“Practice what you preach,” an aphorism implying that if an individual is going to speak on or against a topic, then they too must follow those teachings. But, a person is still capable of breaking away from the teachings and being self-absorbed rather than seeking to help others. By following said proclamations, a person avoids the judgment of hypocrisy. However, in The Crucible by Arthur Miller, Salem village leader, Reverend Parris, paints the idea that although a man may preach the word of God, he may not practice humility and selflessness, but be more concerned with the opinions of others and the maintaining of the power he holds.
Reverend Parris holds a high position in Salem village, and believes he is entitled to others’ respect. Parris
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In the strict Puritan society, Abigail, Parris’ niece, commits actions that break the Puritan religion, such as dancing naked in the woods, and drinking blood with friends, her cousin, and slave, Tituba. Parris catches her and forces her to confess every detail of what she had been doing because of the vulnerable position he holds, “I have fought here three long years to bend these stiff-necked people to me, and now, just now when some good respect is rising for me in the parish, you compromise my very character” (11). Parris aims to keep the information secret to avoid others from finding out of the suspicious activities occurring in his household and uphold his good name in Salem. Parris is a leader and any mistake he makes affects his reputation, so he is convinced others are waiting to see him fail, “There is a faction sworn to drive me from my pulpit,”(10). Through his worries and focus on himself, he forgets that there are bigger issues at hand, like the sickness of his daughter, Betty, who is unexplainably sick and unable to wake up. Yet, Parris is only interested in how others discovering why she is in such state will affect his
However, she was not able to do this on her own; the community helped to hang nineteen innocent people. Her place in society, having an uncle for a reverend, placed her in good light. She would be able to escape most suspicion because of her position in the society. Furthermore, the Puritan people were easy to scare, and Abigail was well aware of the matter. If she could scare a few people into believing in witches, when rumors were already flowing, she would be able to divert attention from herself, while seeking revenge for Elizabeth as well. After the incident with Reverend Parris, she needed to find people to blame. Although, some people may say she should be pardoned for her past; she was an orphan from the beginning so she did not know better. “ABIGAIL: I saw Indians smash my dear parents’ heads on the pillow next to mine, and I have seen some reddish work done at night (Miller 19, act 1).” Her claimed true motives were because of her terrible start to life. Although she had an uncle, who was a villain himself, she was without parents and a true guide for the important lessons of proper humanities. She was also raised without love or nurturing, leading to the reason why she had an affair with an older man. Abigail was neither a victim nor did she act entirely on her own. Abigail found herself backed into a corner, use the societal Puritan
Throughout the story, Reverend Parris is shown to be on edge when he speaks, often because he is afraid of what others might think, say, or do to him. An example of this is when Parris is speaking with Abigail and says, “But if you trafficked with spirits in the forest I must know it now, for surely my enemies will, and they will ruin me with it” (Page 10, Miller). This shows how Reverend Parris is afraid of what his enemies will do to him and his reputation. On page 14, Parris is shown to again be very frightful, as he says, “They will howl me out of Salem for such corruption in my house” (Page 14, Miller). He jumps to conclusions and assumes the worst that he will be thrown out of Salem, which characterizes him as fearful.
Foremost, Parris is very concerned about his position and power in Salem because he has two afflicted children. His fear of power loss is so great that he fears being thrown from Salem;¨...They will howl me out of Salem for such corruption in my house¨(Miller I. 145). Parris is fearful of his name and power in Salem being taken because of the girls actions. He believes that the people of Salem will throw him out of his home for these sins. Parris is scared that Abigail will speak of witchcraft and blacken his name in Salem as this quote suggest,¨Go directly home and speak nothing of unnatural causes¨(Miller I. 142). Abigail is a lying snitch and Parris fears that she will speak about unholy causes. Parris’ name, if blackened, would surely get him kicked out of the church, and kicked out of Salem.
In the play we see each woman representing individuality. The views and attitudes of the young girls in the story represent a variety of widespread opinions and personalities, for instance, one of the main characters, Abigail Williams. Abigail is the niece of Reverend Parris, the main spiritual leader of the town. She is unmarried and desperate for attention. She lies, uses and manipulates people for her own benefit, especially the other women in the town. An example of this action is her hate and jealousy toward Elizabeth Proctor, John Proctors wife. John Proctor is a farmer who lives outside Salem. He preaches about hypocrisy, and yet hides the fact that he has had an affair with Abigail, which tests his personal beliefs.
Life as a human is dictated by an inborn hunger or purpose, and people, in general, will act on this hunger for their own personal gain in their individual ways. This hunger, be it for wealth, land, love, power, revenge, or pride, can, and will be the undoing or failing of all mankind as Miller so clearly points out in his play The Crucible. This essay will explore the motives of characters within the play and even the motives of Arthur Miller himself and therefore show how conflict stems from certain recognisable human failings, including those mentioned above, fear, and hysteria. Reverend Parris is the character that initiates the hysteria of the Salem witch trials, in a community where authorities wasted no time minding the business of its citizens, what should have been seen as teen frivolity was blown into one of the ugliest moments in American history. Parris sparks this by firstly acting on his own paranoia, which the reader would find in the introduction 'he believed he was being persecuted wherever he went';, and calling Reverend Hale in an attempt for self-preservation '….
pride and is willing to sacrifice his life for his name. Reverend Parris is insecure about his
As cited by Sutter (2003), during the period, contracts for ministers provided them a modest salary, use of a house and free firewood; Reverend Parris received this and much more, including the title and deed to the parsonage and its surrounding land. Those residents who were angered by Reverend Parris’ benefits and who wanted to remain part of Salem Town refused to attend worship services and withheld their local taxes. This latter action was of consequence because local taxes helped pay the minister’s salary and provided his firewood. In October 1691, Parris’ opponents comprised the majority of the new Salem Village Committee, who refused to assess local taxes for Parris’...
Throughout the entirety of the play, Reverend Parris was a perplexed man. As the play moved along, he grew more introverted and we see his paranoia grow larger. He was also blaming every other person for every little mishap in Salem for his own benefit. Reverend Parris was a man of many different traits and as the play moves along these ever changing qualities are easily seen. From Act 1 to Act 4 in The Crucible, Reverend Parris, a timid pastor, transforms from a confused man trying to conceal his identity to the towns “gossiper)” to have his name remain unimpeachable.
In the beginning of scene 1, we notice him positioned at his daughter (Betty) sick bed. Appearing sad at first people might be feel remorseful for him, but after a while we notice that he is just reminiscing and thinking about his reputation, unconsciously think about his daughters wellbeing , he is fearful of what the people of Salem will think about him and thinking about the consequences of there being witch craft in his household, he will be relinquished from his status as the minister of Salem textual evidence state,”parris (studies her, then nods, half convinced) Abigail, I have fought here three long years to bend these stiff-necked people to me, and now, just when some good respect is rising for me in the parish, you compromise my very character”(crucible 144). This reveals that he is only worried and concerned about the respect he has gained and the concern he has about protecting
In Miller’s The Crucible, a prominent character introduced is Reverend Parris. As Salem’s minister, he has significant influence in the town’s court system. As a minister, it is one’s duty to live a life devoted to being a spiritual leader. However, Reverend Parris is far from being a minister and is not a true spiritual leader because of his greed, dishonesty, and reputation.
Playwright and essayist, Arthur Miller, in his play, “The Crucible”, utilizes pathos, symbolism, and irony to convey his purpose of how the events of the Salem Witch Trials had detrimental effects on the society and how far the elites went to protect their reputation . Miller’s reasoning is to expand Parris’ and Danforth purpose for their side of the argument during the witch trials. He adapts a contrasting tone in order to appeal to similar feelings with reasoning in his american readers.
In the play, The Crucible by Arthur Miller, the town of Salem faces a mask of hysteria from the accusations of witchcraft. Reverend Parris, one of the many characters mentioned throughout the play, was a man who did not want his good name to be tarnished. Reverend Parris is known throughout the town as the churchly figure. Most citizens do not like his personality, but they ultimately respect him for his belief in religion. Although many people were hung for the accusations of dealing with witchcraft, Reverend Parris is the most guilty to blame for the events of the Salem Witch Trials, because he was a fearful and terrified religious leader who really didn’t know what he was doing, as well as a selfish and greedy idiot who made quick and irrational decisions for the benefit of himself that non-surprisingly ended up killing tons of innocent people
Nationwide, students in history classes study and learn about the infamous incident known as the Salem Witch Trials of 1692. Through textbooks and research, students learn about this event from a factual and objective point of view. Students learn such facts like 19 men and women were hanged because they were convicted of witchcraft. Students learn the essential information as deemed important by their teacher; yet, students do not have the opportunity to learn about the trials from a subjective and personal point of view. Arthur Miller uses such a view point in his play The Crucible, which personifies the sentiments, attitudes, and standpoints of the people in Salem who were directly involved in the trials. Through Miller's poignant perspective, he shows the readers another side of the witch trials through the eyes of the actual participants. One such participant in the play who provides the readers with this valuable perspective is Reverend John Hale, a minister from Beverly who is called to Salem to investigate Salem's eccentric problem. Nonetheless, Reverend John Hale's perspective does not stay constant throughout the entire play. In Arthur Miller's The Crucible, the beliefs and principles of Reverend John Hale change dramatically, as the events of the Salem Witch Trials cause him to question his moral values and initial intentions.
I have given you a home, child. I have put clothes upon your back—now give me an upright answer. Your name in the town—it is entirely white, is it not?” This shows that early on in the play the Reverend thought highly of himself and saw himself as ‘white’ and the worst thing in his mind was anyone thinking anything different than that. He wanted to be the best and keep his family name clean above all else. However later in the book, due to all of the stress of the witch trials, Parris wasn’t so much concerned about himself than he was about others, he began to try and tell other people what to do as well by
Abigail’s struggles come from many of her personal desires that are forbidden in her society, causing her to lie. However, this also creates further social problems, such as the initiation of the witch trials. After Betty is stuck in a coma, Reverend Parris questions Abigail about the night in the woods, because he is suspicious and she denies that it had anything to do with witchcraft. Abigail replies to Parris saying, “ We never conjured spirits” (24). Abigail lies to Parris, denies the statement that witchcraft ever occurred, and says that all they did was danced. Witchcraft and dancing both are sins in the society, and she knows that her reputation is at stake and finds the need to lie to look innocent. Parris wants to be sure and calls Reverend Hale to look further into the issue. Once Reverend Hale comes into town, he questions Abigail about the night, and she once again denies everything he asks her. Abigail is being questioned by Hale, and once Tituba enters she screams, “ She made me do it! She made Betty do it! She makes me drink blood!” (45). Abigail denies every...