Franklin D. Roosevelt once said, “The only thing we have to fear is the fear itself. “Unfortunately, we couldn't see into the future to see that he was right. Fear and greed are the drivers of mass hysteria. According to the dictionary. com, mass hysteria is a socially contagious frenzy of irrational behavior among a group of people in reaction to an event. The effects of fear and lust for power are present in both Arthur Miller's play The Crucible and the treatment of Arab-Americans after 9/11. To grasp the concept, you must understand the connection. Say no to plagiarism. Get a custom essay on “Why Violent Video Games Should Not Be Banned”?Get the original essayIn 1692, the Salem Witch Trials took place in colonial Massachusetts. More than 200 people were accused of witchcraft and put on trial. 20 of the accused were executed. The evidence relied solely on circumstantial evidence and unreliable testimony from teenage girls. Fear of the devil clouds the minds of the people of Salem. In 1953, Arthur Miller wrote The Crucible to fictionalize and dramatize the story of the alleged witches of Salem. Since then, the narrative of the trials has become identified with paranoia and corruption. History continues to repeat itself more than 300 years later. Fear of the Devil gripped the minds of the Puritans, and fear of terrorism paralyzes the minds of Americans today. After the September 11 terrorist attacks, the lives of American Muslims continue to be influenced by the tensions and practices triggered by these attacks. Although these events occurred at very different times, the circumstances are very similar. The qualities of the enemy are always presented as incompatible with those of each person's culture. For example, the Bush administration portrayed terrorists as enemies motivated by their “hatred of freedom.” The United States government has attempted to counter terrorist threats by presenting itself as "fighting for freedom." » Likewise, Tituba comes from Barbados. Barbados is the heartland of Voodoo and was commonly associated with devil worship. The Puritans lived their lives strictly according to the words of the Bible. Through the text, the reader can see how fear dominates the mind and causes someone to make a hasty decision. In the text, Abigail says, “I always hear him laughing in my sleep. I hear him singing his Barbados songs and tempting me. . . “Tituba's fear of the devil and cultural difference contributed to Tituba's mistreatment and sparked mass hysteria within the Salem Witch Trials. After being caught dancing in the woods, Tituba became the girl's scapegoat because she was a minority and vulnerable. The Puritans were afraid of anything that differed from their beliefs. By comparison, the terrorist attacks of September 11 threw the United States into a frenzy. In the first week after 9/11, 96,000 leads were reported to the FBI as potentially terrorist leads. By January 2002, this number had risen to 500,000. The only driving force behind these claims was the fear of another terrorist attack. The result is a “perversion of justice.” “This leads to the destruction of the lives of mostly innocent people. In the article “Escaping Salem,” Professor Richard Godbeer believes that “the Salem witch hunts were an unfair judgment on a group of people. This is a consistent trend throughout human history. A group.