Puritan Concepts of the Devil and Witches in ‘The Crucible' (Essay Sample)

Name Tutor Course Date Puritan Concepts of the Devil and Witches in ‘The Crucible’ The Puritans were a group of Church of England rebels. They believed they were chosen by God as special people and required all citizens to attend church and to study the Bible. This religion was very harsh in structure and any Puritan not seen reading the Bible or attending services was automatically considered a Devil worshipper. Studying the Bible was the only way to keep evil away (Cohen 1214). Puritan laws were created based on the laws of religion. They were stringent and anyone breaking laws faced consequences. Their sermons consisted strictly of preaching. There was no singing, dancing, or playing because they were distractions and allowed the Devil into your soul. Because of this, Puritans lived in constant fear as they were not allowed individuality. As strongly as they believe in God, they did so too about the existence of Satan and witchcraft. The Crucible is a play written in 1953 by Arthur Miller. It is loosely based on the Salem witch trials of 1692, where more than 100 people were accused of practicing witchcraft, 19 of whom were hanged. The convictions are seen to be unfair and reckless, evidence presented for the cases were not tangible. They were based on issues that could not be proven. Some evidences were purely based on vision and dreams. The play brings into focus the Puritans’ concepts that Satan is in fact real, that he, like God, has supernatural powers, and that witches are his servants through which he fulfils his aim of leading people away from God (Barry 3). The puritans believed that Satan was existent. This is evident when Reverend Hale, while speaking to Parris and the Putnams, who claim that there are witches in Salem, says “We cannot look to superstition in this. The Devil is precise the marks of his presence are definite as stone (Act 1). At the end of this line, Arthur Miller comments that the particular line “never raised a laugh in any audience that has seen this play” (Simmons 1193). By this he means to say that there are still several people who like Reverend Hale, believe in the existence of a spiritual world beyond. We also learn through the play, that the puritans believed, as the Bible states, that the Devil had been God’s angel. After fallout, the devil took to revenge by using any means necessary to bring down God’s works and his people. Reverend Hale remarks that the ways of the devil are noticeable and it is easy for him to deceive man, as he did God. Therefore the devil is an enemy of humankind, and just as God can select people to be saved, he too, can select those to be bewitched. According to the Crucible, the Puritans also believed the devil to be very powerful. This concept is manifested when Mrs. Putnam comments ‘with vicious certainty’ that “the devil’s touch is heavier than sick. It’s death” (Simmons 1193). This is line with the law of opposite that for one God to exist there has to be a devil. This is emphasized more by the belief that the Devil (Lucifer) was once God’s angel, but was banished. He therefore is powerful enough, to disrupt and destroy God’s creation. In order for the devil to accomplish his mission, the Puritans also believe that he appointed helpers or servants on earth, known as witches. Mary Warren tells the Proctors that Sarah Good will hang after having confessed to writing her name is the Devil’s black book “with her blood, and bound herself to torment Christians till God’s thrown down - and we all must worship Hell forevermore” (Cohen 1214). These witches would then be rewarded with super powers. The play also brings to light the fact that the Puritans did not have a clear way of identify...