In The Crucible, written by Arthur Miller, is about how the small town of Salem descends into a panic when the rumor of witchcraft is spread throughout the town. Many of the town’s population were accused which resulted to many long years in prison rotting away or being hanged publicly while the whole town watches. Many people wanted to find out who the witches were in Salem like the man named John Hale one of the court’s officials, decides to check on the Proctors as Elizabeth’s name was mentioned as being a witch in Salem. As Hale was sent to the house, on order of the court he had to find out if John, Elizabeth or both were witches. Hale was skeptical. He wanted to do the test to see if the court was right. Hale starts off by asking if John Proctor could even recite the 10 commandments as his frequent absence from …show more content…
the church raised even further suspicion. The quotes “... I note that you are rarely in the church on Sabbath Day”. (Miller 64) and “Twenty-six time in seventeen month, sir… Will you tell me why you are so absent”? (Miller 64) further proves this. Later, John recites 9 out of the 10 commandments because of his guilt, he cannot name the Commandment about adultery without the help of his wife. Hale’s suspicion arises, then John quickly states that between both of them, they can recite all of them. Hale says back on how even a small crack in a fortress is not counted as small. In the end of Act 2 Elizabeth is taken away with crimes of witchcraft. As the opening of Act 3, John goes to court with Mary Warren to try to convince the court that his wife was falsely accused of witchcraft. Proctor hands in a credible list; that he worked on diligently of all the people in Salem who signed the testament in order to persuade Danforth into reasoning with Proctor, and as Parris calls it an “attack on the court” Hale defends Proctor when he says “ to Parris, trying to explain himself: Is every defense an attack upon the court? Can no one-?” (Miller 94). In contrast, Hale notices how much Proctor worked on getting his defense and how seeing how every defense is called an attack on the court angers him. This is the point where Hale trusts John more than he did in the previous act. After a while, Proctor confesses to adultery, but, Danforth wants to know why Elizabeth’s reason for Abigail getting fired, but, she tells a lie to save her husband’s good name.
Hale tries to reason to Danforth in the quote. “Excellency, it is a natural lie to tell; I beg you, stop now before another is condemned!...From the beginning the man has struck me true.” (Miller 114) also “I believe him! Pointing at Abigail:This girl has always struck me false! She has-” (Miller 114). After Mary Warren tells about how John threatened Mary into signing the testimony, Danforth wants Proctor to confess: he doesn’t waive but, instead John says “A fire, a fire is burning!...the boot of Lucifer, I see his filthy face! And it is my face, and yours, Danforth! For them that quail to bring men out ignorance, as I have quailed, and as you quail now when you know your black hearts that this is fraud.” (Miller 199-120). John is saying that Danforth knows as well has him that this hearing is foolish and they know that the girls are lying. Danforth calls for Proctor’s arrest:he is detracted from the court and Hale finds this so outrageous that he quit the court in
anger. While some might not see it, there is a message in the changes with both Hale and Proctor. What I see out of it is that you shouldn’t always believe in higher authority figures you have to listen to both sides and think for yourself. Hale figured this out when he saw how great of a length Proctor went into trying to save his wife from being killed. Hale also notices how Danforth and Parris like to shut down any evidence that even raises the risk of their reputations being ruined. Hale is the only voice of reasoning when he was on the court’s side when they were hearing out John Proctor. In the end the story of The Crucible has major changes of attitude and emotions of the major characters in Salem. John and Hale’s seems the most powerful as it shows someone who didn’t trust the other until he went so far out of his way to prove himself. The Crucible many more deep meanings in store.
Reverend John Hale and John Proctor are the first to realize that the girls who started the accusations should be punished for their actions. Reverend Hale starts to change his belief when Mary Warren tells reveals that there is no witchcraft, and when the girls hear about this they start to turn against her. In the scene when John Proctor and Giles Corey are taken away into custody Hale says "I denounce these proceedings, I quit this court!". Hale has now crossed a line between his old self who put all his faith into the court, to a man who has absolutely no respect for it. At first Reverend Hale leaves Salem, but returns to try and save as many of the accused as possible. While doing so, Hale tries to convince Elizabeth Proctor to get John Proctor To confess so that John doesn't die. Hale doesn't know yet but anyone who confesses will he sent to be
John was in the lake and speaking praise the Devil then Hale said “I denounce these proceedings, I quit this court! He slams the door to the outside behind him.”(Miller 120). If Hale had stayed and fought for John and all the other innocent people then maybe John would not have been convicted. If John was never arrested, then he never would have been accused and hanged. Proctor was fed up with the court so he went crazy and “Proctor, laughs insanely, then: A fire, a fire is burning! I hear the boot of Lucifer, I see his filthy face! And it is my face, and yours, Danforth! For them that quail to bring men out of ignorance, as I have quailed, and as you quail now when you know in all your black hearts that this be fraud - God damns our kind especially, and we will burn, we will burn together!”(Miller 119). Proctor is saying that Hale and the rest of the court will burn in hell with him for not being fair in their trials and for hanging all the innocent people. Hale was the only person who was certain this was all a hoax and he basically left John and all the other upright people to die. Hale leaving shows that he is a selfish person and only cares about himself and his
[Bending on one knee]Reverend Hale: Goody Proctor, you bare a gift, convince John to confess, and may you both bare God’s giving gift.
In Act II Hale, in his true moral values which do not change throughout the course of the play, goes to each house questioning the inhabitants on their loyalty to Christianity. He winds up at the Proctor home, where he questions both John and Elizabeth, who are angry at the reasoning of the questioning. They find out that he has questioned Rebecca Nurse as well and this anger...
The Crucible by Arthur Miller is set in Salem in a Puritan community. John Proctor, Elizabeth Proctor, Reverend Hale, Reverend Paris, and Abigail are the main characters. The book is about witchcraft or what the town thinks is witchcraft. John Proctor is the tragic hero because he is loving, loyal, authoritative, but his tragic flaw is his temper.
Originally, Hale was only provided evidence that witchcraft was occurring in the town. Now that he has visited the Proctor’s home, he finds more support for his suspicion of the girls’ claims as he finds truth in the words of John Proctor.
Statements from Hale show that he has realized the error of his ways. He decides to “shut [his] conscience no more” (223) and quits the court. Hale can no longer suppress his beliefs about the court and in effect, like Pontius Palter, absolves himself from the court. Next, Hale’s Words are used to show the immense amount of guilt that rests on his shoulder. Hale walks the prisons of Salem and, in knowing that “there is blood on [his] head” (234), “counsels Christians they should belie themselves” (234) even though he is also belying his reputation as reverend by doing this.
Later, Hale stands up for his belief in the innocence of the victims even though they have been forced to admit their guilt. He starts to realize that the court although, apparently truthful and fair, can be misleading and forceful in finding the guilt or of a person depending on what the court desires. Hale has no belief that any of those in the town are bewitched. As Hale stands and awaits the death of Proctor, he knows that Proctor has done nothing wrong. There is no doubt in his mind that witchcraft is not in the town of
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 is a 1953 play by Arthur Miller. Initially, it was known as The Chronicles of Sarah Good. The Crucible was set in the Puritan town of Salem, Massachusetts. It talks of McCarthyism that happened in the late 1600’s whereby the general public and people like Arthur Miller were tried and persecuted. The Crucible exemplifies persecutions during the Salem Witch Trials. The people were convicted and hung without any tangible proof of committing any crime. Persecutions were the order of the day. When a finger was pointed at any individual as a witch, the Deputy Governor Danforth never looked for evidence against them or evidence that incriminated them; he ordered them to be hanged. This can be seen through his words “Hang them high over the town! Who weeps for those, weeps for corruption!” (1273), the people were persecuted aimlessly. The four main characters in the play, John Proctor, Abigail Adams, Reverend Hale and Reverend Parris, are caught in the middle of the witchcraft panic in the religious Salem, Massachusetts in late 1690’s. Persecution is the most important theme in the Crucible, the leaders and citizens of Salem attacks and persecutes one of their own without any tangible evidence against them.
The crucible, written by Arthur Miller, is about the Salem witch trials and how people react to hysteria created from the fear of witches. In the play, after hysteria breaks out, the Salem government starts persecute and hang people it believes are witches. This prompts people to start to accusing people of witchcraft. Some people who accuse others of committing witchcraft are Abigail Williams and Thomas Putnam. They do not accuse people of witchcraft to stop witchcraft, but for personal gain or to hurt others. Thomas Putnam, one of the many characters who takes advantage of the witch trials, is able to use the fear of witches to bend the court to his will. Hysteria causes people to believe claims that are clearly false. This allows Putnam to persecute his enemies. He and many other are able to get away with this because hysteria driven persecutions are not run like regular courts and the fact that witchcraft is an invisible crime allows evidence to be made up. The theme of The Crucible is when any persecution is driven by fear and people can and will manipulate the system so they can gain and hurt another.
Honesty is a matter of life and death in this story. People are accused of witchcraft and if accused and you denied to anything dealing with witchcraft, you were to be hanged. On the other hand, in order to save your life, you had to confirm to witchcraft and agree with associating with the devil. What would you do if you were accused? Would you lie and agree to dealing with witchcraft and associating with the devil just to save your life? Or, would you be honest and sacrifice your life for something you didn’t do? In this story, the protagonist John Proctor plays a role of contradiction. Throughout the story, John Proctor attempts to carry out honesty when he is brought to the courtroom to admit to committing adultery with Abigail Williams and when Hale told him to confess to witchcraft and to sign his name. John refused to sign his name, the act of putting his name on paper was just too much for him. Even though he could’ve saved his life by just lying and signing the paper, he found goodness in himself and did the right
Reverend Hale is a minister from Beverly who is summoned to Salem by Reverend Parris to help find and convict witches in the village. He considers himself a master at locating witches and heavily believes in the knowledge of books to help spot the sure signs of witchcraft. Reverend Hale seems more into the publicity side of witch hunting and less so about the convicted. As long as he completes his set task under the eye of everyone, nothing else matters. This plays into the fact that during the Salem Witch Trials, every person in the community was constantly trying to protect their reputation instead of protecting the ones they knew were innocent. As Reverend Hale continues the hunt and questioning the witches and victims, he feels the onset of unsureness. In act three, John Proctor is in court and has confessed his sins of lechery. The court
Another important work Miller wrote, The Crucible, takes place in Salem, Massachusetts, during the 17th century. It is a time when jealousy and suspicion poisoned the thinking of an entire town. Neighbor turned against neighbor when events happened that could not be explained. Accusations turned into a mad hunt for witches who did not exist. One of the main characters of the play is John Proctor, a well-respected man with a good name in the town. As the play develops, John Proctor’s moral dilemma becomes evident: he must decide whether to lie and confess to witchcraft in order to save his life, or to die an honest man, true to his beliefs.
“John Proctor you must confess your sins”, Hathorne demands. “Blasphemy! There is no such thing as witchcraft. You have gone mad believing in Abigail’s tales”, John screeches back. Hathorne and John stand facing each other, neither willing to back down. Danforth holding out the feather pen to John. John’s heated glare is switching between Hathorne and Danforth. Reverend Hale standing off to the side, with worry etched into his facial features. His eyes are pleading with John to just back down and sign the paper, but he says nothing out of his mouth, but his lips are constantly trembling. Eventually Hale controls his trembling lips enough to beg Elizabeth, “Elizabeth, do something. Make him sign it”. The look in his eyes switches from worry to desperation, as he looks about to drop to his knees and beg someone to do something to save John’s life. Elizabeth tears her eyes from John and looks Hale straight on, “He