A severe test or trial 10/22/10

   There are several definitions for the word Crucible. One of the definitions is a container made of a substance that can resist great heat for melting, fusing or calcining ores,metals, etc. Another definition is the hollow at the bottom of an ore furnace, where the molten metal collects. The final definition is a severe searching, test or trail. I think that when Arthur Miller chose the name for the play he meant it to refer to the third meaning. The book was mostly based on several court trials that the community had to go through. These trials were not minor or insignificant. In the contrary they signified a lot. That is because those trials defined  many peoples future; their life or their death. That is why the title fits in perfectly with the story. The trials were just as the tittle definition describes them; severe.
   It is hard to think if I have ever been in a crucible. But when I look back at it my adolescent years are basically based of  many crucibles. It sounds weird, but it is true. During my teenage years is when I find my self identity. That is way more complicated than it sounds. The person that I am becoming depends on the situations and the experiences that I have been through. Those experiences are sometimes crucibles because I am in a search to become who I want to be. For example, I find out who my true friends are through what they do to me or how they treat me. I find out what I am good at by challenges that are put in front of me. I find out what I like to do depending on my success at it or the satisfaction I get when I do certain things. I find who I am every second of my life, with ever decision that I make. That might sound like it is not a severe trial, but its is. The decisions I make now are going to affect my whole future.
 This also reminds me of a book I read called To Kill a Mocking Bird. This African American man was accused of forcing a white female to have sex with him. The reality of it was that the woman herself wanted to have this sexual encounter. At the end this black men went through severe trails to determine if he was guilty or not. This book was based on a real life story. http://www.associatedcontent.com/article/1621355/to_kill_a_mocking_bird_atticus_and.html?cat=17