회색의 자유주의: 영화 <시련>의 대심문관

Abstract

This paper explores in the transformation of The Crucible (Arthur Miller’s 1953 play) into a film. At first glance, the film version is basically a faithful retelling of the original story, with its heroes and villains largely intact. Such structural elements of the play had drawn fervent criticism from critics of Miller’s “innocent liberalism,” who had found in it a simplistic moral view of good and evil. However, the 1996 film marked a significant departure from the original play as evidenced by overwhelmingly positive film reviews. In particular, a number of reviews point out that the film’s portrayal of the ‘evil’ characters are considerably softened, especially in the case of Judge Danforth, the ‘Grand Inquisitor’ of Salem witch trial. A close reading of the reviews and the film reveals that the character of Danforth achieved a significant change from the Evil incarnated to a “gray” human agent of law and justice with complex motives and moods. Complicating the dichotomous structure of the original play, the accomplishment was indebted not only to the exceptional rendering of the role by excellent acting talent of Paul Scofield, but also to Miller’s screen adaptation with a radically new vision of the play. Such re-vision was drawn from a larger context, in which Miller was seeking for a new ground on which American liberalism could re-establish itself in the 1990s’ milieu of relativistic anxiety and political uncertainty.