The True Devils In Salem Essays - Salem Witch Trials, The Crucible

The True Devils in Salem English - The Crucible by Arthur Miller The True Devils in Salem In The Crucible by Arthur Miller, the madness of the Salem witch trials is explored in great detail. There are many theories as to why the witch trials came about, the most popular of which is the girls' suppressed childhoods. However, there were other factors as well, such as Abigail Williams' affair with John Proctor, the secret grudges that neighbors held against each other, and the physical and economic differences between the citizens of Salem Village. From a historical viewpoint, it is known that young girls in colonial Massachusetts were given little or no freedom to act like children. They were expected to walk straight, arms by their sides, eyes slightly downcast, and their mouths were to be shut unless otherwise asked to speak. It is not surprising that the girls would find this type of lifestyle very constricting. To rebel against it, they played pranks, such as dancing in the woods, listening to slaves' magic stories and pretending that other villagers were bewitching them. The Crucible starts after the girls in the village have been caught dancing in the woods. As one of them falls sick, rumors start to fly that there is witchcraft going on in the woods, and that the sick girl is bewitched. Once the girls talk to each other, they become more and more frightened of being accused as witches, so Abigail starts accusing others of practicing witchcraft. The other girls all join in so that the blame will not be placed on them. In The Crucible, Abigail starts the accusations by saying, "I go back to Jesus; I kiss his hand. I saw Sarah Good with the Devil! I saw Goody Osburn with the Devil! I saw Bridget Bishop with the Devil!" Another girl, Betty, continues the cry with, "I saw George Jacobs with the Devil! I saw Goody Howe with the Devil!" >From here on, the accusations grow and grow until the jails overflow with accused witches. It must have given them an incredible sense of power when the whole town of Salem listened to their words and believed each and every accusation. After all, children were to be seen and not heard in Puritan society, and the newfound attention was probably overwhelming. In Act Three of The Crucible, the girls were called before the judges to defend themselves against the claims that they were only acting. To prove their innocence, Abigail led the other girls in a chilling scene. Abby acted as if Mary Warren sent her spirit up to the rafters and began to talk to the spirit. "Oh Mary, this is a black art to change your shape. No, I cannot, I cannot stop my mouth; it's God's work I do." The other girls all stared at the rafters in horror and began to repeat everything they heard. Finally, the girls' hysterics caused Mary Warren to accuse John Proctor of witchcraft. Once the scam started, it was too late to stop, and the snowballing effect of wild accusations soon resulted in the hanging of many innocents. After the wave of accusations began, grudges began to surface in the community. Small slights were made out to be witchcraft, and bad business deals were blamed on witchery. Two characters in The Crucible, Giles Corey and Thomas Putnam, argue early on about a plot of land. Corey claims that he bought it from Goody Nurse but Putnam says he owns it, and Goody Nurse had no right to sell it. Later, when Putnam's daughter accuses George Jacobs of witchery, Corey claims that Putnam only wants Jacobs' land. Giles says, "If Jacobs hangs for a witch he forfeit up his property - that's law! And there is none but Putnam with the coin to buy so great a piece. This man is killing his neighbors for their land!" Others also had hidden motives for accusing their neighbors. Once the accusations began, everyone had a reason to accuse someone else which is why the hangings got so out of hand. The wave of accusations can be likened to mass hysteria, in which the people involved are so caught up that they start having delusions of neighbors out to do them harm. One of the main accusers, Abigail Williams, had an ulterior motive for accusing Elizabeth Proctor. In The Crucible, Abigail believed that if she got rid of Goody Proctor, then John Proctor, her husband, would turn to Abby. John Proctor had an affair with Abigail, but for

Characteristics of a Good Editor

Characteristics of a Good Editor You dont have to work for a magazine or newspaper to benefit from the help of a good editor. Even if she seems nit-picky with her line edits, remember that the editor is on your side. A good editor addresses your writing style and creative content, among many other details. Editing styles will vary, so find an editor that gives you the safe space to be creative and make mistakes simultaneously.   The Editor and the Writer Carl Sessions Stepp, the author of Editing for Todays Newsroom, believes editors should practice restraint and refrain from immediately reshaping the content in their own images. He has advised editors to read an article all the way through, open your mind to the logic of the [writers] approach, and offer at least minimal courtesy to the professional who has dripped blood for it.   Jill Geisler of The Poynter Institute says a writer must be able to trust that an editor respects the writers ownership of a story and can resist the temptation to completely write a new and improved version. Says Geisler, Thats fixing, not coaching. ... When you fix stories by doing instant rewrites, there may be a thrill in showing off your skill. By coaching writers, you discover better ways to craft copy. Gardner Botsford of The New Yorker magazine says that a good editor is a mechanic, or craftsman, while a good writer is an artist, adding that that the less competent the writer, the louder the protests over editing. Editor As Critical Thinker Editor-in-chief Mariette DiChristina says editors must be organized, able to see the structure where it does not exist and able to identify the missing pieces or gaps in logic that bring the writing together. [M]ore than being good writers, editors must be good critical thinkers who can recognize and evaluate good writing [or who] can figure out how to make the most of the not-so-good writing. ... [A] good editor needs a sharp eye for detail, writes DiChristina.   A Quiet Conscience The legendary, shy, strong-willed editor of The New Yorker, William Shawn, wrote that it is one of the comic burdens of [an] editor not to be able to explain to anyone else exactly what he does. An editor, writes Shawn, must only counsel when the writer requests it, acting on occasion as a conscience and helping the writer in any way possible to say what he wants to say. Shawn writes that the work of a good editor, like the work of a good teacher, does not reveal itself directly; it is reflected in the accomplishments of others. A Goal-Setter Writer and editor Evelynne Kramer say the best editor is patient and always keeps in mind the long-term goals with the writer and not just what they see on the screen. Says Kramer, We can all get better at what we do, but improvement sometimes takes a lot of time and, more often than not, in fits and starts. A Partner Editor-in-chief Sally Lee says the ideal editor brings out the best in a writer and allows a writers  voice  to shine through. A good editor makes a writer feel challenged, enthusiastic and valuable. An editor is only as good as her writers, says Lee. An Enemy of Cliches Media columnist and reporter David Carr said the best editors  are the enemies  of clichà ©s and tropes, but not the overburdened writer who occasionally resorts to them. Carr stated that the perfect traits of a good editor are good judgment, an appropriate bedside manner and an ability to conjure occasional magic in the space between writer and editor.