The Tragic Death of John Proctor in Miller's The Crucible

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Salem is a Puritan town and when some girls were caught dancing in the forest by the town minister, two of the girls fall into a coma- like state and it isn’t long before rumors of witchcraft fill the town. The Crucible is a play written by Arthur Miller that is a dramatization of the Salem witch trials, which took place in Salem, Massachusetts. One of the girls caught dancing was Abigail Williams. Not wanting to get into trouble, Abigail blames Tituba, a black slave, for enticing her to sin. Tituba confesses to seeing the Devil and also tells the court that she saw people with the Devil. Abigail and the other girls join in and start accusing people in the town of witchcraft. If one is accused of witchcraft and denies it, they are hung, but if that person confesses, they are free to go after they tell the court the names of other people they saw with the Devil. One of the characters in this play is a man named John Proctor. He is a farmer who lives just outside of Salem. Soon we learn that he and Abigail had had an affair while Elizabeth Proctor, John’s wife, was sickly. When Abigail accuses John’s wife of witchcraft, John goes into the court and tries to save her, but soon the tables turn on him and he is accused of witchcraft. John Proctor changes greatly throughout the play, and in the end he finds goodness in himself, in light of this goodness his death is tragic. John Proctor transformed from a deceitful man and husband, to one who was true to himself as well as his beliefs. At the beginning of the play Proctor willingly cheats on his wife with a young girl of 18. He also is very passive and does whatever he can to avoid becoming involved with the witch trials. When Hale is searching for a motive for why the girls might ... ... middle of paper ... ...ake it from him" as she says (page 134). Proctor dies as a symbol of dignity for other people in society to follow. John Proctor not only died but he died with honor and freedom. He also confessed his sins and was able to forgive himself. John Proctor changes a lot during the play and in the end he finds goodness in himself and dies for a purpose, in light of this his death is tragic. John Proctor is transformed from a lying man and husband, to a man who was true to himself as well as his values. At the start of the play John Proctor has an affair with Abigail, but in the end he finds his purity. When he tears up his confession he saves his family name and possibly the lives of others charged with witchcraft, showing the discovery of his purity. In the end proctor showed heroism and died for a reason and because of this, his death was an example of true tragedy.

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