Who Is Reverend Parris Guilty In The Crucible

In the play, The Crucible by Arthur Miller, the town of Salem faces a mask of hysteria from the accusations of witchcraft. Reverend Parris, one of the many characters mentioned throughout the play, was a man who did not want his good name to be tarnished. Reverend Parris is known throughout the town as the churchly figure. Most citizens do not like his personality, but they ultimately respect him for his belief in religion. Although many people were hung for the accusations of dealing with witchcraft, Reverend Parris is the most guilty to blame for the events of the Salem Witch Trials, because he was a fearful and terrified religious leader who really didn’t know what he was doing, as well as a selfish and greedy idiot who made quick and irrational decisions for the benefit of himself that non-surprisingly ended up killing tons of innocent people

for the acts of witchcraft.
Reverend Parris is very terrified toward Abigail that she might be part of witchcraft because his daughter wont wake up.

As Reverend Parris worries about his daughter he makes it clear the consequences of lying about witchcraft. “Now tell me true, Abigail. And I pray you feel the weight of truth up on you, now my ministry is at stake, my reputation and perhaps your life as well.”(Act 1, Lines 113-116). Reverend Parris cannot reveal that he found his niece, Abigail dancing in the forest. Reverend Parris tells Abigail that he has enemies who will use that knowledge against him. He is particularly terrified because he could be implicated in the witchcraft accusations and scapegoating. Betty is accused of witchcraft, Abigail as well accuses Tituba of witchcraft. This would mean that three people of supposed witchcraft would all be living under Mr. Parris roof and that is a huge NO within the Salem community. Reverend Parris is terrified of his overall future and reputation within the town of Salem. Being terrified is the reason why so many lives were taken away. His fear has spread and will ultimately affect the town of

Salem.
John Proctor called out Reverend Parris on his accountability within Salem. Reverend Parris fears John Proctor due to his attitude toward religion and the knowledge he holds against him. To deal with this, Reverend Parris accuses him of being unholy and calls him to see if he reads The Gospel or not. “Do you read the Gospel Mr. Proctor? ‘I read the Gospel.’ I think not, or you should surely know that Cain were an upright man, and yet he did kill Abel.”(Act 3, Lines 245-248). Reverend Parris is pretty much scared of John Proctor with all of the witchcraft happening, as life in Salem isn’t really looking too hot for him. John Proctor notices this and calls him out on it. Being called out made Reverend Parris very nervous. He feared that he may lose everything he ever worked for within the community. With Proctor calling him out, that made him the biggest threat, which is why, Reverend Parris accuses him of being unholy so he could get rid of him. As fear struck Reverend Parris, he used the hangings as a way to avoid his problems. While trialing innocent people may seem normal to Parris, his overall incentive is greed.
Reverend Parris is accused once again by John Proctor of abusing his position and craving selfishly and greedily after more than his due. In the beginning of the play Proctor mentions the deed of the house Reverend Parris lives in and says, “To live in yes, but to ask ownership is like you shall own the meeting house itself: the last meeting I were at you spoke so long on deeds and mortgages I thought it were an auction.”(Act 1, Lines 620-623). Instead of accepting the generosity of the town in supplying him with a free place to live, Parris demands that he be given the deed of ownership to the house, changing his legal position to one of greater material power. Parris also is the first minister to demand the deed to the house that the community has provided to him to live in.