Arthur Miller’s Commentary Essay

Arthur Miller’s commentary helps our understanding of the play very much. Through more character detail he has made it possible for us to understand exactly how the different characters are feeling, and why they behave the way they do, as in the case of Abigail using the whole situation to her advantage, and being very manipulative and sly, all of which are characteristics that we don’t like in ourselves. For example, Abigail was using the whole situation to get back at John Proctor, she wanted him but he didn’t want her, and in trying to gain his affections, she involved all of the people of Salem. During the play Abigail had one goal (to get John Proctor) and she didn’t care how she achieved this. Throughout the play the contrast between light and dark is a prominent feature. In the footnote at the begging of act one Miller has used the image of light â€Å"There is a narrow window at the left. Through it’s leaded pains the morning sunlight streams. A candle still burns near the bed†¦ The room gives of an air of clean spareness.† This symbolises that everything is OK, there are no bad things happening. Light throughout the play is use to represent good. As the story line continues the mood and even the scenes themselves become darker and more evil, even the weather becomes more negative and depressing. Dark is used throughout the play to symbolise bad. For example, the courtroom is always dark; there are no open windows and no candles. In some cases certain characters bring light into a scene that was dark, like John Proctor. But when he is accused of witchcraft the light that accompanies him became a lot dimmer. I also think Arthur Miller makes it very easy for us to pick out good and bad characters at the beginning of the play. But some of the characters switch sides as the play goes on, at the beginning of the play I found Reverend Hale was very annoying. However as the play developed he was one of the people who could see sense in the situation. Towards the end of the play you could tell which characters were good, and which were bad. Arthur Miller also puts the audience in a very annoying position because we can see how wrong and how stupid the characters are being. The audience would get very angry at the fact that only John Proctor and Mr Hale can see sense, even though it takes two acts for them to see it. An example of this would be John Proctor’s reaction to Abigail stumbling in with a needle in her stomach, claiming that John Proctor’s wife is a voodoo witch. â€Å"Why she done it herself I hope you aren’t takin it for proof, Mister†. Abigail claims this to get back at John Proctor; the audience however are led to believe that she did it to herself, even though it is not actually said in the text. All of this would make the audience very angry, and would make us start to think why the characters aren’t doing anything about it. In this case I’m going to point out Judge Danforth because he is so wrapped up in his own little world and doing what he thinks is â€Å"right†. At first Danforth only frustrated me with his ignorance, but as the story line developed I found my frustration turning to anger and my anger into hate. Abby also frustrated me because she twisted the situation for her own benefit and to get at John Proctor  At the end of each act Miller leaves the play in a state of climax. At the end of act one Miller draws the curtain on the girl’s firing frantic and false accusations of witchcraft against many women in Salem, act three ends with the dramatic exit of Mr Hale â€Å"I denounce these proceedings, I quit this court!† Through this approach it always keeps the audience on the edge of their seats. It keeps the audience swept up in the story line, almost like a soap opera today, where each episode ends with a dramatic last scene (cliff hanger), and ensuring they watch the next episode because they want to know what happens, I find it very frustrating. In fact, The Crucible is very similar to a modern day soap opera, in that its success as a whole depends on how involved the viewers, or audience, become with the characters and the story line. I also think that because it is based on history, the story might not be true to word, which adds fascination. The play was not only written to record historical events in Salem but was also written to warn people of modern day witch hunts, such as the McCarthy â€Å"witch† hunt (1950’s) in which people were asked to turn in anyone who was a Communist at the time. The naming and shaming followed a similar pattern of that in Salem.