Vilhelm Schmidt answers “I haven't finished reading this book but...”

Lula Payne asked this question about The Crucible:

I haven't finished reading this book but don't we need to consider the fact that it's writting about a real period in history? By the time this happened in salem, women didn't have power nor respect, we couldn't expect from A.M. to ignore that, he had to stay true to history, to what really happened. If this is not the case, please explain me why

Vilhelm Schmidt Very little is known about the actual events being depicted. The puritanical zeitgeist forbade most forms of story telling and record keeping at the t…moreVery little is known about the actual events being depicted. The puritanical zeitgeist forbade most forms of story telling and record keeping at the time.

This is, however, somewhat negligible because the play isn’t really commenting on the Salem Witch Trials so much as McCarthyism and the communist “witch hunts” of the late 40’s and early 50’s. The Salem backdrop is just a metaphor. The basic outline of events is historically accurate, but all of the dialog is fictional and aimed very specifically at senator Joseph MaCarthy. At its core, the story is about the sacrosanct necessity of due process and credible evidence—two Things that were sorely lacking from American politics at the time. Still are as far as I’m concerned. (less)

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