Devine

Honors English 11, 2011-2012

� Of Sexual Desire

� Of Expressions of joy, like dancing and singing.

� Of Self-expression: like anger or self-assertion

Parris “like the rest of Salem, never conceived that the children were anything but thankful for being permitted to walk straight, eyes slightly lowered, arms at the sides, and mouths shut until bidden to speak.” (Preamble)

� Of Hope: Their theology didn’t allow for the knowledge of a guaranteed salvation (in exchange for following a set of Christian rules).

In short, it didn’t allow for an active and reassuring In short, it didn’t allow for an active and reassuring hope. One must follow the code laid down by the church, but there was no guarantee of salvation. Humans were considered to be “fallen” because they were human.

� But what if the church is wrong?

� What is it about the repression practiced by the church leaders that makes them blind to what is really happening? happening?

� What is it about repression that necessitates shadow build up?

� This repression creates the pressure that fuels the crushing power of “The Crucible.”

� Groups – landowners act against victims; judges against the intransigent

� Group think (collective ideology): The wilderness around them is the world of Satan because it is around them is the world of Satan because it is unknown, but supposed to contain evil. This sets up potential for massive collective shadow imbalance

� Hyper-restrictive theology: no fun allowed, but lots of work, and no promises.

� Given what you know about the Puritans’ world view and the culture of Salem in 1692, what do you predict will happen next?

� What elements lead you to this conclusion? � What elements lead you to this conclusion?

� What is a paradigm?

� There is a paradigm that this community has been living by since its inception 60 years (three generations) earlier. How is it changing now? generations) earlier. How is it changing now? � See the Preamble. Write out a key passage that

illustrates the nature of this change.

� Who is leading the way in this paradigm shift?

� The Rebel is the one who breaks down the existing order so as to create a more balanced system.

� In science this is the one who challenges the orthodoxy of the existing paradigm (round vs. elliptical orbits, for of the existing paradigm (round vs. elliptical orbits, for example) by introducing a new interpretation or new data that change the way searchers in a particular field think about the basic organization of that field.

� S/he brings a new vision that upsets the way people are used to thinking about their cosmos.

� Who is going to play the role of the Rebel in this drama?

Name names and give specific reasons!

� He or she is typically vilified for seeking change, because the dominant group is unwilling or unable to accept his/her truth.

� Rebels still can be effective catalysts for change, even if � Rebels still can be effective catalysts for change, even if they don’t survive. (“How many deaths will it takes ‘til he knows that too many people have died?”)

� Examples: Gandhi in Africa, Martin Luther King, Jr. in Birmingham.

Proctor was a farmer in his middle thirties. He need not have been a partisan of any faction in the town, but there is evidence to suggest that he had a sharp and biting way with hypocrites…In Proctor’s presence a fool felt his foolishness instantly – and a Proctor is a fool felt his foolishness instantly – and a Proctor is always marked for calumny therefore. (p. 175)

What is the likely response to Proctor of those who know that they are somehow in the wrong?

marked for calumny – targeted by enemies, who make false statements in order to damage one's reputation

� But as we shall see, the steady manner he displays does not spring from an untroubled soul. He is a sinner, a sinner not only against the moral fashion of the time, but against his own vision of decent conduct. These people had no ritual for the washing away of people had no ritual for the washing away of sins…Proctor, respected and even feared in Salem, has come to regard himself as a kind of fraud. But no hint of this has yet appeared on the surface, and as he enters from the crowded parlor below it is a man in his prime we see, with a quiet confidence and an unexpressed, hidden force. (pp 175-76)

partisan - a person who takes sides in an argument

Describe the internal conflict Proctor might feel:

� The fear engendered in those people who will not be honest with themselves, will not admit their own mistakes, is what makes them dangerous. The conscious and the personal unconscious – that is, the psyche – always seek a certain balance and if that psyche – always seek a certain balance and if that balance is thwarted by heavy denial of one side, the pressure created by the imbalance will force the individual into some kind of compensatory action. Often this action is unconscious, or at least the actor is not fully aware of the potential ramifications or his/her own motives for acting in the first place. This action often serves as a release for negative emotions, and can be quite forceful.

� Describe how denial works.

� What is a common function of denial?

The dishonest ones, the deceivers – those in active denial (that is, willful unconsciousness) – are the ones who have the most to gain from the paradigm not changing. They have the most to lose if the rules change because they have found ways to get power change because they have found ways to get power from the existing framework and don’t want to give that up. People in active denial are often very good at defending the boundaries of their created worlds. There is something in the self-repression that keeps them alert.

� Who are some of the characters who are not willing to admit the truth?

� List their names and after each one, say what they are not willing to admit?

� Also list their motive for not wanting the truth to come � Also list their motive for not wanting the truth to come out.

� These people often deal with the repressed contents of their own awareness by projecting it onto someone else, either an individual or a group. In this process of projection they first deny the existence within themselves of things which violate their own beliefs about how they should be (like “I cast a charm to make a man love me,” or “I danced (like “I cast a charm to make a man love me,” or “I danced naked,” or “I drank blood”). Then they start to “see” those traits in others. Then they falsely blame others for doing the kinds of things they themselves have done. So it is that denial within oneself always leads to an internal conflict. (In the language of psychology, this leads to what is called a neurosis).

The person operating from the Rebel Archetype is always a good target for projections by others, and for this reason the Rebel often ends up in the role of the Scapegoat. Rebels may also engage in denial, but even so, they are often more self-aware than the average citizen in the drama. Indeed, it is from this awareness that they realize that things are out of balance and the awareness that they realize that things are out of balance and the existing paradigm (way of life) must shift (Guys, we should stop hanging these innocent people, and ruining the lives of the others by forcing them to say that they are witches). Because they tend to point out disquieting truths, the Deceivers will use anything they can against the Rebels, starting with any weaknesses a individual Rebel may have.

� Who gets targeted by the projections of others?

Identify those who become targets.

Give the reason(s) why they become targets.

� If a Rebel is moderately honest with him or herself, then that person’s knowledge of their own shortcomings will help pave the way for their own downfall, because they will think that they deserve punishment for their own transgressions of whatever punishment for their own transgressions of whatever code they are operating by.

So the Rebel’s goal is honorable, but the Rebel is often dishonored and destroyed in the process. At this point they merge into the archetypal role of the Tragic Hero. The true value in what that Rebel/Tragic Hero achieves is measured by the value of what is revealed by their struggle.