The Influence Of Relationships In The Crucible By Arthur Miller

Relationships are the fundamental pavement that one walks on throughout his or her life. Their relationships create happiness, sadness, meaning and connection as each road has cracks and loose pebbles. In the play The Crucible, by Arthur Miller, the audience sees each character walk on their own sidewalk of relationships, choosing who they interact with and who they avoid. However, the characters do not see in which ways their relationships individually impact their destiny.In particular, the ugly fate of one character, John Proctor, is influenced by seperate and different relationships in the play. By looking at the impact of relationships on individual outcomes, it is evident that varying relationships and alliances separately impact the same conclusion.

Abigail and Tituba’s relationship creates turmoil in the city of Salem.

Their bond, along with the bond that they have with the girls, allows Abby in particular to believe that if she performs this voodoo that John Proctor will love her, driving the plot. In the same way, their Barbados dancing in the woods with the other girls creates the setup for Parris to find them which indirectly begins the Salem Witch Trials. Tituba is the influence that allows Abigail to feel this way. Her doing this is the only reason why the Trials began, building the conflict that is the motor for the plot. Although different than how Abigail beginning the accusations starts the trials, this relationship after some time will lead to Proctor’s individual decision of choosing death. Their relationship and Tituba’s Barbados magic creates the outline for how John Proctor is effected when he chooses death. Unlike how later Abigail’s feelings drive her to accuse Elizabeth, Tituba accuses women so that to get out of punishment for relations with the devil. This then cause Abby to join in, allowing her feelings to take over and John to end up choosing death to save his

pride.
When Abigail is left with no more choices, she must use the situation she has created to remove Elizabeth, Proctor’s wife, in order to continue her affair with him. She utilizes the mistake she made earlier of being caught while dancing in the woods to propel her actions of eliminating Elizabeth. In this way she pretends to be the victim of the devil which shows that she is uninhibited and will risk her life to be with John. Abigail and Proctor’s affair influences Proctor’s ultimate choice of death in the sense that he becomes part of Abigail’s fantasy of love. Her allusion that he loved her as well as her undoubtedly loving him encouraged her to then accuse Elizabeth of witchcraft, after alleging many other women of witchery. Abigail extending the Salem Witch Trials due to her love for John sends the message that she is willing to do anything to eliminate his wife. The relationship that Abby and Proctor share is not one as Abigail sees it, though.
Elizabeth and John’s marriage is an important factor in the play because they care for each other in an unordinary way. Because Elizabeth has been such a caring and understand wife to Proctor, forgiving him for adultery, he feels this uncertain responsibility to her. They leave each other their pride and the dignity they have left so that it will not hurt their children as much as tarnishing their name would. Their relationship leads Proctor to realize what really matters to him, as he makes his final decision based on that. In the same way, at the end of the play when Proctor makes this decision, Elizabeth is encouraged to make him change his mind. But, her relationship with Proctor means much more than just based on the times they could share with each other if he were to live. It means, especially to Elizabeth, that they are equals in a way and they both deserve to survive with dignity, even if it is just their dignity left. Her acknowledgement of his pride proves how complicated but sacred their relationship is. Elizabeth’s willingness to allow John to make his final decision on his own and his desire to save her demonstrates that their relationship is a large factor in his choice.