Arthur Miller Beloved dramatist:Was he a communist

sympathizer?

Life Facts• Born in 1915

• Career writer/ dramatist

• Family -three marriages; one to actress Marilyn Monroe!

• Wrote The Crucible as a response to the miscarriage of justice by an overactive organization called HUAC that blacklisted and convicted people (including himself) as communist sympathizers.

The Accusation...• Was it justified? When the

HUAC (House Un-American Activities Committee) cited Miller for contempt of congress in 1957, he was 10 years removed from meetings with communist writers with whom he associated.(That was 1947).

• This story was reported in The Milwaukee Sentinel on June 1, 1957.

His Inspiration for The Crucible

False Accusations cast a shadow on his character.

His best response was to review history and the ways justice had been miscarried in the past to teach us not to make the same mistakes. Thus, The Crucible was “born.”

House Un-American Activities CommitteeSpearheaded by Senator Joseph McCarthy*This committee charged Miller with being

involved in communist-sympathizing activities in 1947 as a part of the era known

as the “Red Scare” in American history.