McCarthyism and Literature

Paper Summary:

This paper takes a look at Senator Joseph McCarthy's obsession with communists and his black list of people considered to be subversives, communist sympathizers and people who would not cooperate with the committee, which meant they would not testify against their fellows or name names of "other suspected subversives". According to the paper, this black list prevented anyone on it from working in the entertainment industry, publishing their work or often even from getting an ordinary job.

From the Paper:

"Arthur Miller was another big name playwright who was blacklisted. While the McCarthy era squashed some literature, it also stimulated some great work. On Saturday June 17, 2000, Arthur Miller wrote, "It would probably never have occurred to me to write a play about the Salem witch trials of 1692 had I not seen some astonishing correspondences with that calamity in the America of the late 40s and early 50s. My basic need was to respond to a phenomenon which, with only small exaggeration, one could say paralyzed a whole generation and in a short time dried up the habits of trust and toleration in public discourse." (Miller, Arthur 2000) The plot of The Crucible deals with the Salem witch trials, and many readers and audience members do not even make the connection to McCarthy, especially the young. However, when it is pointed out, it is completely transparent. "

Sample of Sources Used:

• Ferreira, James M. "Joseph McCarthy: Reexamining the Life and Legacy of America's Most Hated Senator." The Historian 63.4 (2001): 834. Questia. 12 Dec. 2006 <http://www.questia.com/PM.qst?a=o&d=5001036891>.
• Fried, Richard M. Nightmare in Red: The McCarthy Era in Perspective. New York: Oxford University Press, 1990. Questia. 12 Dec. 2006 <http://www.questia.com/PM.qst?a=o&d=79027292>.
• Griffith, Robert. The Politics of Fear: Joseph R. McCarthy and the Senate. 2nd ed. Amherst, MA: University of Massachusetts Press, 1987. Questia. 12 Dec. 2006 <http://www.questia.com/PM.qst?a=o&d=81177273>.Miller, Arthur 2000 . "Are You Now Or Were You Ever?" . The Guardian/The Observer, Saturday, June 17, 2000
• Willow, Hank 2002 http://www.hollywoodinvestigator.com/2002/minds.htm
• Navasky, Victor 1980 . Naming Names: The Social Costs of McCarthyism . Modern American Poetry New York: Viking Press . http://www.english.uiuc.edu/maps/mccarthy/navasky.htm

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