I will not have it said my name is soiled! The Crucible provides an example of how convenient lies can build on one another to create a universally accepted truth even in the absence of any real evidence. In reality, true irony only happens when a situation is the exact opposite of what you would expect. Historical Context. In the play there was a character by the name of John Proctor; Proctor was a family man that made a huge mistake. I chose . Abigail also shows concern for her reputation. These are themes that could be considered subsets of the topics detailed in the previous sections, but there's also room to discuss them as topics in their own right. "She sat to dinner in Reverend Parris's house tonight, and without word nor warnin' she falls to the floor. 22). The depths of the hysteria that has gripped Salem are revealed in Act 3 when John finally confronts the court. He is weak and vulnerable after Abigail's theft of his life's savings, and hes even facing death threats from the townspeople as a result of John and Rebecca's imminent executions. The people in charge are so eager to hold onto their power that if anyone disagrees with them in the way the trials are conducted, it is taken as a personal affront and challenge to their authority. This is taken as evidence that things are really getting out of control ("if Rebecca Nurse be tainted, then nothing's left to stop the whole green world from burning." In a way,John welcomes the loss of his reputation because he feels so guilty about the disconnect between howhe is perceived by others and the sins he has committed. She is cast as a villain. This website helped me pass! Why do certain characters seem to be blind to the irony of their actions (Abigail, Danforth)? The irony is that, in the face of Johns rejection, Abigail turns around and creates her own lies soon after that give her increased control over the society she resents. People are quick to believe something even if there is no evidence for their fear. In high school, she earned a 2400 on the SAT, 5's on all seven of her AP tests, and was named a National Merit Scholar. Miller's portrayal of women in The Crucible is a much-discussed topic. She is clearly outspoken and dominant, but her initial position in society is one of very little influence and authority. Abigails low status and perceived innocence under normal circumstances allow her to claim even greater power in her current situation. By examining the characters of the play, I believe that the three major characters who should be blamed the most for the witch trials are Abigail Williams. Her goal is to help students adopt a less stressful view of standardized testing and other academic challenges through her articles. Abigail's strength in Act I is the strength that is within her ability to influence others. officials (like Danforth) unable or unwilling to listen to reason? Okay, let's take a moment to review. The most substantial female character is Abigail, who is portrayed as a devious and highly sexualized young woman. The petition he presents to Danforth is used as a weapon against the signers rather than a proof of the innocence of Elizabeth, Martha, and Rebecca. One flaw that can always be found in society and the Crucible is hypocrisy. Miller includes some commentary on Hale: ''One cannot help noting that one of his lines has never yet raised a laugh in any audience that has seen this play; it is his assurance that, 'We cannot look to superstition in this. Hypocrisy is "the practice of claiming to have moral standards or beliefs to which one's own behavior does not conform". An ad hominem means that it shifts the argument away from the issue to a personal attack on the person involved. Based on the background knowledge of the time, slaves were not considered part of the class system, so she was not valued as a community member. Hypocrisy In Salem And The Crucible Proctor knows that unlike most of the other people who have gotten hanged, his is not completely innocent. The Crucible's themes have lent the play artistic longevity because they're more or less universal to the human experience across time. The other two main female characters, Elizabeth and Mary Warren, are somewhat bland. What Are The Human Flaws In The Crucible 1560 Words | 7 Pages. Enrolling in a course lets you earn progress by passing quizzes and exams. To Danforth, anything that doesnt confirm that he was right all along is a lie. In steadfastly refusing to confess, Rebecca Nurse holds onto a great deal of power. For example, proctor waits till the very last minute to reveal Abigail is lying. The overall message is that when a person's actions are driven by desires to preserve favorable public opinion rather than do the morally right thing, there can be extremely dire consequences. Why wont Danforth hear his evidence? John attempts to crush his guilt instead of facing it, which only ends up making it an even more destructive factor in his life. Proctor, a score of people have already testified they saw [Rebecca Nurse] with the Devil (pg. When this fallacy is used, the unrealistic characteristic is undesirable, causing the other person to look bad. Abigail is told by John to move on but instead, Abigail starts accusing the townspeople of witchcraft, including John Proctors wife Elizabeth. The Devil is precise.'' He says, I would to God it were not so, Excellency, but these people have great weight yet in the town (pg. Giles Cory was expelled from court because he would not list people who signed the document about Putnam wanting to take land. Create your account, 7 chapters | In her conversation with John, Abigail claims that he helped her realize all the lies she was told by two-faced people in Salem who only publicly adhere to the conventions of respectable society (pg. Just like generosity, honesty and kindness are natural in people with those tendencies. All rights reserved. He refers to Johns refusal to confess as a calamity, looking past his own involvement in the larger calamity of the conviction that led John to this point. Can a work of art bring about change in the world? The whole purpose of a trial is to hear both sides of the story before a verdict is reached. succeed. In this act, she yells Dont lie! at Tituba immediately before she tells some of the most damning lies of the play accusing Tituba of witchcraft (She comes to me while I sleep; shes always making me dream corruptions! pg. 67). She beg me make charm (Miller, pg. Interestingly, she was the first woman put to death in the trials. Nowhere is there any consideration of ulterior motives. People could not take another's land unless it was left to them in a will; however, if someone were to be executed for a crime, that land belonged to the state and could be re-distributed. Reverend Parris' concerns about his reputation are immediately evident in Act 1. We saw that Arthur Miller used the Puritans in The Crucible to explore the themes, or main ideas of a text, in order to make the statement that society can be hypocritical and that we should question intentions. Nowhere is there any consideration of ulterior motives. He is completely oblivious to the fact that the victims might be lying. Elizabeth doesnt realize that John is willing to sacrifice his reputation to save her life. In addition to grubbing for a few extra pounds every year, Parris makes a show out of needing golden candlesticks for the altar to replace the pewter ones that have served the church since it was built. references the many sentencing decisions he has already made in the trials of the accused. Is reputation more important than truth? One path to higher standing and greater control would be in becoming John Proctors wife. Being in contact with someone else means mediating between ourselves and the other. When she is brought in for questioning and claims to see Marys familiar spirit, she says Envy is a deadly sin, Mary.Abigail herself has acted out of envy for the entire play. The prisoners have lost all faith in earthly authority figures and look towards the judgment of God. The ruthlessness with which the suspected witches are treated is aimed at purifying Salem, but it achieves the opposite outcome. They so fear the devilish consequences of challenging the accusers that theyre willing to take them at their word and ignore any defenses the accused have to offer. As mentioned in the overview, religion holds significant power over the people of Salem. Innocent and guilty people have been put to death underneath his Judgement, to him this demonstrates his superiority and power. I'll give a short summary of how each plays a role in the events of The Crucible. John Proctor surrenders his agency at the end of Act 3 in despair at the determination of the court to pursue the accusations of witchcraft and ignore all evidence of their falsehood. They say not to use superstition when dealing with the Devil, who is in fact a superstition used to cover up the sinful dealings of the people. The play is about human weakness, hypocrisy, and vindictiveness. As Abigail begins to be accused she is pressured to deter from the truth. Other essay questions may not ask you directly about the themes listed in this article, but that doesn't mean that the themes are irrelevant to your writing. Goody Proctor is a gossiping liar!" Tituba is pressured to confess and name the names of other witches to avoid execution, which leads to Abigail and Bettys accusations, now validated by a coerced confession. While I speak Gods law, I will not crack its voice with whimpering (pg. A professor tells us that he has a strict rule about cell phones in the classroom, then he answers it midway through his own lecture. This is interesting because the children are the ones that the rest of the village relies upon to condemn people to death. Abigail William is hypocritical because she does not follow the rules of the Salem trials. Download it for free now: hbspt.cta._relativeUrls=true;hbspt.cta.load(360031, '688715d6-bf92-47d7-8526-4c53d1f5fe7d', {"useNewLoader":"true","region":"na1"}); hbspt.cta._relativeUrls=true;hbspt.cta.load(360031, '03a85984-6dfd-4a19-93c8-5f46091f5e2b', {"useNewLoader":"true","region":"na1"}); Samantha is a blog content writer for PrepScholar. Thus demonstrating how mob mentality can impact an individual and ultimately drive the action of the play. The court refuses to challenge anyone who claims to have been afflicted. Concern for reputation is a theme that looms large over most of the events in The Crucible. Both flaws led him to delay telling the truth about Abigail's fraudulent claims and their previous relationship, thus dooming himself and many others to death or imprisonment. This vicious cycle continues to claim the lives of more and more people as the play progresses. 12) The first act of The Crucibleclearly establishes the fact that a bad reputation can damage a persons position in this society severely and irreparably. Irony abounds throughout The Crucibleascharacters who believe they are combating the Devils handiwork actually perform it themselves. His only goal is to get on the good side of the community as a whole, even in the midst of this bout of collective hysteria. As he says, How may I live without my name? Salem is under attack from the hysteria that is encouraged by the same people who seek to keep imaginary supernatural demons at bay. His guilt leads to great tension in interactions with Elizabeth because he projects his feelings onto her, accusing her of being judgmental and dwelling on his mistakes. Examples Of Hypocrisy In The Crucible. No one even considers Mary's statement about sticking the needle in herself. What is the writer attempting to convey to the viewer? 119). Danforth also becomes frustrated with Proctor when he wont name names in his confession: Mr. Proctors good reputation is almost a burden for him at this point because he knows that he doesnt deserve it. By Act 4, many of the power structures that were firmly in place earlier in the play have disintegrated. She was seen as a grandmother to the village. How are characters behaviors affected by concern for their reputations? Hale also contends with his guilt in act 4 for his role in condemning the accused witches, who he now believes are innocent. When the petition testifying to the good character of the accused women is presented, the reaction from Danforth, Hathorne, and Parris is to arrest the people who signed it rather than considering that this might indicate that the women are innocent. He's already accepted her testimony as evidence, so he is happy for any excuse to believe her over John and Mary.John finally comes to the realization that Mary's truthful testimony cannot compete with the hysteria that has taken hold of the court. The town suspected her of lewd dealings, so she was put to death for it. Reverend Hale enters as a specialist from Boston who has seen the effects that witchcraft has had on others. Essay prompts will ask about these themes in a variety of different ways. How do the witch trials empower individuals who were previously powerless? As a member, you'll also get unlimited access to over 88,000 She continues to act under the assumption that his reputation is of the utmost importance to him, and she does not reveal the affair. Though a character can have significant moral flaws, they can be wise enough to recognize their flaws and change their ways. Even with prompts that ask you to discuss a specific character or plot point, you can find ways to connect your answer to major themes. John feels incredibly ashamed of his affair with Abigail, so he tries to bury it and pretend it never happened. As he says,How may I live without my name? Proctor's wife, Elizabeth, is accused of being a witch and Proctor has to make a moral decision . These three characters can be the most to blame for the cause of the spread and start of hysteria in Salem during the Witch Trials. Even before Abigail makes accusations, rumors of witchcraft have morphed into accepted truths in the minds of the more superstitious members of the community. Explain who you believe is the central tragic character in the play. If Tituba was permitted to explain what really happened, the ensuing tragedy might have been prevented. Posted at 02:28h in motion to dismiss child support arrears by how does shakespeare present lady macbeth as ambitious. This act also sees the irony of Hale discussing the powers of the dark that are attacking Salem (pg. Once there have been enough convictions, the reputations of the judges also become factors. The idea that a witch's familiar spirit is capable of stabbing people is too scary for the superstitious and now hysterical people of Salem to give Elizabeth the benefit of the doubt. Danforth has extensive pride in his intelligence and perceptiveness. Though hysteria overpowered the reputations of the accused in the past two acts, in act 4 the sticking power of their original reputations becomes apparent. Do you not know that God damns all liars? In The Crucible, they all fear witchcraft, because there is a rumor going around. This leads to Marys hysterical accusation of Proctor after she finds herself targeted by the other girls and about to be consumed by the hysteria herself if she doesnt contribute to it. He says, I would to God it were not so, Excellency, but these people have great weight yet in the town (pg. The second major theme in The Crucible (and one that teachers often ask about) is fear and hysteria. All other trademarks and copyrights are the property of their respective owners. When Abigail accuses Elizabeth, a respected farmers wife, it shows that she is willing to take big risks to remove Elizabeth from the picture. Elizabeth notes that Mary's demeanor is now like that of the daughter of a prince (pg. Essay questions that ask about themes in this straightforward way can be tricky because there's a temptation to speak in vague terms about the theme's significance. He believes that Postponement now speaks a floundering on my part; reprieve or pardon must cast doubt upon the guilt of them that died till now. The Judge forcing people to lie to save their lives he cant see the wrong hes doing. He has sentenced people to death based on lies about their dealings in black magic, and he has accepted other false confessions from those who would rather lie than be executed. Hereferences the many sentencing decisions he has already made in the trials of the accused. This leads to Marys hysterical accusation of Proctor after she finds herself targeted by the other girls and about to be consumed by the hysteria herself if she doesnt contribute to it. hbspt.cta.load(360031, '4efd5fbd-40d7-4b12-8674-6c4f312edd05', {}); Have any questions about this article or other topics? While it does provide an entertaining experience at face value, the true literary genius behind the work is Miller's . This is a decision with dire consequences in a town where reputation is so important, a fact that contributes to the misunderstanding that follows. At the end this act, John Proctor delivers a short monologue anticipating the imminent loss of the disguises of propriety worn by himself and other members of the Salem community. In Arthur Miller's stunning play, The Crucible, a primary character named John Proctor has an affair with a young woman named Abigail Williams. Miller accomplishes this through almost, if not every character in the story. Arthur Millers portrayal of a town in the midst of a downfall The Crucible, tells the story of how mob mentality and hysteria can significantly influence not only individuals but the whole town. These two institutions fuse together in The Crucible to actively encourage accusers and discourage rational explanations of events. In Act 2, John Proctors guilt over his affair with Abigail is demonstrated through an ironic exchange with Reverend Hale. Hale tries to combat his guilt by persuading the prisoners to confess, refusing to accept that the damage has already been done. I would definitely recommend Study.com to my colleagues. How do the actions of authority figures encourage the girls to continue their accusations and even genuinely believe the lies theyre telling? The Crucible remains a staple of high school English because it is rich in themes that are consistently relevant to human beings regardless of time period. The thematic significance of hysteria builds quickly as accusations of witchcraft proliferate throughout Salem. The court's attempts to preserve Puritan morality by arresting and executing accused witches ironically lead to the removal of the most virtuous people from society. As mentioned in the overview, religion holds significant power over the people of Salem. These connections will bolster your responses by positioning them in relation to the most important concepts discussed throughout the play. Hale is convinced that a scientific inquiry based only on facts and reality can be conducted to detect a supernatural presence. He is somewhat responsible for all of the witch trials; if he wouldn't of committed adultery with Abigail, she wouldn't have gone on her rampage of blaming people.
Waikato Police Wanted, I Dropped My Dyson Hair Dryer, Cox Funeral Home Belton Sc Obituaries, Articles I