Marissa Ledford
Mrs. Quade
12/17/14
2nd period
Crucible Essay Tragic Hero
Arthur Miller wrote The Crucible and it portrays the story of the Salem witch-hunt and the confusion it has caused in the town. One of the main Characters is a man named John Proctor. Proctor is put through many life-changing choices. In many cases, a choice he made in one situation led to another problem and so on. John Proctor is most definitely the tragic hero of the crucible. John Proctor is a character that is very demanding, and will do just about anything that Proctor sets his mind to do. During the acts, Elizabeth, who is John Proctor’s wife, is being charged for witch-craft, only
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Proctor was trying to get on Elizabeth’s good side and she is tired of his doubt. Proctor clearly states to Elizabeth, “I have not moved from there to there without I think to please you, I cannot speak but I am doubted, every moment judged for lies.” (Miller) This proves that Proctor’s purpose in trying to redeem himself for his sins and wants to make the right choices from the worries of his mistake’s that were brought upon him from his past. Because of Johns inability to control his desire and resist temptation to Abigail, his life is being turned upside down before he knows it, and by the jealousy and need for revenge of Abigail, marking the becoming a tragic …show more content…
Proctor’s honor, respect and his good name is what kept him from declaring to adultery, which would have most likely, ceased in the witch trials. Elizabeth even asked him to go into the court and tell them that Abigail is a fake! Nonetheless he states “I can not keep it in, I will think on it!” (Miller) Which is all owing to his dignity. However, when Elizabeth is taken to jail, John has the choice between his pride or his wife, Elizabeth. He tries to compromise by bringing Mary Warren into the court. Only to save his wife, by confessing to the lies and tricks concerning the blamed witches. After awhile, this fails when Mary Warren turns him in and he is force to admit to being an adulterer, putting aside his self-respect in order to release his wife. However Proctor is also taken to jail after his wife, Elizabeth is questioned about Proctor’s confession by Judge Danforth, who says, “Is your husband a leacher!?” (Miller) Elizabeth denies it in an attempt to protect Proctor’s name, causing Proctor’s arrest for lying and witchcraft instead. This proves that Proctor is trying to do better, yet his disasters keep coming at him, and causing the readers to feel grief for
John Proctor plays the leading role in The Crucible by Arthur Miller. He was persistent, honest, and full of integrity. He was simply, a man with pride. A wise woman once said, "Do what you feel in your heart to be right--for you'll be criticized anyway. You'll be damned if you do, and damned if you don't." (Eleanor Roosevelt). Proctor was the protagonist of the dramatic piece of literature.
Throughout the play, John was conflicted by his fear of exposure for his affair, and his struggle with lying to save his life. His conflicts allowed the plot to continue evolving, as well as help reader stay engaged in the plot as they can relate to his indecisiveness. Proctor’s conflicts also affect the other characters in the play, specifically Hale and Elizabeth. Hale has a crisis of fate as he realizes that he is helping send innocent people to their death. Elizabeth, thanks to Proctor’s refusal to lie, is now forced to raise their three children alone. Proctor’s refusal to confess, as well as his decision to invalidate Abigail and the girls by confessing his lechery, allows him to die with honor and pride, as well as allow his children to live with the knowledge that he didn’t confess to witchcraft. John Proctor’s conflicts and his value of honesty leads to his decision to die for his pride, which allows his memory to live on through his actions and his children, and through those who read The
John Proctor is not actually associated with witchcraft, but in order to live, he must confess. He realizes that he does not want his name shamed for such a horrible crime he did not commit. John does not want his family to suffer the burden of his name as well. Another character concerned about their reputation is John Proctor’s wife, Elizabeth Proctor. The judge calls her into the courtroom and questions her about why she fired Abigail Williams. Goody Proctor lies to the judge and says that John did not commit adultery with Abigail. She is unaware that her husband confessed in order to prove that Abigail is lying about witchcraft. John Proctor tries to convince Judge Danforth that his wife is only trying to help the situation: “She only thought to save my name!” (Miller 1311). Committing adultery is greatly frowned upon in Salem. Elizabeth tells Danforth the lie for several reasons. She does not want her husband’s good reputation to be demolished. Even though she is trying to protect her husband’s reputation, she is also trying to protect her own. Elizabeth wants the members in her town to think she and John have a healthy marriage. She does not want to be known as the wife of someone who committed such a terrible sin. Both John and Elizabeth Proctor exemplify concern about their
John Proctor began as a stubborn, rude, liar. It was said that “In Proctor’s presence a fool felt his foolishness instantly” He had committed adultery with Abigail Williams then lied about it later, which was what started the drama. Abigail wants to split up John and Elizabeth, and she attempts to do so by setting up a string of trials that ruins the town and the Proctors’ lives. When John’s pregnant wife becomes part of the trials by being accused of witchcraft, John begins to change. He knows it is his fault that all of this is happening, and he gets them to keep her from being hanged by telling them about her pregnancy, and they tell her that they will give 6 months. He changes into a very truthful person and learns to keep his temper under
It may appear that Proctor’s tragic flaw is lust, due to his affair with Abigail. But lust does not explain John’s refusal to become involved in the trials before his wife was accused when he knew that Abigail was lying. It makes more sense that his flaw would be selfishness. It gives a better explanation for his demise and his lechery. It was not the act of adultery, but his reluctance to admit to it and accuse Abigail of being a fraud that lead to him hanging from the gallows. Proctor knows that the only reason Abigail accuses his wife of witchcraft is because she wants her out of the picture. And even when Elizabeth pleads with John to go and tell the court he refuses because there is “no proof”. From the start of the play John places a great importance on his reputation and the fact that he cannot live without his name. It is clear that John does not want to accuse Abigail of witchcraft. If he does so he runs some risks; she is considered “a saint” and accusing her could make him look bad and soil his name, and accusing her could also lead to his lechery being made public, again soiling his name. But his silence means that innocent men and women will hang. This quiet act of supreme selfishness is where the outcome of the play is really decided; John’s fate sealed.
John Proctor is typically an honest man and along with Rebecca Nurse tries to be the voice of reason deeming the concept of witchcraft ridiculous. Proctor has an extremely toxic, and particularly one-sided relationship with Abigail Williams the origin of the tumult that becomes the Salem Witch Trials. John had a brief affair with Abigail though to him was trivial, to Abigail meant the world. Proctor does not seem to understand this despite his wife forthrightly telling him “[t]here
But there is one person’s opinion he knows he cares for, and that is Elizabeth’s, his wife. He knows he has to tell her what he did, so he did. Elizabeth can’t believe it. She gets upset when she learns that they were alone. A quote from the play that proves it, is when Elizabeth says, “You were alone with her?” and John Proctor says, “For a moment alone, aye.” After telling her, John Proctor knows he has to gain her trust and faith back. By doing that, he started to be a great husband to her and there was no way for her to stay mad. It was just a little hard to trust him. He felt like she was judging him because of it, and says, “You will not judge me no more Elizabeth,” but she was one of the very few that actually wasn’t. There are a lot of others judging Proctor but he doesn’t care. He just keeps going and does what makes him and his wife
John Proctor is a tormented person. He trusts his undertaking with Abigail unsalvageably harmed him according to God, his significant other Elizabeth, and himself. Genuine, Proctor succumbed to sin and confer infidelity; be that as it may, he does not have the ability to pardon himself. Obviously, his association with Elizabeth stays stressed all through most of the play. He dislikes Elizabeth since she can't pardon him and believe him once more, however he is liable of a similar thing. Indeed, his own particular powerlessness to excuse himself only strengthens his response to Elizabeth's absence of pardoning.
Williams claiming that his wife, Elizabeth Proctor, was a witch. John Proctor is a respected member of Salem. He is somewhat of a Christian man following most of his commandments, and he is also somewhat of a sinner. John had committed adultery, and had always worked on Sunday. But after reading the play the Crucible, I have seen that John and I share many traits in common, we’re both loyal, rational, and hard working.
His wife Elizabeth Proctor knows what happened, and their relationship is damaged by his own actions. John Proctor tells the court “That woman will never lie”.(92) She lies to save him from being charged with lechery, and their relationship does turn around towards the end of the play, since Elizabeth is pregnant with his child, and he begs for his life so they can go home together and start over completely. Elizabeth being pregnant also means that they have made up long before he was going to be involved in all of the
In The Crucible, a play Arthur Miller wrote, he incorporated multiple tragic heroes in his play surrounding the Salem Witch Trials. Arguably, the most popular tragic hero in The Crucible was a man named John Proctor. To classify as a tragic hero, you must follow these guidelines: a main character that is not flawless nor evil, they have a noble background and people look up to them, they have to make an error in judgement that cause their own downfall, after their downfall tragic heroes need to gain knowledge of recognizing that their fortune was brought upon by themselves. Tragic hero's downfall must exceed the crime, making the viewer or audience feel pity and fear in the beginning of the story, but by the end they feel relief through by watching the tragic hero's downfall.
Another important work Miller wrote, The Crucible, takes place in Salem, Massachusetts, during the 17th century. It is a time when jealousy and suspicion poisoned the thinking of an entire town. Neighbor turned against neighbor when events happened that could not be explained. Accusations turned into a mad hunt for witches who did not exist. One of the main characters of the play is John Proctor, a well-respected man with a good name in the town. As the play develops, John Proctor’s moral dilemma becomes evident: he must decide whether to lie and confess to witchcraft in order to save his life, or to die an honest man, true to his beliefs.
John Proctor is by no means perfect. People look up to him, but he still has flaws. Proctor is easily angered, and sometimes he can’t control himself when he gets so mad. He threatens Mary Warren by saying "I'll whip the devil out of you!" (59). Proctor loses his temper here. He knows that he should not be threatening Mary Warren, but he does it anyway because he is so upset. Proctor loses his temper when Abigail starts crying to Heaven. He say “How do you call Heaven! Whore! Whore!” (109). While he is shouting this he is pulling Abigail by her hair to get her to stand up. Proctor is vulnerable when he is angered. He threatens his reputation in the town by bringing the affair public, and he shows his violence by pulling Abigail’s hair. Proctor can be seen as a bad Puritan throughout the play. He cheats on his Elizabeth with Abigail. This is a big mistake in the Puritan community because it breaks one of the Ten Commandments. John admits "Abby, I may think of you softly from time to time" (23). Proctor admits he likes Abby, even though he has a wife. Proctor proves his loyalty to his wife, but has still made the mistake of sleeping with someone else. Also, Proctor doesn’t always show up to church. He says it is because he doesn’t like Parris and his wife has been sick, but others in the town may think he is a bad Puritan because of it. Although Proctor is a common man who the town
In Salem, at the time of the Salem witch trials, people were being accused of witchcraft left and right. The Crucible is filled with mistakes, guilt, and a man who puts his life on the line to remain true to who he is, but is he truly a tragic hero? According to Aristotle, a tragic hero must possess four characteristics: goodness, superiority, a tragic flaw, and an eventual realization of their tragic flaw. In Authur Miller’s essay, Tragedy of the Common Man, he describes a tragic hero as being a “common man,” someone who suffered from a wound of indignity, and someone willing to lay down their life for their dignity; based on this criteria, John Proctor is a tragic hero.
Elizabeth Proctor has many moments which show how she is changing throughout the play. When she is trying to persuade Proctor to tell the court that Abigail said the girls were not practicing witchcraft, Elizabeth blurts out, "John, if it were not Abigail that you must go to hurt, would you falter now? I think not." Elizabeth is confessing that she believes Proctor had an affair with Abigail. She is giving him no mercy by showing that she will never forget what happened. When Elizabeth is being accused of stabbing Abigail, she instructs Proctor to go to court, and tells him "Oh, John, bring me soon!" Elizabeth is gaining trust in John. She is forgetting his act of adultery and now has faith that he will defend her. At the end of the play, when Proctor is sentenced to death, Elizabeth says that "he [has] his goodness now. God forbid I take it from him!" Elizabeth is admitting that John was righteous to confess his sin of lechery, and she should have pardoned him. She considers herself impure for not showing mercy, and does not want to take away from his glory. Elizabeth has transformed from an ignorant victim of adultery, to a forgiving, loving wife.