The Crucible: The Puritans The Crucible by Arthur Miller is a play about the Salem witch trials that occurred in the late 1600's. The scare about the witches was a result of a group of girls dancing in the forest. Dancing was not tolerated by the Puritans in that time. News about the dancing got out, and rumors were started about witchcraft. This is what triggered the Salem witch trials, but what kept it going was greed, jealousy, and the desire for revenge. Once the trials were started, accused people were pointing fingers at just about everyone and calling them out as witches. No one was safe. At first the only people to be accused were the lowlifes in