The Crucible and the Red Scare

The Crucible was written during the Red Scare and was a response to all of the witch hunts and distrust going around in the United States.  The Crucible takes place in a Puritan society in Salem, Massachusetts.  The town begins going on a witch hunt, pointing the finger at anyone they suspect to be a witch.  This is exactly like McCarthyism, which was happening during the Red Scare of the Cold War.  It involved turning in anyone who was suspected to be a communist into the national government.  This caused many problems in the United States in the Cold War, as well as in Salem in the 1600s.  People in Salem were constantly pointing the finger at other members of their society and turned them into the church.  They used pretty gruesome torture methods to get anyone they suspected to be a witch to confess.  Many people such as Abigail Williams turned in people without reason, like when she said, "I saw Sarah Good with the Devil!  I saw Goody Osburn with the Devil! I saw Bridget Bishop with the Devil!"(Miller).  This is not exactly what happened during the Salem witch hunt, but it is very similar to the Red Scare.  Many people were tortured or killed not too long ago in our own country with very little reason.  The Crucible is an accurate representation of what was happening during the Red Scare with McCarthyism and communism being very strong messages in the text.