The Crucible [Paperback]

A haunting examination of groupthink and mass hysteria in a rural community
 
The place is Salem, Massachusetts, in 1692, an enclave of rigid piety huddled on the edge of a wilderness. Its inhabitants believe unquestioningly in their own sanctity. But in Arthur Miller's edgy masterpiece, that very belief will have poisonous consequences when a vengeful teenager accuses a rival of witchcraft—and then when those accusations multiply to consume the entire village.

First produced in 1953, at a time when America was convulsed by a new epidemic of witch-hunting,The Cruciblebrilliantly explores the threshold between individual guilt and mass hysteria, personal spite and collective evil. It is a play that is not only relentlessly suspenseful and vastly moving but that compels readers to fathom their hearts and consciences in ways that only the greatest theater ever can.

A drama of emotional power and impact —New York PostThe Crucible
cellpadding= 0 cellspacing= 5 border= 0 A Note on the Historical Accuracy of This Play
Act One (An Overture)
Act Two
Act Three
Act Four
Echoes Down the Corridor
Cast
AppendixWinner of the National Book Award Medal for Distinguished Contribution to American LettersArthur Millerwas born in New York City in 1915 and studied at the University of Michigan. His plays includeAll My Sons(1947),Death of a Salesman(1949),The Crucible(1953),A View from the BridgeandA Memory of Two Mondays(1955),After the Fall(1963),Incident at Vichy(1964),The Price(1968),The Creation of the World and Other Business(1972) andThe American Clock. He has also written two novels,Focus(1945), andThe Misfits, which was filmed in 1960, and the text forIn Russia(1969),Chinese Encounters(1979), andIn the Country(1977), three books of photographs by his wife, Inge Morath. More rels3