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Characters and characterisation of the crucible
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Research on Abigail Williams from the Crucible
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Now I know what you are thinking: ‘Abigail Williams should be hanged for her crimes and for the false accusations of women in Salem.’
What right do you have to hang yet another woman for the same thing? You’re no better than she is. Yes, she ran, and yes, she accused women of witchcraft in order to fulfil her fantasy of being with John Proctor; but, do you really know her full story? Have you considered the facts and do you see how her childhood could cause feelings that may not make sense?
Abigail Williams suffered a rough childhood. What kind of effects do you think would have on a young girl witnessing her parents being killed right in front of her? The violence that she saw being done to her own mother and father could lead to feelings
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of brutality herself. Abigail is an orphan, an unmarried teenager, and female. Wouldn’t you want at least a little bit of power? To have some say in your life? That’s all she wanted. Abby wanted a say. She wanted a family. She wanted John Proctor. The only way that she could think to do it was to get rid of Elizabeth Proctor. Elizabeth had been going around town dropping hints about how sleazy Abby was, and that possibly lowered her status even more. So yes, Abby may not have made the best decision to accuse Goody Proctor of this so-called witchcraft, but if you were a young girl, whose feelings are very relevant, and were rejected by the only person you have loved, are orphaned, witnessed your parents murder, wouldn’t you think you would have some feelings that don’t make sense? Don’t you think you would do things that are unacceptable? Abigail is just a young girl who didn’t understand the consequences her actions would have.
But once the accusations started, she couldn’t back out for fear that her name would be ruined even more. She was just as scared as the other girls involved, but had to hide it behind the lies and cunning actions because she had no one to turn to in her time of need. She felt power, and like she had a place in life for once, when the other girls followed her and her decisions.
Running away wasn’t the best decision she could have made, but staying would have been worse. Abigail felt like her life was at stake and she needed to take the precautions to make her life better. She wasn’t fleeing for fear of being caught, she fled because life in Salem had become too hard and she wanted to start over. Abigail had made mistakes in life and she needed to surround herself with new people, to get rid of the preconceived assumptions that others had made towards her. In order to move on, she had to move out of town.
Why should Abigail be hanged for things that she didn’t intend to have happen? Hanging her won’t bring back any of the other women that hanged for crimes they didn’t commit. What would hanging Abigail change? Would it make you feel better about yourselves? Your family isn’t coming back, but neither is hers. She is a young girl who made mistakes. Have you never done the
same?
When conducting research for my project, I came across a website that contained a few primary sources regarding the Salem Witch Trials. One of these primary sources was the photo of a legal document explaining the death warrant and reasons for execution of a woman named Bridget Bishop. Bishop was claimed to be a witch in Salem during the year 1692, and the document explaining her significance involving witchcraft resides in the Peabody Essex Museum in Salem, Massachusetts. My thesis for this primary source is that the judge and jury believed they were seeking justice by executing Bishop, a woman whose death was truthfully based on her differences as a person rather than actual crimes she committed.
Throughout the play, it is evident that Abigail's immaturity dictates her actions for herself and other people in Salem. John makes it very clear that they are no longer going
Abigail's necessity for revenge makes her threaten the young ladies into following her idea of deception. “Let either of you breathe a word,” Abigail threatens, “or the edge of a word about the other things, and I will come to you in the black of some terrible night and bring a pointy reckoning that will shudder you”(835). Abigail knows that all the girls in the woods fear her to death. Which made the witch trials easier for her to get by. Another thing is that Abigail ends her affair with John Proctor to try to get revenge on him. “A man may think God
She does everything that is physically possible to get rid of her. She drinks a charm to kill Elizabeth, she stabs herself with a needle to accuse Elizabeth of a crime, Abigail also accuses Elizabeth of being a witch. The whole play, those were the only intentions that Abigail had, exterminate Elizabeth Proctor. Even though John decided to attempt to make the court look differently at Abigail and see what she has done to many people in the city of Salem. The misleading trait that Abigail has, helps her get out of a rocky situation without harm. The threatening of the girls, drinking a charm, stabbing herself with a needle, and accusing Elizabeth Proctor of witchcraft are all the reasons that Abigail is also an evil individual. Abigail was the most misleading and evil character in the play written by Arthur Miller.
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
The true antagonist of the play is the town of Salem itself, because of the judgemental and self concerned peoples, and its oppressive views. Abigail;s outrageous actions are due to her desensitized views on death and actions otherwise viewed as unethical. From her youth ABigail recalls: “ I saw indians smash my dear parents’ head on the pillow next to mine and i have seen some reddish work at night” (Miller 20), because of this Abigail is numb to death and suffering and is in fact quite morbid. There is no problem in condemning other to death in Abigail’s eyes because she doesn’t see the issue with it. Abigail does not seem to comprehend that it is unethical to let people be hanged and stoned to death and has no issue telling others that she “ can make you wish you had never seen the sun go down” (Miller 20). Not only is Abigail desensitized to murder and death, she is also numb to other unethical dilemmas. Abigail is desensitized to corrupting the Proctor’s marriage because of her childish lust and obsession for John Proctor. Such desires can be seen through her encounters with Proctor. In regards to their so called “relationship” she says: “it’s she put me out, you cannot pretend it were you. I saw your face when she put me out, and you loved me then and you love me now!” (Miller 22). Abigail does not view her behavior t...
In Arthur Miller's The Crucible, the main character Abigail Williams is to blame for the 1692 witch trials in Salem, Massachusetts. Abigail is a mean and vindictive person who always wants her way, no matter who she hurts. Through out the play her accusations and lies cause many people pain and suffering, but she seemed to never care for any of them except John Proctor, whom she had an affair with seven months prior to the beginning of the play. John Proctor and his wife Elizabeth used to employ Abigail, until Elizabeth found out the affair and threw Abigail out. Although John told Abigail that the affair was over and he would never touch her again, she tried desperately to rekindle their romance. "Abby, I may think of you softly from time to time. But I will cut off my hand before I'll ever reach for you again." (Page 23) She claimed that she loved John and that he loved her. Before the play began, Abigail tried to kill Elizabeth with a curse. She thought that if Elizabeth were dead John would marry her. Further into the play, Abigail accused Elizabeth of witchcraft. She saw Marry Warren, the Proctor's servant, making a poppet. Mary put a needle into the doll, and Abigail used that for her accusation. She stabbed herself with a needle and claimed that Elizabeth's soul had done it. Although Abigail claimed she loved John, she may have just loved the care and attention he gave her. John cared for her like no one else had. In a way he could be described as somewhat of a father figure to her. When Abigail was just a child, she witnessed her parents' brutal murders. "I saw Indians smash my dear parent's heads on the pillow next to mine..." (page 20) After her traumatic experience, she was raised by her uncle, Reverend Parris, who is somewhat of a villain. In the play it was written, "He (Parris) was a widower with no interest in children, or talent with them." (Page 3) Parris regarded children as young adults who should be "thankful for being permitted to walk straight, eyes slightly lowered, arms at the sides, and mouths shut until bidden to speak." (Page 4) Therefore, it is obvious to see that Abigail grew up without any love or nurturing.
Abigail was able to easily deceive and manipulate the court to try and get what she had set her eyes on, being John Proctor; a much older, married man who had had an affair with Abigail once when she was a sort of servant in his household. After finding of this, his wife Elizabeth had banished Abigail from their house. Abigail sought revenge...
Her selfishness is evident when Abigail and her friends accuse the innocent people of Salem of witchcraft. She puts the blame on others, so she does not get punished for dancing in the woods. Abigail shows her anger towards John Proctor when she tries to accuse his wife and ultimately gets John killed. Her anger leads her to make the poor decisions of getting John killed, even though he did nothing wrong. She is a coward when she puts the blame on innocent people and runs away before John gets hung. Her craven attitude is the last flaw that ultimately leads her to run away from Salem. Abigail’s flaws eventually bring her to her downfall by the end of the
Rebecca Nurse, again like John Proctor, was hanged for her falsely accused treacherous actions. This again is a prime example of what people will go through in order to maintain a reputation that is accepted by society.
Abigail is a defensive girl. She is always defending her reputation and herself to get out of trouble. Abigail was on orphan, her uncle Parris feeds and clothes her. She was also expelled from the house by Goody Proctor, therefore she has little standing in village. After she was caught dancing in the woods, Parris questioned her name and she replied angrily,"Be no blush about my name." Later, when Hale was questioning Abigail about dancing in the woods, Abby defends herself, "I didn't see no Devil", and she points to Tituba, taking herself out of the spotlight and trouble.
...ithout concrete evidence. Also, Abigail allows innocent people to be alleged and sometimes even hanged without a chance to defend themselves. Her main reason was to prove the hypocrisy within the town. “Let you beware, Mr. Danforth. Think you to be so mighty that the power of Hell may not turn your wits? Beware of it!” Abigail is hinting that no one especially Danforth, who is loaded with power and authority is able to escape the devil. She sees the trials as a game. Abigail wishes to punish Salem for its hypocritical values by falsely accusing women and men for their wrong doing. Danforth, with the abuse of his authority in a way represents the “Un- American activist committee,” by questioning as many “Communists” as they could. Abigail’s abuse of power represents how blame was thrown onto innocent people, for their lives to be taken if they didn’t “name names.”
For centuries the Salem witch trials have astonished historians, and people in general. People were executed based on accusations of being a witch. People were afraid of being accused. Chaos continued to ensue as neighbors, friends, and family turned against one another. The very people who lived under the same roof turned around accused their own flesh and blood of witchcraft. The events that occurred during the Witchcraft crisis would claim the lives of nearly 20 men and women via execution. Witchcraft was considered a capital crime and anyone accused was tried and potentially executed. The only escape from execution was to confess. Several girls, women, and even men stood at the center of a pivotal event in history. There is no real answer
The body of civil law that once governed the Roman people, the Digest of Justinian, states in article 22.3.2, Ei incumbit probatio qui dicit, non qui negat. The burden of proof lies upon him who affirms, not him who denies. This presumption of innocence, the idea that all men are innocent until proven guilty, lies at the heart of all court systems on our holy earth. If not for this principle, any manner of blind accusations could be made, all of which would hold equal merit. The very situation has arisen here in Salem. The cry of witchcraft has explained a many number of misfortunes that have befallen on a many number of people.
...than be accused of lying and lose all the power and adulation she has fought to hold on to. As soon as Abigail realized people were beginning to suspect her integrity, however, her initial instinct was to flee. Parris, her uncle, was the first to notice this, telling the court, “My niece, sir, my niece – I believe she has vanished.” This exemplifies her selfish behavior, because instead of taking responsibility for her actions, she would rather cowardly run from her problems.