Analysis:

• Act 3 shows the audience how quickly a turbulent conflict can be augmented by fear and mob mentality and further accelerated when a person seeking power fuels people’s anxieties with false evidence.
• Reverend Parris, Thomas Putnam and Abigail plant the seeds of doubt, continuing to question Proctor’s Christianity and beliefs. Parris’s scheme fails, with Proctor remaining an upstanding and trustworthy citizen in the eyes of the town.
• Danforth refuses to accept the depositions regarding the innocence of the wives of Proctor, Nurse and Corey and the fraud perpetrated by the girls. He will only accept a list of names of the townspeople who have signed the deposition. Believing that the girls are unsophisticated children and are innocent until proven guilty, they don’t believe they have reason to suspect deceit.
• Danforth continues to demand that Corey, Nurse and Proctor hand over the names of the people who signed their depositions. They refuse and Danforth casts doubt on Proctor’s word, causing him more shame by demanding the Elizabeth respond to John’s confession of adultery.
• These events parallel McCarthy’s Red Scare campaign, which began with his election to the Senate in 1946 and saw its climax in 1954. McCarthy’s endeavour to find the “Reds under the bed” became a common catch phrase and the Senate’s committee conducted investigation into those suspected of being Communists. HUAC (House of Un-American Activities Committee) questioned the loyalty or involvement of private citizens with any subversive groups or ideologies. The HUAC held hearrings, requesting private citizens to identify Communists or Communist sympathizers.
• A friend of Miller’s, Kazan, broke down before HUAC in 1952, giving into pressure and naming many associates affiliated with communism, resulting in the destruction of their reputation. Miller ended this friendship, creating the noble and honest character of Proctor as the antithesis to Kazan’s actions.