Texts have the ability to determine numerous human experiences, both individually and collective, in order to create unique understanding into human’s radical perspectives. Both ‘The Crucible’, written by Arthur Miller in 1953, and ‘The Boy in the Striped Pajamas’, directed by Mark Herman in 2008, manage to represent the struggles and understanding of individual and collective human experiences. We gain clear realization of how these works manage to sculpt an image of human sensation, aspiration and drive which is apparent particularly on the human experience of corruption and power.
Corruption has the ability to determine one’s loss of innocence. Miller uses corruption in the book ‘The Crucible’ when Abigail Williams condemns and persecutes Tituba, a black slave from Barbados on practicing witchcraft. The first accusation Abigail made of Tituba is, “She made me do it! She made Betty do it!”; Abigail shows innocence through corruption. The use of exclamation emphasizes how Abigail, the antagonist, has authority to be in control of others actions with a loss of power to the opposing character. Furthermore, the use of descriptive language shown in the literacy device of authorial intrusion. “He is nearly drunk, and heavy-footed. He goes to a bench and nudges a bundle of rags lying on it”, is expressed in the beginning of Act 4, when Herrick removes Sarah good and Tituba from the jail cell so the court officials can hold a meeting there. Explaining through corrupted deception, the setting characterizes by the fear and mood of the character. The governments control over society is due to the corruption of the power the Germans hold collectively. Herman presents the experience of corruption in the film ‘The Boy in the Striped Pajamas’ as the protagonist Bruno is taught by his father that Jewish people are an inferior race and should not be socializing as they are not considered as people. The use of ellipsis “Those people... well, they're not people at all, Bruno” establishes the use of silence that Bruno’s father displays before he shares a dishonest nature of human behavior and corruption. The medium shot with an eye level angle was appropriate during this scene as it shows the adventurous and curious of Bruno towards his father.
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‘The Crucible’ and ‘The Boy in the Striped Pajamas’, faithfully portray an individual that has the desire to do the right thing but collapses by noble pressure and the mob mentality. This challenge of paradox can depict on the inclination of an individual’s values and moral attitudes. Abigail’s desire to gain power in individuals fears the victim of their own safety. ‘The Crucible’ associates power when Elizabeth believes that the court hail Abigail as some sort of untouchable ‘saint’. “I thought she were a saint, to hear her”, the use of metaphor emphasizes the speech of ‘saint’ as she has the power over the court but the term isn’t actually literally applicable to theocracy. “Abigail brings the other girls into the court, and where she walks the crowd part like the sea for Israel”, the use of biblical allusion is reinforcing that the town is under Abigail’s control and they will conform to anything she does. Herman explores the human experience of power throughout the novel ‘The Boy in the Striped Pajamas’ by examining the relationships between characters and the adverse control of the government. Though the use of mis-en-scene, the costumes reveal the multiple platforms between characters. The Nazi soldiers including Bruno’s father involved in the corrupt government are always well dressed in their suits which therefore symbolize power and domination over the inferior population. The casual attire of striped pajamas worn by the Jews convey a miserable lifestyle of how the Nazi party have full force of control. “The soldiers. They took all our clothes away” implies the use of truncated sentences that create tension and power between both cultural crowds.
Power struggle of ‘The Crucible’ and ‘The Boy in the Striped Pajamas’ openly discovers an allegory within a society. We gain an image on human greed and control within a public society, and how there existed both inferior and superior race.
Ultimately both ‘The Crucible’ and ‘The Boy in the Striped Pajamas’ challenge how the audience see the world differently, within a way of individual and collective experience. These works depict the idea of corruption and power over the minority in their society.
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