"The Crucible" is a play with many themes. The basic themes of this play are that fear and suspicion are infectious and can produce a state of general hysteria that results in the destruction of public order and rationality, it is possible for peoples conceptions of good and evil to become so corrupted that they commit irreversible misdeeds in the name of virtue, and also that people who claim to be pious and virtuous may in fact be guilty of hypocrisy.
             The theme that strikes me the most, was that fear and suspicion are infectious and can produce a state of general hysteria that results in the destruction of public order and rationality. Now, what does that statement actually mean? Let's break it down into easier terms. We'll start with "fear and suspicion are infectious". This is your basic idea of rumors and gossip. For example, many of the town's people were convicted of witchery, do to the fact that someone suspected that person was practicing witchcraft or they feared that person. Everyone else was then frightened or suspected that person. They all suspected that person was practicing witchcraft without actually knowing the facts. All they had was a suspicion against that person or feared him or her. Next, it tells us that "it can produce a state of general hysteria". This is saying that it can get out of control, and create chaos. This is what happened throughout the whole play. Many people were scared and since it was infectious, many of the characters joined them. This produced a disorder and it got out of control by the people who convicted the other members of the town. As we finish, it says that it "results in the destruction of public order and rationality". With people becoming scared and convicting fellow town members like it's going out of style, it makes the town hysteric. The hysteria results in the fall of the public. It's not up to the public anymore. It's based on what the girls want think sho...