*The Crucible* is a play written by Arthur Miller in 1953, set during the Salem witch trials of 1692. It dramatizes the fear, paranoia, and mass hysteria that spread through the Puritan community of Salem, Massachusetts, as accusations of witchcraft led to trials and executions. The play explores themes of morality, social pressure, and the consequences of false accusations. Miller wrote *The Crucible* as an allegory for the anti-communist "Red Scare" in the 1950s, where people were unjustly accused of being communists.