ernmentTo all intents and purposes, the power of theocracy in Massachusetts was broken.” (146). The wrong-doings of “religious officials”, however one defines them, caused this unjust government to collapse. What is the point of trial when one could not be proven innocent? Each trial lead down the same path, a witch that confessed was punished, and an accused witch who did not confess was also punished. So under a theocratic government, there were no winners nor losers, only those unfairly put to excruciating and horrifying deaths. A theocracy is a very dangerous form of government because it is unjust, has no real structure, and ironically put the innocent to death and let the guilty live.
Imagine being put on trial knowing the word innocent would not be used that particular day. Nothing could help considering that this government was based on religion, and G-d was obviously not showing up in person. The prosecutor has no scientific proof at all, only words flowing out of mindless people that are trying to save themselves before they think about what harm they are causing to their community. Abigail shows this by committing acts of witchcraft, and then turns around and points her finger at the innocent.
An unstructured government is just about the same as having no government at all. What is a government without leadership? A theocratic government was in a league all its own. With its only form of reference being the bible, laws were not needed and not useful. In Salem, Massachusetts, the Puritan community based everything they had on their religion. This is why it is no surprise that their government was another daily reminder of how strongly God and the bible affected them.
A looming sense of danger filled the air when John Proctor told his wife that Giles Corey had been executed. He was the first of many to come. And that same sense of danger filled each household as the news spread around Salem about who was being accused and who were the accusers of the witch trials. Knowing that each of their lives could be in danger from the slightest suspicious act, each member of the community stood on edge, waiting and watching their society crumble because of fear. Theocracy was so treacherous, it could wipe out an entire town.
In “The Crucible”, theocracy was the prominent form of government. Through the course of the book, many examples were shown that theocracy was a destructive form of government. Their radical belief was put into play and lead to the loss of many innocent lives. The people of Salem finally realized that their former acceptable belief in theocracy was immoral, otherwise it would of remained that way until the present.
