to the legal chaos of the Salem witch trials.8. JUSTICEThe concept of justice is central to most of Arthur Miller's plays, especially The Crucible, where he dedicates the entire third act to a courtroom drama. How can we guarantee that a person accused of a crime gets a fair trial? And how should the guilty be punished?9. HISTORICAL DRAMAThe Crucible tells a story of the American past, a time when many of the basic principles of our society were formed. It's possible, the playwright suggests, that some of the things that were wrong in 1692 are still wrong today.^^^^^^^^^^THE CRUCIBLE: STYLEPlays can be classified in two major varieties: plays of episodic action and plays of continuous action. Shakespeare's plays are episodic. No one scene is very long, and the action jumps from place to place, sometimes skipping over years in between. On the other hand, Greek tragedies like Oedipus Rex and some modern plays such as Eugene O'Neil's Long Day's Journey into Night, follow what are called the three unities: of time--the action usually takes place within a 24-hour period; of place--there is only one location,, and of action--there is no break in the action from beginning to end.The Crucible falls somewhere in between. The time span is about three-and-a-half months; the action occurs in four different places, although it never leaves Salem; and there is a gap of at least a week between each act (between Acts III and IV almost three months elapse). But within each act the action is continuous from curtain to curtain.One advantage of the continuous-action method is that it allows the author to build tension or suspense gradually. It also can be less confusing for an audience, because we don't have to stop and figure out where we are every few minutes. And, finally, it allows us to get to know the main characters very well, by letting us watch them for a long time at a stretch. This is especially important in The Crucible, where we come to unders...
