Many of the themes and motifs in The Crucible are very relevant for us today...loyalty, integrity and reputation heavily influence the choices of all of the characters in this play. As you've noticed in the book, the characters' fear of witchcraft in their midst leads them to be suspicious of many of the people of Salem; it gives them license to accuse each other without any real reason or evidence.
In our country, over the past 7 years especially, we have seen many circumstances where fear of the unknown leads to 'mass hysteria'; where people's actions are called into question and the truth is blurred. Your homework is to find a modern day connection to The Crucible, an event from the past 5 years that has led to or come as a result of "mass hysteria". Like we discussed in class, analyze the soaps for your articles and post it in the comments section.
-ms. mack
enlishis4everyone@hotmail.com