The Crucible: Quick Facts

Written and fact-checked by

The Information Architects of Encyclopaedia Britannica

Last updated

Oct. 10, 2026

Photos and Videos

Actors perform a dramatic scene from The Crucible on a stage dominated by a tall unfinished wooden framework, with women kneeling and gesturing while men stand behind them.

U.S. Senator Joseph McCarthy sits at a table with papers and a microphone, holding a pencil and a glass, while testifying before a Senate subcommittee in the 1950s.

Daniel Day-Lewis as John Proctor stands beside Joan Allen as Elizabeth Proctor in a still from The Crucible.

Illustration of a woman in a bonnet centered, surrounded by multiple purple hands pointing inward on a beige background.

What sparked the Salem witch trials?

See All Videos and Images →

Topics

Macbeth Hamlet Romeo and Juliet Othello A Midsummer Night’s Dream King Lear Much Ado About Nothing Waiting for Godot The Tempest Twelfth Night