Modern Social Science Research

The Crucible is one of the masterpieces of Arthur Miller, a famous American playwright. However, most of the studies on the play focus on its theme, writing techniques and historical background, while few have explored its characters except Proctor. In this study, the weighted and unweighted social networks are drawn according to the statistics on the turn-takings of characters in the play. In addition, the αω-weighted centrality algorithm is used to calculate and rank the degree centrality, betweenness centrality and closeness centrality of all characters in the play. Then, the characters are clustered into three categories according to the centrality measures. Based on the statistical data, the comparative analysis is performed between the pairs of Proctor and Danforth, Abigail and Elizabeth, and Defendants and Accusers. The study finds that Proctor and Danforth as the center characters, Abigail and Elizabeth as the subcenter characters are both had similar rankings, but their values are quite different in specific indicators, which may be related to their personal settings in the play. In addition, the Defendants and Accusers show an obvious difference in their centrality rankings. In this play, the differences in centrality results of characters can reveal the character relations, characters’ settings as well as the social and historical background, author’s experience, and the theme of the work. This research provides a new perspective on the interpretation of characters in The Crucible. Combining both qualitative and quantitative approach, the study promotes the application of digital technology in literature studies by using centrality algorithm of social network on character analysis.

The Crucible; Social Network Analysis; Centrality analysis; Clustering