“How Does Arthur Miller Develop Tension and Build Hysteria in Act One of the Crucible?”

How does Arthur Miller develop tension and build hysteria in Act 1 of The Crucible?

In this essay I intend to discover the techniques Arthur Miller uses to create a feeling of tension and hysteria throughout the play The Crucible. The Crucible was set in the late 17th century – this being the prime era for accusations of witchcraft and wizardry, so from the very beginning of the book, knowing the era in which it was set, it creates a sense of tension and an uneasy feel to the play, as you know what happened in that period of time. Especially, as the McCarthy witch trials made Salem famous.

At the beginning of the play, Miller introduces the scene and just one of many characters; it entails phrases that leave the audience to assume that this is leading to a specific event happening, such as “The Salem tragedy, which is about to begin in these pages, developed from a paradox.” Instantly, the audience begin to vividly imagine the happenings of the play and what these consequences can be, yet still not knowing for certain. By this, Miller builds up the tension gradually and gradually, giving the audience only one suspicion, that the book will contain frightful scenes with only misery and ‘tragedy’.

During Act One, the pace of the play seems to overpower the act. The use of the hyphen in “No, Good Putnam, it is -” shows the interruption in conversations between characters, Miller gives the idea that the characters are stressed and heavily under pressure as they cannot awaken a young girl. Also, we know that this is all taking place within a bedroom, and in this strict Puritanical society the bedroom would have been reasonably small. By the use of this small room and imagery of it being overcrowded with adults, Miller gives the feeling of the characters being suffocated and a lack of privacy in the village - this continuing to gradually make the audience feel awkward and apprehensive about what is soon to happen.

The dialogues used by Miller during Act One...