GeezerVison

In Salem, Province of Massachusetts Bay, Puritan colonists lead an isolated theocracy in constant conflict with Native Americans. The story begins with Betty Parris lying motionless in an attic. The previous evening, her father Samuel Parris witnessed her, some other girls, and his slave Tituba dancing in the forest while naked. The village becomes rife with rumors of witchcraft. Parris is concerned that the event will cause him to be removed from his position as the town's preacher. He questions his niece and adopted daughter Abigail Williams^[a]. Abigail denies that her and the girls were engaged in witchcraft. Afterwards, Thomas Putnam and his wife Ann arrive. At the Putnams' urging, Parris reluctantly reveals that he has invited John Hale to investigate. Betty attempts to jump out of the window, and Abigail coerces the others to "stick to their story" of merely dancing in the woods. They comply out of fear of being labelled witches, despite trying to conjure a curse against Elizabeth Proctor that night. Betty then passes out.

John Proctor, Elizabeth's husband, arrives and sends the other girls out and confronts Abigail, who denies allegations of witchcraft. It is revealed that Abigail once worked as a servant for the Proctors, and that she and John had an affair, for which she was fired. Abigail still harbors feelings for John and believes they are reciprocated, but John denies this. Abigail angrily mocks John for denying his true feelings for her. Meanwhile, Betty bolts upright and begins screaming. Parris runs back into the bedroom and various villagers arrive. Abigail, standing quietly in a corner, witnesses them bickering over witchcraft, Betty's health, and Parris' pay as minister.

John Hale arrives and questions Parris, Abigail and Tituba over the girls' activities in the woods. Abigail claims Tituba forced her to drink blood; Tituba instead states that Abigail begged her to conjure a deadly curse. Parris threatens to whip Tituba to death if she does not confess to witchcraft. Tituba breaks down and falsely claims that the Devil is bewitching her and others in town and accuses Sarah Osborne and Sarah Good of witchcraft. Mrs. Putnam identifies Osborne as her former midwife and asserts that she must have killed her children. Abigail decides to play along with Tituba in order to prevent others from discovering her affair with Proctor. She leaps up, begins contorting wildly, and names Osborne, Good, and Bridget Bishop as having been "dancing with the devil". Betty suddenly rises and begins mimicking Abigail's movements and words, and accuses George Jacobs. The three continue with their accusations as Hale orders the arrest of the named people and sends for judges to try them.

John and Elizabeth are incredulous that nearly forty people have been arrested for witchcraft. John knows that these allegations are untrue, as Abigail told him such, but is unsure of how to confess without revealing their affair. Elizabeth is disconcerted to learn her husband was alone with Abigail, who she believes still lusts after him. Mary Warren, the Proctors' servant, arrives at the Proctors' home and gives Elizabeth a poppet that she made while serving as a court witness. She reveals that 39 of the accused have been arrested so far, and might be hanged. She also reveals that Goody Osborne will be hanged, but Sarah Good's life is safe, as she confessed that she made a compact with Lucifer to torment Christians. Angered that Mary is neglecting her duties, John threatens to beat her. Mary retorts that she is now an official in the court, and that she must appear there on a daily basis. It is revealed that Elizabeth was to be arrested until Mary spoke in her defense. Mary refuses to identify Elizabeth's accuser, but Elizabeth surmises accurately that it was Abigail. She implores John to tell the court that the witchcraft allegations are false. John is reluctant, fearing that doing so will require him to reveal his affair.

Hale arrives at the Proctors' home, stating that he is interviewing all of the accused. He mentions that Rebecca Nurse was also named, but admits that he doubts this due to her extreme piousness, though he emphasizes that anything is possible. Hale is skeptical about the Proctors' religiousness, noting that they do not attend church regularly and that one of their three sons has not been baptized; John replies that this is due to his disdain for Parris. Challenged to recite the Ten Commandments, John forgets "thou shalt not commit adultery". When Hale questions her, Elizabeth is angered that he did not question Abigail first. At Elizabeth's urging, John tells Hale he knows that the accusations are fake. When Hale responds that many of the accused have confessed, John points out that they were to be hanged if they did not; Hale reluctantly acknowledges this. Giles Corey and Francis Nurse enter the house and inform John and Hale that both of their wives have been arrested for witchcraft, on account of reading "suspicious" books and sacrificing children, respectively.

A posse led by clerk Ezekiel Cheever and town marshal George Herrick arrive soon afterwards and present a warrant for Elizabeth's arrest, much to Hale's surprise. He informs John that Abigail had a pain-induced fit earlier that evening and a needle was found stuck in her stomach; Abigail claimed that Elizabeth stabbed her with the poppet's needle through witchcraft. Mary asserts that she made the doll and stuck the needle into it, and that Abigail saw her do so. Cheever is unconvinced and prepares to arrest Elizabeth. John angrily tears the warrant to shreds and threatens Herrick and Cheever until Elizabeth calms him down and surrenders herself. He calls Hale a coward and asks him why the accusers remain unchallenged. Hale suggests that misfortune has befallen Salem because of an unmasked crime. John then orders Mary to go to court with him and expose the other girls' lies, but she protests. Aware of John's affair, she warns him that Abigail is willing to expose it if necessary. John is shocked but determines that the truth must prevail.

37 days later, Martha Corey is on trial in court. Francis and Giles desperately interrupt the proceedings, demanding to be heard. The men are thrown out of the main room. John Proctor arrives with Mary Warren and they inform Deputy Governor Danforth and Judge Hathorne about the girls' lies. Danforth then informs an unaware John that Elizabeth is pregnant, and promises to spare her from execution until the child is born, hoping to persuade John to withdraw his case. John refuses to back down and submits a deposition signed by 91 locals attesting to the good character of Elizabeth, Rebecca Nurse and Martha Corey; Herrick also attests to John's truthfulness as well. The deposition is dismissed by Parris and Hathorne as illegal. Hale criticizes the decision and demands to know why the accused canot defend themselves. Danforth replies that the word of the accused cannot be trusted given the "invisible nature" of witchcraft.

Danforth then orders that all 91 locals named in the deposition be arrested for questioning. Giles Corey submits his own deposition, accusing Thomas Putnam of forcing his daughter to accuse George Jacobs in order to buy up his land^[b]. When asked by Hathorne to reveal the source of his information, Giles refuses, fearing that they will also be arrested. When Danforth threatens him with arrest for contempt, Giles argues that he cannot be arrested for "contempt of a hearing." Danforth then declares the court in session and Giles is arrested. John submits Mary's deposition, which declares that she was coerced to accuse people by Abigail. Abigail denies Mary's assertions that they are pretending, and stands by her story about the poppet. When told by Parris and Hathorne to "pretend to be possessed", Mary is too afraid to comply. John reveals that Abigail and the other girls were caught dancing naked in the woods by Parris on the night of Betty Parris' alleged "bewitchment". When Danforth begins to question Abigail, she claims that Mary has begun to bewitch her with a cold wind and John loses his temper. He confesses their affair, Abigail's resulting firing, and Abigail's attempts to murder Elizabeth.

Danforth brings Elizabeth in to confirm this story. Unaware of John's public confession, Elizabeth lies and states that there was no affair, and that she fired Abigail out of wild suspicion. Hale begs Danforth to reconsider his judgement, but Danforth throws out this testimony based solely upon John's earlier assertion that Elizabeth would never tell a lie. Abigail and the girls run about screaming, claiming that Mary's spirit is attacking them. When Danforth announces Mary's death sentence, she recants her allegations against them, claiming that John Proctor forced her to turn against the others and that he harbors the devil. John, having given up all hope, declares that "God is dead", and is arrested. Furious, Hale denounces the proceedings and leaves the court.

Three months later in the town jail, Tituba, sharing a cell with Sarah Good, starts hearing voices and claims that she can talk to Satan. Herrick, depressed at having arrested so many of his neighbors, has turned to alcoholism. Many villagers have been charged with witchcraft; while most have been imprisoned due to a confession, 12 have been executed. 7 more are to be hanged at sunrise for refusing to confess including John Proctor, Rebecca Nurse and Martha Corey. Giles Corey was pressed to death as the court attempted to extract a plea; though by holding out, Giles ensured that his sons would inherit his property. The village has become dysfunctional, and news of rebellion against the courts in nearby Andover arrives. Abigail, fearful of the consequences, steals Parris's life savings and boards a ship to England with Mercy Lewis. Danforth and Hathorne have returned to Salem to meet with Parris, and are surprised to learn that Hale is meeting with the condemned. Parris, who has lost everything to Abigail, reports that he has received death threats. He begs Danforth to postpone the executions in order to secure confessions. Hale, deeply remorseful and blaming himself, has returned to ask the accused to falsely confess and avoid execution. He presses Danforth to pardon the remaining seven and put the entire affair behind them. Danforth refuses, stating that pardons or postponement would cast doubt on the veracity of previous confessions and hangings.

Danforth and Hale summon Elizabeth and ask her to persuade John to confess. She is bitter towards Hale, both for doubting her earlier and for wanting John to ruin his good name, but agrees to speak with her husband. She and John have a lengthy discussion, during which she commends him for holding out and not confessing. John says he is refusing to confess not out of religious conviction but through contempt for his accusers and the court. The two finally reconcile, with Elizabeth forgiving John. A conflicted John agrees to falsely confess to engaging in witchcraft.

Danforth, Hathorne, and Parris ask John to testify to the guilt of the remainder of the accused, to which John refuses. Danforth is disappointed by this reluctance, but at the urging of Hale and Parris, allows John to sign a written confession. John is wary, thinking his verbal confession is sufficient. As they press him further, John eventually signs, but refuses to hand the paper over, stating he does not want his family to be stigmatized by the public confession. The men argue until Proctor renounces his confession entirely, ripping up the signed document. Danforth calls for the sheriff and John is led away, to be hanged. Facing an imminent rebellion, Putnam and Parris frantically run out to beg Proctor to confess. Hale, guilty over John's death, pleads with Elizabeth to convince John but she refuses, stating John has "found his goodness".

The play's action takes place 70 years after the community arrived as settlers from Britain. The people on whom the characters are based would have retained strong regional dialects from their home country. Miller gave all his characters the same colloquialisms, such as "Goody" or "Goodwife", and drew on the rhythms and speech patterns of the King James Bible to achieve the effect of historical perspective he wanted.^[2]

Miller originally called the play Those Familiar Spirits^[29] before renaming it as The Crucible. The word "crucible" is defined as a severe test or trial; alternately, a container in which metals or other substances are subjected to high temperatures. The characters whose moral standards prevail in the face of death, such as John Proctor and Rebecca Nurse, symbolically refuse to sacrifice their principles or to falsely confess.

• 1957 – The Crucible (also titled Hexenjagd or Les Sorcières de Salem), a joint Franco-East German film production by Belgian director Raymond Rouleau with a screenplay adapted by Jean-Paul Sartre.
• 1996 – The Crucible with a screenplay by Arthur Miller himself. The cast included Paul Scofield, Daniel Day-Lewis, and Winona Ryder. This adaptation earned Miller an Academy Award nomination for Best Screenplay Based on Material Previously Produced or Published, his only nomination.
• 2014 – The Old Vic's production of The Crucible which starred Richard Armitage and directed by Yaël Farber was filmed and distributed to cinemas across the UK, Ireland, and the United States.^[30]

The play was adapted by composer Robert Ward as an opera, The Crucible, which was first performed in 1961 and received the 1962 Pulitzer Prize for Music^[31] and the New York Music Critics' Circle Award.^[32]

William Tuckett presented a ballet at The Royal Ballet in London in 2000 to a collage of music by Charles Ives with designs by Ralph Steadman.^[33] A production by Helen Pickett for the Scottish Ballet was first performed in 2019 at the Edinburgh International Festival; its American premiere was in May 2020 at The Kennedy Center's Eisenhower Theater in Washington, D.C.^[34]

The play has been presented several times on television. A 1968 production starred George C. Scott as John Proctor, Colleen Dewhurst (Scott's wife at the time) as Elizabeth Proctor, Melvyn Douglas as Thomas Danforth, and Tuesday Weld as Abigail Williams. A production by the Royal Shakespeare Company at the Gielgud Theatre in London's West End in 2006 was recorded for the Victoria and Albert Museum's National Video Archive of Performance.^[35]