Arthur Miller wrote "The Crucible" directly in response to the communist "witch hunt" of the 1940s and 1950s led by Sen. Joseph McCarthy. A research paper on this connection can't add much more to what has already been written on the subject. Instead, try to find a connection between modern-day America and the Salem witch hunts. Being a member of the Communist Party was never a crime in America, yet many members lost their jobs and their lives were ruined. Choose a group of people that you believe have been the subject of a "witch hunt" of one kind or another and draw parallels between them and the characters in the play. Try to find a group that has been targeted despite not breaking any laws.
Irony is a very misunderstood concept that is often missed in literature. Miller uses literary irony throughout "The Crucible" --- such as the fact that the one commandment that Proctor can't remember is the one pertaining to his own sin: adultery. A greater irony occurs when Elizabeth Proctor lies during the court proceedings to save her husband, but only winds up condemning him to death. Write a research paper on the use of irony in the play and how that use of irony conflicts with the confusion of irony with coincidence, paradox or just plain bad luck.
The opening of Act I of "The Crucible" and in several other spots throughout Act I, Arthur Miller includes extended prose narrative that includes prejudicial comments against Rev. Parris and provides extensive background information about the Puritan settlers. None of this material is available to theatergoers; therefore it is intended only for those who are actually reading the play. Craft a research paper that examines Arthur Miller's motives for including this material in the printed edition of the play and provide analysis of what it contributes to a reading of "The Crucible" and what the omission of this material from a performance sacrifices in terms of audience understanding.
An adequate explanation of the young girls making accusations of witchcraft in Salem has never been forwarded, but several theories have been proposed. According to "The Truth About History," one of these theories involves ergot poisoning caused by a fungus growing on wheat, which produces hallucinations and hysteria. Another theory is that Salem was the victim of an epidemic of encephalitis lethargica, an infectious sleeping sickness. A less exotic theory is based on the fact that the village of Salem seemed to be geographically divided between the haves and have-nots. This same boundary also just happened to separate the accusers from the accused. The entire witch hunt could possibly have been nothing more supernatural than a ploy in a long-running city feud.