What is the effect on the audience of John Proctors decision in act 4?
How does miller build up tension and drama in this section? How is it
still relevant to a modern audience?
This essay is on the main importance of John Proctors decision and how
Miller builds up a sense of tension (and also drama) throughout Act 4.
I will also mention how relevant the play is in modern day times by
discussing McCarthyism.
Firstly, John Proctors decision in this section is quite simple, sign
the agreement or not. But it is the way that this section influences
the audience that is significant, because it gets the audience more
involved. John has several problems with signing the agreement, for
example in signing the agreement he signs his name away, in other
words he will lose his reputation. We can learn that Proctor values
his name, and sees it as the only thing he has left, apart from
Elizabeth;
“I have given you my soul, leave me my name!”
This shows us, the audience which Proctor although is shown as a stern
man through out the play, in this part he is shown as being emotional
and considers his name as a symbol of self respect. Following on from
the previous point, humiliation is used well to make us feel sorry for
Proctor due to the fact that he is faced with his name and confession
being pinned to the church door, the example of this is, when Proctor
exclaims;
“God does not need my name nailed to the church door”
This helps us strengthen our beliefs that Proctor values his name.
Proctor also has other reasons to struggle with his decision, mainly
because the others involved are what we know as saints; Rebecca and
Martha are very holy people, who believe that they should never lie,
even though the consequences may be as extravagant as death, the two
saints are holding out against the interrogation of Danforth,
therefore John takes it into account that although he is not as holy
as they are, to keep the faith, he must hold out, but, the audience
gets a shock when John considers the agreement, this gives us an
element of surprise and a will he wont he effect, making us watch even
more avildly.
Other influential things that help John make the decision, is the fact
he has a family, he has two boys who he does ask questions about, not
only does he ask about his two boys, but also he asks about his unborn
child and his wife Elizabeth, who he cares for dearly; an example of
John Proctor: “God in heaven, what is John Proctor, what is John Proctor”. John is a man of strong moral beliefs, concerned only for the safety of his family and personal welfare. He cares of nothing for the beliefs of any of the other people in the town and what his supervisor which is the Reverend, thinks either. After trying to avoid involvement in the witch trials he is later prosecuted for witchery and sentenced to hang. John trys to avoid any involvement in the Salem witch trials. His reason for doing so is to protect his image because he is afraid he will be committed of adultery with Abigail Williams. Following these events he trys to save everyone’s lives by admitting to this horrible offense adultery and ends up losing the trial along with his life. He did have a chance to live but instead of signing away his name and his soul to keep his life, he wanted to die honorably with his friends not without a name, a soul, and with guilt. “John Proctors decision to die is reasonable and believable”. Reverend Parris, the Salem minister and Proctors immediate supervisor, which says “ there is either obedience or the church will burn like hell is burning.” “The church in theocratic Salem is identical with the state and the community and will surely crumble if unquestioning obedience falters in the least.” Proctor, on the other hand, “has come to regard his self as a king of fraud,” as long as he remains obedient to an authority which he cannot respect.
How does your reputation define you and how do people look at you because of your name? Characters in the story The Crucible, are highly concerned regarding their reputation and name. John Proctor, Giles Corey, and Governor Danforth are all important characters who care about their name in the town of Salem. Each character in the story shows how, through the witchcraft trials, their name and reputation will follow them and even determine their fate. In the The Crucible, John Proctor, Giles Corey, and Danforth prove that reputation can define oneself.
The primary dramatic focus in the play The Crucible is the moral struggle of its protagonist, John Proctor. Certain characteristics of John Proctor's character and also the environment of the Puritanical Salem alleviated this problem for him. The main issues running through out the play are a series of dilemmas that John Proctor faces. The first and foremost of these is his guilt over his adulterous affair with Abigail Williams, the second his hesitation to testify against Abigail to bring out the truth and the third, his final decision to make the ultimate sacrifice.
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