"The Crucible" by Joseph Conrad

The Salem witchcraft trials illuminate a great human campaign to rid society of the wicked devil and his sinful messengers. However nobly intended, these trials create an era of fear and hysteria, generating an outlet for the evil persons of Salem to raise their reputations at the expense of the good. In effect, it becomes apparent that the accusers do not possess a power to prove another of a "Satanic alliance", but rather branch their motivations from ambition, a theory probed by Arthur Miller's play The Crucible. Afraid of the severe penalties for secretly dancing in the forest and chanting spells, characters such as Tituba and Abigail Williams accuse others of witchcraft for their self-preservation. …