, shall we?
The Crucible focuses on Massachusetts going into a state of hysteria after people began to cry "wolf" - or, rather - "witch craft!" and point fingers as to whom was behind the acts. What started as blaming one individual rapidly shifted into the same twenty people as per the historical event, most of which were women. Yet there were a few, select men who were found guilty and executed.
So what's my personal view on this famous play?
It's quite the eye-opener, honestly. What happens when people refuse to practice tolerance and accept others for who they are?
Any chaotic ongoings is, more or less, the correct answer. And unfortunately, this was one a partially, historically true, accurate example of how bad things can get out of hand should people allow such events to do so. Despite the rather horrifying and brutal murders of these people, though, it does show several major and vital bits of advice. Never panic, for example. Take a few moments to stop and think thoroughly about what's going on.
Jumping immediately to something so drastic as murder, however, should never be the first thing any person goes to.
Until next time,
Elena Black