Name: Mabel Humanities
7th Grade The Crucible/McCarthy/Modern Comparative Essay
Fight or Flight?
What would you do if your freedom, or the freedom of your friend, was in jeopardy? Would you run away, or would you fight back? When people in power felt threatened, the most common thing they did was to blame someone else. This is called scapegoating. The only way to match scapegoating is by letting honesty and a strong sense of rightness guide you. This is integrity. Often, when people with integrity are threatened, their integrity leads them to resist. During times of oppression and scapegoating in history, strong individuals have chosen to keep their integrity and show resistance.
The Crucible, by Arthur Miller, was about the Salem Witch Trials. Abigail Williams was in many scenes, because she was very important. However, she was important because she was the one who was falsely accusing everyone of witchcraft. This has happened in different forms every once in awhile, but sometimes, people need to realize that the right choice is often the hardest choice. When Danforth wanted to hang Proctor’s confession on the door of the church, Proctor’s integrity took over and he tore up the false confession: “PROCTOR: I can. And there’s your first marvel, that I can. You have made your magic now, for now I do think I see some shred of goodness in John Proctor,” (Miller, p. 131). John Proctor knew that the false confession would save him, but he just couldn’t lie. He knew he could save himself, but he chose selflessness over selfishness, and he died for it. He knew it was wrong to sign, and he tore up the contract as an act of resistance. He was against the witch trials from the start, and his final act showed resistance. It also proved that however much he was tortured or hurt, his integrity remained. His sense of rightness remained, and it gave him the courage to stand up to the power. It gave him the guts to look death in the face, and the strength to resist the temptation of lies in order to live. Eventually, the people of Salem came to their senses and stopped the Witch Trials. Unfortunately, it was not the last time people would find such hysteria.
When Senator Joseph McCarthy started the second Red Scare in 1947, he intended it as a campaign to get him re-elected. However, it lead to the execution of a Jewish couple, and this decision caused an uproar from the people of New York. The Rosenbergs were a couple who were accused of passing information about bombs. The people were outraged! “Many argued that it was impossible to get a fair trial at the height of the Red Scare. Others claimed that even if the Rosenbergs were guilty, their offense did not warrant the death penalty,” (Fitzgerald, p. 54, 2007). Even those who believed they were guilty did not think that they had to die, and there were several marches protesting the decision. Many people thought that fair trials simply did not exist during that time period. One of the reasons that caused the Rosenbergs to be arrested was that they wouldn’t give up their dignity and sign an oath of loyalty. Just as John Proctor did in The Crucible, the Rosenbergs chose to keep their integrity, and show resistance at the same time. This was possibly a way to show their displeasure with the way the people behaved, accusing each other left and right, and tossing aside everything that America stands for. As many times as this has happened before, it is never over. It’s a cycle of fear that continues until we find the strength to stop it, and we are approaching another such time period right now.
Fear has influenced some of the worst decisions of all time, and fear is taking hold now. However, bad decisions are being made for other reasons, too. These decisions often revolve around oppression of some sort, and women in power are currently facing several challenges. “Mr. McConnell’s coda has already been repurposed as a sort of rallying cry. Across social media, Ms. Warren’s allies and supporters posted with the hashtag #shepersisted, calling to mind some Democrats’ embrace of the term “nasty woman” after Mr. Trump deployed it to describe Hillary Clinton during a debate,” (https://www.nytimes.com/2017/02/08/us/politics/elizabeth-warren-coretta-scott-king.html?_r=0). Elizabeth Warren was silenced in a senate meeting, and her supporters are very upset! People have turned the words of the man who silenced her into posters and tweets that show resistance. People are also bringing back other derogatory quotes and using them to show their support for Hillary Clinton, Elizabeth Warren, and justice. Words used to hurt are being turned into examples of resistance and integrity. Supporters are transforming insults into battle cries that sweep across social media, and are taken up by those who follow the cause. Resistance comes from integrity, and we are resisting now. We are trying, and those who try will inevitably succeed, even if not in the way we expect.
In times of turmoil, there has always been someone who was willing to risk their life for justice. They became fighters, campaigning for integrity and opposing their oppressors, and when their fight was done, they became legend. Throughout history, people have been put down, oppressed, marginalized, and discriminated against. Although some lost heart and fell down, others took the blows and stood tall. They followed integrity, and they let it lead them down a hard path. They knew the trials that awaited them, but they carried on. They fought back against those who sought to shut them away, and they made their voices heard. They were willing to take massive risks for the sake of all people, and we must be willing to do the same. We have to acknowledge our mistakes, but we can’t live in the past. History is important, but it’s all building up to now. Nothing we do can change what we did, so we have to focus on what we’re doing. All those people who died in the struggle were trying to make life worth living for everyone. If we don’t take a stand, we dishonor their memory, and all the sacrifices they made in the name of a better tomorrow. Nothing improves on its own, so we have to work for change. If you want something done, you have to do it yourself. You can’t rely on others to save you. Even if you are afraid, don’t let fear drag you down. Know that it is there, but don’t let it stop you. As Mark Twain said, “Courage is resistance to fear, mastery of fear, not absence of fear.” Strength is key to success, but strength is not fearlessness. If you are oppressed, speak out! Make them hear you, don’t stop until you feel satisfied! Change doesn't come overnight, so perseverance, resistance, and integrity are key to making things right. It may not be easy, but it’s worth it in the end.