The Role Of Reverend Mccarthyism In The Crucible

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A time tested play, The Crucible revolves around the Salem witch trials, however, the play is an allusion to the witch hunt of Communists during the Red Scare that occurred in the 1950s. Reverend Parris symbolizes of the American Government in the 1950s by providing propaganda and a place for the accusers to take flight, Abigail Williams and Joseph McCarthy. While Reverend Parris exhibits great pride in the power he has accrued, his status in Salem has made him a cowardly and paranoid man. The powerful Reverend Samuel Parris constantly searches for more people and places to influence. Proctor reveals that Parris is the first man who ever demanded for the deed to the minister’s house (152). During Puritan America, the people that owned land had the most influence in the town. By establishing a permanent residence in Salem, Parris …show more content…
During Act one, Parris screams that there is a group in the church that is against “him and all authority” (154). Parris understands that some people in Salem do not like him, but going as far as to believe that Salemites are opposed to his teachings and are trying to oust him from his position shows his paranoia. There is no evidence that people are trying to remove Parris from his ministerial duties, only that they are unhappy with how he delivers his sermons. Earlier in the same act, while the reverend berates Abigail and Betty, he reveals that, if the truth does not come out about the girls dancing in the woods, he believes that his “enemies will bring it out” (142). Parris believes, before he speaks and argues with the other townsmen, that people are trying to take his job away from him. The fact that he calls these people his “enemies” illustrates his distrust in others he hardly knows other than for their religion. For a man who wishes to gain more power, having people pull this information from Parris to expose him would be catastrophic to his power and
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