At the beginning of the act, Elizabeth says, "The town's gone wild." By the end of the act there was much more truth in that statement than she knew when she said it. Miller uses this line as a literary technique to give clues to how much devastation was to come. What is that literary technique, and what events took place over the course of this act that show "the devil is loose in Salem"? How does this connect to the theme of hysteria?

Foreshadowing is the literary technique used in the line by Elizabeth Proctor.

The scene that took place for the loose devil in Salem is the case of the witch hunt that took over the town of Salem.

This connects to the theme of hysteria in that the trial brought everyone to an excitement that no one can seem to ignore or be able to refrain from.

Explanation:

The literary technique that Arthur Miller used in his "The Crucible" is foreshadowing. It allows a certain 'hint' to the readers about what was to come in the near future. This is aptly seen in the line spoken by Elizabeth Proctor "The town's gone wild".

The event that took place over the course of the act is that of the witch-hunt. Abigail and other young girls were caught in the forest, dancing and "trafficking" with the devil. But for this, Elizabeth Proctor was wrongly accused of the same witch-craft, and condemned to be hanged. The subsequent community turmoil that this issue brought into the town of Salem is what Elizabeth was referring to the loose devil in Salem.

Hysteria is the super excitement of people about a certain issue, feeling anxious and full of uncontrollable emotions. This is similar to the Salem witch hunt for it creates a sense of excitement in the whole community to see and know about the case. The very case brought everyone on their toes, be it young and old, all seem interested and affected by the trial.