The World of Miller’s The Crucible: A Cognitive-Historical Approach

Arthur Miller’s The Crucible is one of the most controversial American plays in the 20th century. Although it deals with the Salem witchcraft trials in the 17th century, Miller intended it as an allegory about McCarthyism and as a basis for the censure of political issues after WWII. Being aware of the readers’ acquaintance with the events of Salem witchcraft trials, Miller chose the 17th century historical context in such a way that the readers understand the political circumstances of their own time through equating those religious schemata with the political ones a couple of centuries later. This paper tries to shed light on the fact that the readers’ awareness of the political conditions of the time can be enhanced by their familiarity with religious conditions of the period of confrontation with witchcraft. To that end, the article addresses the historical context of The Crucible adopting a cognitive point of view. It subsequently distinguishes the opposing discourses (dominant and antagonist discourses) and sub-discourses concerning their embedded schemas in order to acquire a better understanding of the text and its relation with McCarthyism. Regarding the religious context of the play and the political context of McCarthy era, this study concludes that the powerful dominant discourse of the community could not persuade all the members of the society to follow its rules, consequently the antagonist discourse and sub-discourses emerge and continue their objections in the face of the dominant discourse in order to challenge its schemata and power.