Read the following excerpt from an article by a literary critic.
in arthur miller's the crucible, characters from 17th-
century salem are accused of witchcraft and then forced
to name other people in the village who are witches as
well.
this practice mirrors a similar practice in the united states
during the 1950s when the house un-american activities
committee forced accused communists to name other
communists. miller, who wrote the crucible during this
time, is clearly referencing the witch hunts of his own era.
which statement most accurately describes the inference the author is
making and the historical context on which the inference is based?