The Crucible by Arthur Miller

As I work to read the list I give my students of "Books to Read Before you Die," I grabbed The Crucible by Arthur Miller off my shelf.

 

As a substitute, I watched the second half of the movie multiple times, so I felt a familiarity with the characters, setting, and plot. Now I want to go back and watch the whole movie.

The story is engrossing. It ostensibly centers on the Salem Witch Trials, but is obviously so much more. The tale reveals the very dark underbelly of humanity. Lust, greed, fear. It's all in there. 

The story begins with young women doing what young women do: fighting for an escape and freedom. One has apparently seduced a married man and sees her chance to break him free from his long-suffering wife. Not only do the girls shout, "Witch" in order to absolve themselves, the town uses the opportunity to free itself of gadflies and cranks, or even obstacles to prosperity. 

The panic, the rush to judgment, the absolute certainty mirror our own during the Covid nightmare.

Nothing has changed. 

John Proctor takes center stage as he seeks to redeem himself from his sin of adultery and betrayal. He is the hero of the play. 

Interestingly, after the madness, the town returns to "normal" and consigns the horror to a never-spoken-of anecdote. This too is typical of humanity. We don't learn. We intentionally forget. 

The play is horrifying. It's a slow-motion train wreck in which multiple people yelled, "Stop!" Yet the reader knows it will not stop until the cancer has worked itself out. 

Never didactic, the play shines a bright light on our own foibles.