Miller’s Presentation of Abigail Williams in The Crucible

Look at Miller’s presentation of Abigail Williams in The Crucible. How

realistic is his presentation of her as a controller?

In Arthur Miller’s ‘The Crucible’, Abigail Williams is presented as a

controller of many of the key characters. Abigail can successfully

manipulate and control many of the characters because she is described

as being; ‘…a strikingly beautiful girl, an orphan, with an endless

capacity for dissembling’. Her beauty allows her to influence others

as they are intimidated by, and in awe of, her beauty. Having beauty

gains power as people are basically shallow and want to be seen with

the good-looking person, as they may then be associated with beauty.

‘An endless capacity for dissembling’ simply means that she has a

natural talent for wrapping people around her little finger. The fact

that Abigail is an orphan suggests that she uses the pity of others to

influence them. People sympathise with her because her parents were

killed and allow her to get away with a lot of things, as they think

that she has had enough bad experience and don’t want to reprimand

her. The fact that she witnessed her parents’ murder by Red Indians

also gives her kudos as it is as though she has been into the darkness

and all the things that the girls are afraid off as survived. It also

gives her an air of mystery because she is believed to be more capable

of these things now she has seen them done. By Abigail saying ‘I will

come to you in the dead of night…and bring a pointy reckoning that

will shudder you’, this threat is more serious coming from her than

any of the other girls as, from her past experiences, they almost

believe that Abigail would do it.

By writing ‘The Crucible’, Miller was making a comment on ...

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...igail’s motive seems to

be her sense of hostility towards Elizabeth as she fails to usurp her

and take her place on John’s arm. This, however, is not her only

motive. Her ability to control those around her to the point of murder

is one of these, as she likes to push people until they snap. It seems

that Abigail enjoys controlling those around her and the power she has

found as she has grown into an adolescent that she can wield over men

and women alike. Although it is not specifically stated, Abigail's

viewing of her parent’s murder would have unsettled her, which may be

the reason why she feels so little remorse at sending innocent people

to their deaths in her pursuit of John Proctor. Abigail is an alarming

character, as it is hard to comprehend that a seventeen year old girl

could exert such absolute power over a group of seemingly sensible

grown men.