Rating: 
Summary: Just an Okay play....
Review: Having just read The Scarlet Letter before The Crucible, I found The Crucible less mature and more of anarchic play. It was difficult to follow at times when there are many characters in one scene. I thought the twist in the plot at the end very surprising and it reveals that not just women are prejudiced for witchcraftery, but men too. Miller's organization of character importance was slightly off balance as he considered some of the more innocent characters such as Abby more important than John Proctor (although he does appear often in the play but the urgency to keep him the spotlight just wasn't there)
Rating: 
Summary: Miller's Best
Review: Truly Artur Miller's greatest work. I own at least three copies of this book and have read it over twelve times. No matter how many times I have read it, watched it live, watched it on tape, or performed in it, the story has never bored me. It constantly reveals something new to me and forces me to look at my world in a slightly new manner after each reading. By far Miller's best play, it is also his most well-known. It contains strong connections with McCarthy-ism and is therefore relevant to even today. It is important to realize that while it is set in 1692, it has connections to all time periods and thusly, must not be trapped within it's own time period. A driving piece of work that will blow you away.
Rating:
Summary: The Crucible
Review: A very twisted tale on the society who's life, and laws were dictated by "God". This play shows a grim and evil side of America in the 1600's, and gives us a glimps of the dark side of christianity.
Rating: 
Summary: An unsatisfying read.
Review: "The Crucible" is about a fascinating time in America's early history: The Salem Witch Trials. I found that Miller portrayed everyone as being naive and at times childish, and I found myself focusing on the utter stupidity of events, rather than the complexity of the characters. Until the fourth act, I found myself bored and frustrated. But, the pace picked up by the last act, and true drama surfaced. With very little stage direction, I cannot be fully taken with this play. I think it would have been better as a novel, as that is how it currently reads. You could write a good character analysis, once you get past the yearning to scream at the characters about how wrong they are. But other than that, this play is somewhat of a letdown. I do not recommend.
Rating:
Summary: A historical lesson in the flaws of man.
Review: This is a play that is based on the Salem Witch Trials, and I have heard that acutal quotes have been taken from actual trial transcripts in its writing, but I haven't delved into the actual transcripts to find out for myself as of yet. It is because of the historical nature of this play that I enjoyed reading it. Although the spoken language that is used by Miller for his characters is eloquent it may make this a difficult read for some. I didn't find it as hard to follow as the language used by Shakespeare, but there a few times that I had to re-read a line here or there. The plot is surprisingly clever and gives the reader the idea that this could very well have been how it happened. The author's ability to touch on every aspect of the experience is truly moving. The writing is brilliant and I was engulfed in the tradgedy caused by the horrors of life in Salem during this time period. There are numerous moments filled with tension, and I found myself hoping for the best for all of the wrongly accused. This is novel that points out the cruelty of human nature when survival is a person's only concern. It also points out the level of hysteria a population can reach. If a reader doesn't take those two lessons away as learned, then perhaps they will take the simpler lesson that is rarely touched upon away with them. Be kind to your neighbors as ou never know who will have the next profound effect on your like.
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Summary: The Crucible, an exciting and riveting book
Review: "The Crucible" by Arthur Miller, was a very intriguing, and exciting book. There were many exciting and unexpected twists and turns in the plot, which kept you on the edge of your seat. The ending was my personal favorite, and one of the most exciting spots in the book. There were many assumed events that were surprising in how they turned out. The characters were also well explained so that you could get a feel for how their personalities were, but vague enough that you could still use your own mind, and imaginaiton to elaborate on them.
I felt that the most intriguing character was John Proctor. Every time you thought that you had an idea of how he might react, or what he would do next, there would always be some twist to keep the book interesting. Reverend John Hale was also an character that was not easy to predict. He never seemed to take a side in the whole matter, he seemed to want to do the right thing, but he would never let his emotions fall to the wayside of the law. As I read the book, I found one character who seemed to be somewhat shakey, and a little shady at times. This was Reverend Paris. He seemed to put out an aire to the townspeople that he was there to help them, and to do God's will, but he never looked to follow it. It appeared as though he would never do anyhting based on what he felt was good and true, he would base his reactions on how it would effect his reputation, and popularity with the townspeople. For example, in the beginning of the book, he is talking to Abigail, and trying to get her to tell him what had happened the previous night that caused Betty to fall into what appeared to be a coma. He tells her that he does not want his name to be soiled with the town, that he doesn't want to be involved with something that is so bad, witchcraft. He also says later on to the others in the room with him, that he should be paid more, because he graduated from a better college, as if to say that he is worth more to them.
The charcaters are what made the book so good, they made the exciting scenes more intriguing, and the riveting scenes seem as though your heart would stop. The plot is built around the characters in the book, and how they react to the incident that is happeneing with the town. They keep the book at top notch.
The developemnt of the chacters in the book, and the plot around them is constantly moving and changing. The book is written so that when you reach the climax, it has been so built up, that you can't even fathom what will happen in the ending. I found it to be a wonderful, and riveting book, and the writing by the author is fabulous, and makes you unable to put it down. I would definitely recommend this book to anyone.
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Summary: In which time period is this book set again?
Review: The Crucible by Arthur Miller is not really a book, but I've decided to count it anyway. The play is short, and I finished it in one afternoon because I was so engrossed. Also, I enjoyed it much more than I did The Death of a Salesman, also written by Miller. One of my favorite aspects of the play was its relevance to modern times; at points, I couldn't tell whether the action was set in Salem in the 1600s or Washington DC in the 1950s. In addition, the first act included one of my favorite lines I've read recently: "Their fathers had, of course, been persecuted in England. So now they found it necessary to deny any other sect its freedom, lest their New Journalism be defiled and corrupted by wrong ways and deceitful ideas."
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Summary: Learning About the Past
Review: Showing affliction in almost every character, this play shows you the consequences that many people faced for their beliefs. The Crucible was a very well written play. Arthur Miller chose an excellent topic to write about. Learning about the Salem witch trials and the ways of that time period was interesting and very informative. While getting boring at times with the same scene, I enjoyed reading it.
Rating:
Summary: Fine dramatization of the Salem Witch Trials
Review: This is a wonderful play that is timeless even if it was originally intended as an indictment of the Mc Carthy era witchhunts. The action centers around the character of John Proctor who is forced to choose between saving his wife from false accusations and saving his own reputation. The dramatic tension is palpable as the story progresses from the introduction of the various characters and their backgrounds and motivations to the climactic courtroom scenes. The play is destined to survive because it explores essential truths about human nature including the willingness of people to accuse their neighbors and follow mass hysteria and these are timeless themes.
Rating:
Summary: Horrifically Good
Review: The Crucible demonstrated human nature at its worst, and what happens when the oppressed are given the power of life-and-death over others. Interesting how democratic America had its roots in such unfairness, and how, despite how much civilization has progressed, the strong still often team up against the weak, and people aren't willing to stand up for the truth.
It takes place during a time of suspicion, the Salem Witch trials. A girl named Abigail is given the power to decide who is a witch(and should therefore die), and who isn't. She uses this power to get revenge on the wife of the man she loves. Little does she know that, eventually, this man is killed, as are many other good people in the village.
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