“The Crucible” Diary Project
Over the course of the next few weeks, we will be reading “The Crucible” by Arthur Miller. Your final project for this unit will consist of a series of diary entries from the point of view of a Puritan living in Salem at that time. To successfully complete this project, you will:
1. Come up with a character. Choose a name, an age and a gender.
2. Use the information we came up with in class about the Puritans to understand how your character would have lived at this time, and write a third- person paragraph describing his/her life.
3. See below for specific diary entry topics. You will write your diary entries as the character you chose in Step 1. Diary entries will cover a variety of topics, such as commenting on the text or reacting to events in the play.
4. At the end of the unit, I will collect a good copy of your diaries. Your final copy will have a creative presentation that includes a cover or headline, at least one picture relevant to the diary entries, the introduction to your character that you wrote for part 2, and all of the completed entries. It must be typed, but you can use an interesting font if you like. Please proofread your entries - poor spelling is not the same as “writing like the Puritans” and you will lose points.
Final copy will include:
- Cover and picture
- Paragraph about your Puritan character and his/her life (3rd person)
- Entry #1: Write a diary entry about the gossip you’ve heard in Salem. (end Act 1)
- Entry #2: As your Puritan character, analyze Abigail. What do you think of her actions? What would you say to her if you were present at the end of Act 1? Be sure to include:
- how Abigail behaves
- what she says
You do NOT know the details of her relationship with John Proctor, but you may have your suspicions.
- Entry #3 (after Act 2) - Write a letter to John Procter giving him advice about his situation.
- Entry #4 (after Act 3) - Re-read Danforth’s quote in Act III (top of page 100). Respond as your Puritan character: What is the difference between being accused of a crime and being accused of witchcraft? How have you seen these differences around town? You may agree or disagree with Hale’s protests.
- Entry #5 (end of the play) Pretend your Puritan character has been accused of being a witch. Choose one possible option and write how you think it will come out.
Extra credit: Add an additional entry from any point in the play. Choose a topic for your entry that has not been covered in #1-5. Extra credit will be awarded based on appropriateness of topic and relevance to text.