During the tense era of McCarthyism, celebrated playwright Arthur Miller was inspired to write a drama reflecting the dangers of mass cultural and political hysteria. The Crucible is a gripping dramatization of the Salem witch trials. Accusations of witchcraft following a game played by the daughters of a Massachusetts village spiral out of control and many must choose between their reputations and their integrity. It is a timeless parable of morality, a scorching indictment of intolerance, and a central work in the canon of American drama.