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An essay about the crucible
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Will the truth always set you free? There is an old adage: “The truth will set you free.” How true is this statement in relationship to The Crucible? In the play The Crucible by Arthur Miller, many characters are being testified against in court and are being punished, even sometimes by the death penalty. One example of someone who told the truth but still got hanged in court is John Proctor, he admitted to his affair and didn’t lie in court and he was still executed along with some others. Another example of somebody telling the truth but still getting hanged is Rebecca Nurse, although she knew she was going to die but she still told the truth because of her dignity. The last example of someone telling the truth but still getting hanged is Giles Corey, he called out the Putnams and the court for manipulating people but he still ended up getting stoned to death in the end. The saying: “The truth will set you free.” does not apply in this book, because everyone who tells the truth gets hanged or goes to jail. John Proctor while in court is actually telling the truth to protect his wife, but he is accused of lying to the judge (Danforth). Danforth accuses John of lying, “Is that document a lie? If it is a …show more content…
One example is John Proctor, who tried to protect his wife, he told the truth but was still convicted of lying and was hung. Another example is Rebecca Nurse, she kept her dignity and was very religious. She was accused of witchcraft but swore her innocence on the name of god, but she still got killed in the end. The last example is Giles Corey, he was old and he told the truth in court, but he didn’t deny or accept the witchcraft incident, and he was able to give his son his land but he was eventually stoned. The truth will set you free does not apply in this book for many reasons, and it doesn’t always apply in real
In the Crucible there are two quotes Parris says “You will confess yourself or I will take you out and whip you to your death, Tituba!” So what this means is that anybody accused of witch gets hanged. People really do not have a choice. Putnam says “This woman must be hanged! She must be taken and
Nothing good can come from lies, John Proctor understands this and abides by the truth. He demonstrates that he is a man of truth when he confesses to his wife, Elizabeth, that he had an affair with Abigail Williams. He confessed as him and his wife were talking about whether or not he could prove that Abigail
For example, towards the end of the book it was apparent that there was no witchcraft going on throughout the time of the witch trials. However, Danforth had a responsibility of speaking and taking action for the people of the community regardless of what was true. Despite what people said about there being no witchcraft, Danforth had to use what he had observed and what was being said throughout the town. “Now we cannot hope the witch will accuse herself; granted? Therefore, we must rely upon their victims -- and they do testify, the children certainly do testify (100).”
The Crucible shows how honesty may not seem like the popular choice to make, but will always be the right one. Work Cited Miller, Arthur. The. The Crucible (Penguin Classics). New York: Penguin Classics, 2003.
The punishment of witches is an example of irony in the book. After the rumors about witches started, many people were suspected as witches even though they were innocent. However, there was no good way to prove their innocence; the choices that people had are to tell the truth that they are not witches and never admit and
John Proctor is, at first, willing to offer up a false confession that his life may be spared. Inevitably, John Proctor possesses that fateful attribute known to fall fatal to many human beings - pride. While he has, indeed, been ashamed of his many sins throughout his life, Proctor's soul still clings to his pride and his good name, however soiled it may have become. On the morning scheduled for his execution, Proctor wrestles with the realization that one more sin so heaped upon the rest in his life will make precious little difference in the end; "I cannot mount the gibbet like a saint. It is a fraud. I am not that man.... My honesty is broke... I am no good man. Nothing's spoiled by giving them this lie." (126) He attempts to calm his pride by telling himself that the other accused witches who will not give false testimony to save themselves from the gallows have every right to do so; they led lives free of blame. He, however, he tells himself, did no such thing; what right has he to hang among the righteous? "Let them that never lied die now to keep their souls. It is pretense for me, a vanity that will nor blind God nor keep my children out of the wind." (126) Thus the conviction first reached by John Proctor is to save his life rather than to throw it away in mock martyrdom.
The statement,“The Crucible is essentially about courage, weakness, and truth,” is proven true numerous times, throughout the play. The Crucible was written by Arthur Miller, about the true events that happened in Salem, Massachusetts, between the years 1692 and 1693. The Salem witch trials consisted of many hangings, lies, and complete mass hysteria. The citizens of Salem followed the religion of Puritanism, and the ideas of predestination. The root of the mass hysteria comes from their belief in the sense that in something happens then it must have been planned by God. In Miller’s portrayal of the story, Abigail Williams was the ringleader of the witch trials, and she used the idea of predestination to cover up her own sins. Abigail was a very manipulative girl and ruined many lives. John Proctor, Mary Warren, and Elizabeth Proctor were just a few of the victims in Abby’s game. John, Mary, and Elizabeth exhibit the traits courage, weakness, and truth, whether it was in a positive or negative way.
John Proctor is guilty of both spoken lies and lies conveyed from his actions. John Proctor has to deal with the decision to stay true to himself and not let his frustration condemn him to falsify the truth. Accused of conjuring with the devil among many other innocent Puritans in the town, John has to face making the right decision to either be hanged and keep his soul pure or lie to save his life and oblige to the magistrates that he did indeed conjure with devil. The tendency to want to keep your life is within any human being on this Earth, however John is faced with the decision of saving his life or faulting his already remorseful heart by lying. As John Proctor makes the decision to lie and keep his life, he begins to doubt how others will now think of him knowing he conjured with the devil. When asked to sign his name on paper for the entire town to see he refuses and exclaims, “Because it is my name! Because I cannot have another in my life! Because I lie and sign myself to lies…” (143) While John passionately speaks this, his immense frustration is finally released and shows his desire to stay true to himself and others in the town. Refusing to sign the paper conveys the lie he initially told and the truth he sought for once realizing the guilt and remorse he would have for the rest of his life. John Proctor’s feeling of frustration
Honor, dignity, and integrity are traits that are becoming more and more rare in our society. The Crucible, a play written in 1952 by Arthur Miller, is based on the Salem witch hunts of 1692 and parallels the Red Scare and McCarthyism in the 1950s. In the play, Miller attempts to focus his themes around traits such as honor, dignity, and integrity, and as a result, the theme "is it better to die honorably or live dishonorably" becomes vital to the story and well conveyed throughout it. The characters that exemplify this idea are John Proctor and Giles Corey, both of whom die by the end of the play, and Reverend John Hale and Abigail Williams, who live through the trials.
In 1692, nineteen men and women of Salem, Massachusetts were suspected under the crime of witchcraft and were sentenced to hang. These hangings came from the result of villagers blaming each other trying in order to save their own lives. Similarly, in the 1950s, McCarthyism and the Red Scare took on a similar outcome as the Salem Witch Trials; many people were wrongly convicted as Communists. However as time progressed, people became less concerned about saving themselves but began to protect one another from harm. Arthur Miller wrote The Crucible in the 1950s in order to relay the message that although humanity appears to selfishly protect their own interests, they eventually become selfless and serve justice. Through the use of description, Miller illustrates how John Proctor, Reverend Hale and Giles Corey transform from selfish to selfless.
The Crucible mocks the way society deals with justice. Salem is torn apart, due to the extent of Abigail's imagination and power. It shows the bias of opinions, as it was shown in the court, and how people tend to choose outcomes that suit them. In the end, injustice thrived upon the souls of the community, leaving many innocent people dead. Justice did not prevail, as the heart behind the case, John Proctor preferred to keep his self-respect and integrity, than live a life of lies.
When Proctor is put on trial, Danforth brings in Elizabeth to questions about the affair. Elizabeth must feel her heart racing because his life is in her hands. The words that came out of Elizabeth’s mouth is taken seriously. When Danfourth questions Elizabeth he says “Look at me! To your own knowledge, has John Proctor even committed the crime of lechery?”(Miller 105). Elizabeth answers faintly and says “No, sir”(Miller 105). At that moment, things went terribly wrong. Elizabeth tries to protect Proctor’s name, so she does not tell the truth. Little does she know, Proctor confesses beforehand. Obviously, she does this because no matter what, she still loves him. After the trial, Elizabeth talks to John about the situation. When Elizabeth soothes John about the situation, she says “John, it come to naught that I should forgive you, if you’ll not forgive yourself” (Miller 126). Elizabeth’s forgiveness makes John want to keep lying. If he knows she is okay with it, he will deny it to others. Her opinion is so important to him because he wants the best for her. Although, he decides to confess. This proves Elizabeth does not want him to die. Finally , after everything Proctor has been through, she lies to the court, so they do not hang him. This proves Elizabeth is a loyal
The Crucible also brings to light the theme of injustice in society. Not only does Judge Hathorne and Deputy-Governor Danforth have no proof of the crimes other than the word of the girls, but they leave the accused no options -- they either lie to save their lives, and hence 'admit' to the crime, or they die telling the truth which will not be believed by the public anyway. Even when Reverend Hale becomes suspicious that it is a hoax and informs the court of his fears, Danforth and Hathorne ignore his pleads for extra time to investigate and continue on with how they best see the court's proceedings.
The Salem witch trials were a time period when any individual could be accused of witchcraft for numerous reasons. In The Crucible, Arthur Miller focuses on the deviation of the trials and how the town’s most religious and honest members of the community are tried with witchcraft. John Proctor, the town’s most honest man, is accused of being a witch and must decide if he should confess or not. Proctor’s confession will stop the town from rebelling and uphold the reputations of Deputy Governor Danforth and Reverend Parris. Hale also wishes for Proctor’s confession so he does not have to feel responsible if Proctor were to be hanged for his witchcraft accusations. The confession of Proctor would convince others in the town to confess to their
People make life or death choices every day. In The Crucible, John Proctor and others decided dying honestly was better than living a lie. At this time, countless were accused of witchcraft and working with the devil in the town of Salem, MA. In this play, Reverend Hale told Elizabeth proctor “no principle, however glorious, is worth dying for.” He argued that living a life of dishonesty is better than dying for the truth, trying to persuade John to live, but as a devil's advocate. But John believed no life was worth living if it was full of falsifies information.