In Act Two of The Crucible, the audience members and readers of the play find themselves in the household of the Proctors. While the first act was an overview of the community and a foreshadowing of the coming tragedy, the second act focuses in on the domestic issues between the Proctors. Miller's tightening of the scope of the play from the community to the Proctors secures the Proctors as central characters in the play.
In the opening of the act, we understand that Proctor has had an affair with Abigail and there is more suspicion when he is caught in another lie. These lies and suspicions are central to the themes of the act, which include paranoia, jealousy and family.
There is frequent paranoia and jealousy in the second act. Characters covet the things that other characters possess, and they create paranoia in their attempt to possess other characters' belongings. The Putnams want land, Abigail wants Proctor, and Mary Warren might want attention. Furthermore, all of these issues circulate around family structures.
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