With the goal of freedom in Equiano and the Pilgrims as well as John Proctor, it is evident that Americans are defined more by freedom than anything else. The Strive for freedom is what makes a true American and you can see that strive through the stories of Equiano, the Pilgrims, and John Proctor in The Crucible. Equiano had to worked extremely hard to be able to pay for his freedom. The story Of Plymouth Plantation was a great example of people earning their independence. Lastly John Proctor showed his great endeavor by trying to free innocent people from being hanged. All these stories are significant examples of how an American is defined by freedom. In "The Interesting Narrative of the Life of Olaudah Equiano" Equiano was kidnapped as a young child and then was shipped all over until he landed in America. He did not even give up through the deadly ship voyages. He described how bad the voyages were, “The air soon became unfit for respiration, from a variety of loathsome smells, and brought on a sickness among the slaves, of which many died.” Once he was brought to the slave trade in America he began to work hard. People began noticed how hard and strenuous he worked and how …show more content…
intelligent he had become. One man purchased him and brought him to England and became very educated and then was sold back to another man in America. His master noticed his intelligence and gave him a job with pay. After earning a good amount of money Equiano was eventually able to buy his freedom from his master. Equiano’s life story is a great example of how freedom is an important part that defines being an American. The Pilgrims in the the story "Of Plymouth Plantation" give an extraordinary example of how Americans are defined by freedom. The Pilgrims left England and sailed towards America in search of Religious freedom. They did not want to be told what religion they are supposed to be, they wanted to have the freedom of their own choice. In the background of the story it tells how William Bradford “Joined a group of Puritans who believed that the Church of England was corrupt. This group wished to separate from the church and then they sailed to North America.” By sailing across the entire Atlantic Ocean and battling huge storms that caused them to sail off course, they landed in Massachusetts. This is where they earned their religious freedom and now they could practiced what they wanted to and not be controlled by the Church of England. The pilgrims story in the story "Of Plymouth Plantation" had to face many hardships in their journey to the new world, from severe storms while sailing and harsh winter once they arrived on land. They did not give up, they stayed and practiced their religion freely. The Pilgrims story shows how an American is defined by freedom. In the story “The Crucible” a character named John Proctor fights for the freedom for his wife and his friends from being convicted with working for the devil.
He comes to the court with evidence that proves Abigail Williams and the girls that help are guilty of accusing innocent people of working with the devil. To free his friends he uses Marry Warren as his evidence against the girls. When Mary Warren becomes useless evidence, John Proctor puts everything on the line to help free his friends. He tells the people in the court “I lusted with Abigail and there is a promise in such sweat. But it is a whore’s vengeance and you must see it.” This quote shows how much John will do to save his friends and his wife. John is a perfect example of how freedom defines what is an American
is. An American is someone that is defined by freedom, they strive for being independent that is what means to be an America. The endeavor to be free is seen through the story of Equiano. Equiano’s life shows how hard he worked to become free. From being a slave and becoming a free man exhibits his strive to be free. The Pilgrims escape from England to North America for religious freedom is a very important example of how Americans are defined by freedom. John Proctor showed how he was defined by freedom when he tried to save his friends and his wife from being convicted as witches. These three stories are great examples of what an American is and an American is someone who is defined by freedom that anything else.
John Proctor a well-respected man in the city of Salem has a deep secret that plays a major role later on in the story. He had an intimate affair with a younger single girl named Abigail which he regrets greatly. Proctor shows his disgust when he argues with Abigail by insisting, “Abby I never give you hope to wait for me” (page168). Proctor exclaims that he surely regrets his sin and doesn’t want Abigail to think that he loves her and not his own wife. Although Proctor may still have feelings about Abigail he reassures her that he will never have emotional relationships with her ever again. He had the ultimate opportunity to get back at Abigail and stop the witch trials from happening when he meets Abigail alone in the woods; upon their encounter she confesses to John, “We were dancing in the woods last night and my uncle leaped in ...
In 1745, Olaudah Equiano was born in a small village in Isseke,Nigeria. His father was one of the chiefs in the village. At age eleven Equiano and his sister were kidnapped by two men and a woman never to see his home or parents again. After being kidnapped he was hiked across part of Africa untill he arrived at the coast where he was loaded onto a slave ship. While crossing the Atlantic to Barbados onboard the slave ship he and his countrymen were subject to horrors you could hardly imagine. Equiano tells about the horrors and torture slaves face not only on the slave ship but also on plantations and many other aspects of a slave's life. Equiano experienced almost all parts of a slave's existence. He was a slave throughout Africa, England, and the New World. Equiano is bought and sold several times. Religion also played a huge role in Equiano's life and I think that it helped him get through some really hard times. He is bought by a British Naval officer and serves in the British Navy during the Seven Years' War. He is then sold to Robert King where he begins trading goods between islands and eventually makes enough money to buy his freedom. Equiano tells of the joy he feels when he becomes a free man. The rest of his life is devoted to helping slaves and to the cause of abolishing slavery.
Joseph Stalin said, “Ideas are far more powerful than guns. We don 't let our people have guns. Why should we let them have ideas?”. Stalin was a dictator of the USSR from 1929 to 1953. Under his dictatorship, the Soviet Union began to transform from a poor economy to an industrial and military based one. While still a teen, Stalin secretly read Karl Marx 's book the “Communist Manifesto”, and became more interested in his teachings. When Stalin gained power, he ruled his nations using terror and fear, eliminating those who did not comply with his governance.
When the play sets in to action, John has had a past affair with his servant Abigail Williams. His wife, Elizabeth Proctor is very forgiving of his sin, but John has his mind set that he will not confess to anyone else, in fear of ruining his good name, and reputation. The affair between John and Abigail caused the start of chaotic witchery and accusation. After the affair, Abigail became horribly jealous of Elizabeth Proctor. Proctor realizes there is only one way to stop all the witch hysteria in Salem, and that would be to confess his sin of adultery. Although he knows he should, he continues to be determined not to confess. Also in the beginning Reverend Paris is new to town, and John insist continually that he is only speaking of hell, and hardly ever of God, as Proctor goes on to say to Parris, "Can you speak one minute without we land in Hell again? I am sick of Hell!" (Miller 30). In the drama, Mary Warren places a needle in a poppet she gave to Elizabeth; John firmly demands that Mary Warren tell the courts that she really put the needle in the poppet that day. Proctor says to her, "You're coming to the court with me, Mary. You will tell it in the court." (Miller 80). Furthermore, at the end of the play Proctor is persistent by saying that no matter what anyone says to convince him differently, he would rather die an honest man and save his name. John Proctor took pride in his thoughts, feelings, values, and his name. It took persistency to make his intent clear to others.
(191) Equiano became active by promoting and petitioning slavery and dedicated his life to the freedom of his enslaved people. Racial adversity has proven very difficult to overcome, even in today’s society. Olaudah Equiano used his economic intelligence to provide him with the power to accumulate wealth and buy his freedom. Equiano knew he was dealt an uneasy hand of cards at life, but he played them as skillfully and intelligently as he could, with bare instincts. He took advantage of the situations that he was forced into and was able to win his hand at the game of slavery, for he found a way to manipulate the system that opposed him, and used it to his advantage.
The Anti-hero in The Crucible A hero is defined as "someone admired for his bravery, great deeds or noble qualities". There are three categories to which all heroes can be classified into, one of which is the anti-hero genre. An anti-hero has the role of a hero thrust upon them.
Context: This part of the text is included at the beginning of the drama, telling the audience about Salem and its people. The author explains how a theocracy would lead to a tragedy like the Salem witch-hunts. This is the initial setting and is based on the principle that some people should be included and some excluded from society, according to their religious beliefs and their actions. This is basically the idea that religious passion, taken to extremes, results in tragedy. Miller is saying that even today extremes end up bad- communism, like strict puritans, was restrictive and extreme. It only made people suffer.
likelihood of victory is small.” It is a person’s mental or moral strength to resist extreme
John Proctor is an honest, though harsh, man who is clearly the protagonist of The Crucible. Before the beginning of the play, John had an affair with Abigail Williams, a girl who worked in his household, which was abruptly ended when Elizabeth Proctor, John's wife, fired her. This event causes Abigail to desire revenge against Elizabeth while she still pines for John. Once the trials are well underway, Abigail accuses Elizabeth of being a witch, which leads to her arrest. John goes to the court in defense of his wife, where he reveals that he did indeed committed adultery with Abigail in an attempt to expose her as a fraud and a liar. Unfortunately, John's appeal falls on deaf ears and he is arrested as well. While his wife manages to get a temporary stay of execution, due to the fact that she is pregnant at the time of the trials, which in the end saves her by insuring her life until the chaos, hysteria, and persecution comes to an end, John is sentenced to death. The play ends with his hanging, but his death puts an end to the trials.
In The Crucible, by Arthur Miller, justice and injustice is portrayed through the characters of John Proctor, Elizabeth Proctor and Abigail Williams. It is also shown through the minor characters of Mary Warren and Mercy Lewis, followers of Abigail Williams, and through Danforth and various townspeople.
Slavery was a practice throughout the American colonies in the 17th and 18th centuries, and through slavery, African-American slaves helped build the economic foundation of which America stands upon today, but this development only occurred with the sacrifice of the blood, sweat, and tears from the slaves that had been pushed into exhaustion by the slave masters. A narrative noting a lifetime of this history was the book The Interesting Narrative of the Life of Olaudah Equiano, Or Gustavus Vassa, The African written by Olaudah Equiano. Equiano was a prominent African involved in the British movement for the abolition of the slave trade. He was captured and enslaved as a child in his home town of Essaka in what is now known as south eastern Nigeria, later he was shipped to the West Indies, he then moved to England, and eventually purchased his freedom (Equiano). Olaudah Equiano, with many other millions of slaves, faced many hardships and was treated with inconceivable injustices by white slave masters and because of the severity of these cruel and barbarous occurrences, history will never forget these events.
Although a strict society composed of high morality and disciplinary laws may be necessary for safety, it causes internal conflicts within the individuals. In The Crucible, by Arthur Miller a theocracy in Salem rules and guides the citizens into doing what is “right”, but eventually backfires due to issues of reputation and jealousy. Society has a lot of influence on the citizens, and with a bad reputation, it is nearly impossible to live in a Puritan society. Salem’s strict Puritanical social structure causes personal struggles for the individuals involved in the events of The Crucible, and then eventually these personal struggles affect the society overall.
Persecution has been a round for sometime and can be traced historically from the time of Jesus to the present time. Early Christians were persecuted for their faith in the hands of the Jews. Many Christians have been persecuted in history for their allegiance to Christ and forced to denounce Christ and others have been persecuted for failing to follow the laws of the land. The act of persecution is on the basis of religion, gender, race, differing beliefs and sex orientation. Persecution is a cruel and inhumane act that should not be supported since people are tortured to death. In the crucible, people were persecuted because of alleged witchcraft.
John Proctor faces many decisions in response to his moral dilemma to try to save his life. One of the difficult decisions John makes is to reveal that he had an affair with Abigail Williams and thereby has committed adultery. If the local court convicts him of this crime, he faces being jailed. Also by admitting this crime, John reveals a weakness in his character. This flaw in his personality will make it harder for him to stand up in the community as an honorable and believable person. In trying to convince others that witchcraft does not exist John’s dishonesty with his wife will make him less convincing to the community.
Arthur Miller uses the quote “Is it still impossible for man to organize his social life without repressions, and the balance has yet to be struck between order and freedom” in order to show that society represses the idea of difference, and that society should function in synchrony, similarity, and unity. The Crucible is a clear demonstration of Miller’s statement. The start of oppression was provided by the community of people who are straining under the restrictions of their theocratic government,and misuse of power all while Igniting emotional isolation, and hysteria.