Reviews tagging 'Torture'

The Crucible: A Play in Four Acts by Arthur Miller

23 reviews

another_dahlia's review against another edition

dark sad tense fast-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Strong character development? It's complicated
• Loveable characters? It's complicated
• Diverse cast of characters? No
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.25

Two men bungle a court case. A bunch of power-hungry teen girls play star witnesses in a courtroom drama. A court system so corrupt, it would be discussed in both fiction and history for years to come.

The moral of the story? Always have a lawyer.

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Content Warnings

Moderate: Adult/minor relationship, Death, Emotional abuse, Infertility, Infidelity, Physical abuse, Sexism, Torture, Toxic relationship, Violence, Grief, Religious bigotry, and Toxic friendship

clovetra's review against another edition

challenging emotional tense fast-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Strong character development? It's complicated
• Loveable characters? No
• Diverse cast of characters? No
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

5.0

oh the crucible, the crucible. the first book i was ever assigned for in school that i actually enjoyed reading.

i think this book is such a love of mine simply because it has such a strong nostalgia factor. sitting in my year 9 classroom, before i became chronically ill and a pandemic happened, sitting with my friends, listening to an audio recording of this play. reacting to every scene, expressing my hatred of abigail and mary to my friends, rooting for rebecca nurse, truly experiencing the atmosphere. i really think my first read of this was the best reading experience ive ever had.

this book isn’t exactly the next coming of christ. its parallels to mccarthyism sure are interesting, and i always love me some salem witch trials, but this book is what it is - a short play. but i can’t say this book doesn’t enamour me.

even knowing what happens, i was sitting here with my blood boiling, racing to hope proctor would be free and danforth would listen to the pleas of those around him.

i honestly think as more time passes this book ages like fine wine, and is very emblematic of current times. hell it can even be applied to modern day america. you don’t even have to change anything, as when miller wrote this everyone was losing their minds about communists! and republicans still are! maybe add some silly comment about 5G or the vaccines or hathorne rolling up to salem in his cybertruck. 

from a psychology standpoint this book is incredibly fascinating. and from someone who loves reading about the salem witch trials this book is incredibly fascinating. i love witches. fuck abigail and mary. shout out giles corey for being a stubborn prick.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Death, Infidelity, Miscarriage, Religious bigotry, Murder, and Gaslighting

Moderate: Adult/minor relationship, Physical abuse, Violence, Forced institutionalization, and Pregnancy

Minor: Slavery, Torture, Alcohol, and Colonisation

noellegrace8's review against another edition

challenging dark emotional mysterious reflective sad tense fast-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Plot
• Strong character development? It's complicated
• Loveable characters? No
• Diverse cast of characters? No
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.0

Because it's a classic, there's not much more I can add to the conversation. It kept me on the edge of my seat, wondering how the trials and the issues between the Proctors and Abigail were going to turn out. I must say, maybe it's because people told me I would be surprised, but I wasn't very surprised by the ending. I enjoyed the morally gray status of most of the characters against obviously corrupt, fear-mongering religious and law leaders. It brought to mind something I've been thinking about recently - that it's difficult to make "the correct" decision once someone else has made a poor one. Lastly, the misogyny was a bit difficult to ignore, especially since Abigail was considered a "child" in many ways yet also the seductress, and the end paints her as a harlot, while John Proctor isn't apparently. But this wasn't an uncommon viewpoint, even for the '50s.

I don't factor performance into overall story rating, but I would give this cast 5/5⭐.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Death, Misogyny, Panic attacks/disorders, Grief, Religious bigotry, Death of parent, Schizophrenia/Psychosis , and Gaslighting

Moderate: Child death, Confinement, Infidelity, Sexism, Torture, Toxic relationship, Pregnancy, and Abandonment

Minor: Bullying, Cursing, Domestic abuse, Emotional abuse, Infertility, Mental illness, Miscarriage, Racism, Sexual content, Violence, Medical content, Medical trauma, and Toxic friendship

sare1125's review against another edition

dark informative mysterious medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Loveable characters? No
• Diverse cast of characters? No
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Death, Sexism, Torture, and Religious bigotry

sadie_g's review against another edition

tense medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? No
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.75

I was very intrigued while reading this, and I thought it was fascinating that it expressed the dangers of unfounded accusations. 

Very much just a book of girls lying, and I love that.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Adult/minor relationship and Religious bigotry

Moderate: Child death, Death, and Infidelity

Minor: Torture and Pregnancy

eilatan6991's review against another edition

adventurous challenging dark emotional mysterious tense medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? It's complicated
• Loveable characters? It's complicated
• Diverse cast of characters? No
• Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

5.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Death, Religious bigotry, Murder, Pregnancy, and War

Moderate: Infidelity, Misogyny, Sexism, and Slavery

Minor: Alcoholism, Child death, Miscarriage, Torture, and Alcohol

ifweweresorrows's review against another edition

challenging dark emotional mysterious reflective tense medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Loveable characters? No
• Diverse cast of characters? No
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.5

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Adult/minor relationship and Religious bigotry

Moderate: Infidelity and Racism

Minor: Death and Torture

daisymayduck's review against another edition

challenging dark mysterious tense fast-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? It's complicated
• Loveable characters? It's complicated
• Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
• Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

4.0

Read this for school as I’m doing a scene from it in drama. Really enjoyed it actually- easy to follow and it’s very engaging- always leaving you wondering what will happen next. Would love to see it onstage

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Content Warnings

Moderate: Adult/minor relationship, Death, and Violence

Minor: Torture

That said- we don’t see most of this actually onstage it’s more talked about

lizkocher's review against another edition

dark emotional informative mysterious reflective slow-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? It's complicated
• Loveable characters? No
• Diverse cast of characters? No
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

2.5

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Adult/minor relationship, Child death, Death, Genocide, Miscarriage, Sexism, Torture, Violence, Grief, Death of parent, Murder, Pregnancy, Colonisation, and Classism

avasbookmark's review against another edition

adventurous dark emotional informative reflective sad tense medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? It's complicated
• Loveable characters? No
• Diverse cast of characters? No
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.5

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Domestic abuse, Emotional abuse, Misogyny, Physical abuse, Racism, Violence, and Murder

Moderate: Suicide and Pregnancy

Minor: Torture