Arthur Miller relies on expressionist dramaturgy in
several ways for The Crucible. First, the subject matter itself
connects closely to expressionism which often focuses on taboo subjects. In writing
about the Salem Witch Trials and comparing them to the Red Scare, Miller knew that he
was going to shock many people from his time period. He strongly criticizes religious
hypocrisy and "neighborly" greed.
In regards to dramaturgy,
Miller's stage directions, especially those before Acts 1 and 3, demonstrate
expressionism through their focus on the use of light. For Act 1, Miller describes Rev.
Parris's room as having sunlight streaming through a narrow window, and for Act 3,
sunlight again illuminates the courtroom as the act begins. It is as if the natural
world (represented by sunlight) tries to assert itself within a world full of humanity's
darkness and denial of the truth. Similarly, many expressionist works feature emotional
outbursts from characters. This is certainly true of The
Crucible--from Mary Warren's breakdown, to Rev. Hale's "quitting the court,"
to John Proctor's passionate cries against injustice, the emotional scenes annihilate
the strait-laced Puritan veneer.
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