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The character of John Proctor
Character of john Proctor
Criticism on john proctor
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Bringing justice to the world is never an easy task and is always disputed. The legal process requires an extreme amount of digging to discover the truth and can cause uproar if people do not approve. Sometimes the legal system gets it wrong and can cause unjust deaths. Persecution of the innocent destroys society. John Proctor, a man of great courage, plays the role of a farmer in The Crucible by Arthur Miller. John Proctor’s character illustrates how persecution of the innocent destroys society, as his children will be left with no dad, Salem is in panic, and Elizabeth is left with no husband. Leading off, persecution of the innocent affects the society’s citizens such as John Proctor’s children. John Proctor died for his name, entailing …show more content…
With witchcraft infecting Salem, a countless number of residents are sentenced to death each day (AB). Eventually, Salem residents become fearful and start to question the moral and good of the court. The witchcraft expert, Reverend Hale, warns the court: “Excellency, I would postpone these hanging’s for a time” (Miller 1323). Hale is attempting to save the power of the court with this statement. Hale understands the court has made a blunder in hanging harmless people and is cautioning the court before the individuals of Salem proceed with a rebellion. When an innocent person is sentenced to death, it is in the good of people to sense the need to act for the sake of humanity. Next, the court learned of the rebellion that occurred in Andover. Hale attempts to back his claim with evidence by illustrating an example of a town that overthrew the court. Judge Danforth sharply retorts by stating, “…speak nothing of Andover” (Miller 1321). Danforth’s sharp and bold response proves he does not want Andover to be in discussion. Danforth is in denial that the law was overthrown in a nearby town and is trying to make it sound surreal. Killing of innocent people calls for a rebellion that generates a disorganized society. Consequently, persecution of the innocent points people to uproar and hurts loved ones the
Discrimination is defined as ¨the unjust or prejudicial treatment of different categories of people or things, especially on the grounds of race, age, or sex.¨ 1863 was the year the slaves were finally freed, but that doesn't mean they weren't discriminated for more than a 100 year after that and even to this day there is still discrimination toward African Americans. Women of any race didn't even get the right to vote until August 18, 1920. Which was not quickly won, women had to fight for nearly 100 years previous to acquire a right that all should have. To this day women have reported making less than men for doing the same exact job. Discrimination is such a powerful thing that affects so many that it is written about a lot, the Crucible
The tragic tale of the Salem Witch Trials in Massachusetts was re-written by Arthur Miller in the form of the play “The Crucible”. The trials have been studied to figure out what really happened, but no one will ever know since it happened decades ago. The play is the closest reenactment we have to help us see how people could have reacted to life. “The Crucible” shows how using others as a cushion to keep from being punished can go extremely bad. Amidst all the chaos a man by the name Reverend John Hale came to help but ended up with making it a huge amount worse.
In the 1950s, the Red Scare over Communist infiltration grasped America, turning friends against one another and prompting Communist accusations left and right. If accused, you could confess to Communism and accuse others, or face indictment yourself. This concept is quite similar to the Salem witch trials, in which accused witches were put in the same predicament. Written during the Red Scare, Arthur Miller produced a play called The Crucible, which uses the Salem witch trials as an allegory for the Communist hysteria. In this play, rumors of witchcraft stemmed from the boredom of a few teenage girls, and blossomed into an unprecedented hysteria. Accusations became widespread, and, since confession was the only way to avoid a hanging, confessions became widespread as well. When only a small group of stubborn resisters were left, the main character John Proctor had to make a difficult decision on whether he should confess or hang, and ends up hanging along with a few others to help save the integrity of their community. In his play The Crucible, Arthur Miller demonstrates that while some may view self-sacrifice as a pointless loss due to pride, the decision to sacrifice one’s life for the good of his community and the elimination of conformist attitudes is very noble. The enormity of this decision can instill a feeling of guilt and responsibility upon another, as occurs to the protagonist John Proctor, and can cause one’s views and actions to be altered.
To start, Reverend Hale experiences extreme guilt for helping with the witch trials. When Hale returns to Salem, he explains his guilt by saying, “There is blood on my head! Can you not see the blood on my head!!” (131). Hale is saying that he feels he is the cause of all the deaths in Salem. He is taking blame for them and is showing how remorseful he is. Second, Hale realizes that what he has been doing is wrong. He explains to Elizabeth that he is no longer with the court by saying, “I come of my own, Goody Proctor. I would save your husband’s life, for if he is taken I count myself his murderer” (131). Hale is finally owning up to his actions and seeing where he was mistaken. He is making up for his mistakes by trying to convince the accused to confess so they will not get hanged. Last, Hale comes back to work for the people to finally get his redemption. Hale tells Danforth, “I come to do the Devil’s work. I come to counsel the Christians they should belie themselves” (131). Hale is able to regain his goodness when he helps the accused witches fight for their lives and confess to a crime they did not commit. He is able to walk away a better man, as he is able to help some people live longer, instead of signing their death warrants. In conclusion, Hale comes to his senses late, but he is still able to free himself of his guilt by working for the
Honor, dignity, and integrity are traits that are becoming more and more rare in our society. The Crucible, a play written in 1952 by Arthur Miller, is based on the Salem witch hunts of 1692 and parallels the Red Scare and McCarthyism in the 1950s. In the play, Miller attempts to focus his themes around traits such as honor, dignity, and integrity, and as a result, the theme "is it better to die honorably or live dishonorably" becomes vital to the story and well conveyed throughout it. The characters that exemplify this idea are John Proctor and Giles Corey, both of whom die by the end of the play, and Reverend John Hale and Abigail Williams, who live through the trials.
The Crucible: Hysteria and Injustice Thesis Statement: The purpose is to educate and display to the reader the hysteria and injustice that can come from a group of people that thinks it's doing the "right" thing for society in relation to The Crucible by Arthur Miller. I. Introduction: The play is based on the real life witch hunts that occurred in the late 1600's in Salem, Massachusetts. It shows the people's fear of what they felt was the Devil's work and shows how a small group of powerful people wrongly accused and killed many people out of this fear and ignorance.
Cruelty is actions leading to the pain or suffering of others, sometimes intended. Throughout society we use cruelty as our reaction to another’s mistake. Cruelty may also act as the source of these mistakes resulting in social, political and personal motivators to others to be cruel. In the movie, The Crucible cruelty acts as crucial social, political, and personal motivator. The antagonist Abigail Williams utilizes cruelty to hide her past faults. Abigail’s cruelty was stimulated by cruelty from John Proctor, the protagonists. Cruelty reveals more about the victims of her than Abigail herself. Cruelty is a continuous cycle that plays a key role in the movie’s overall message on reputations, power, and guilt.
Even though The Crucible is not historically correct, nor is it a perfect allegory for anti-Communism, or as a faithful account of the Salem trials, it still stands out as a powerful and timeless depiction of how intolerance, hysteria, power and authority is able to tear a community apart. The most important of these is the nature of power, authority and its costly, and overwhelming results. “But you must understand, sir, that a person is either with this court or against it,” says Danforth conceitedly. With this antithesis, Miller sums up the attitude of the authorities towards the witch trials that if one goes against the judgement of the court they are essentially breaking their relationship with God. Like everyone else in Salem, Danforth draws a clear line to separate the world into black and white. The concurrent running of the “Crucible” image also captures the quintessence of the courtroom as Abigial stirs up trouble among the people that have good reputation and loving natures in society. In a theocratic government, everything and everyone belongs to either God or the Devil.
“Justice cannot be for one side alone, but must be for both” (Roosevelt). The goal of America’s legal system as we know it is that everyone is given an equal opportunity to stick up for what they may or may not have done, as described by former first lady Eleanor Roosevelt. Also this is what officials strive for, it is not always the case. Facts can be skewed, distorted, or misrepresented to make one side seem to be guilty without a doubt and to make the other side seem as if they have done nothing wrong. The Crucible by Arthur Miller begins and ends with one-sided accusations of witchcraft. It all results from a group of girls who had been dancing in the woods. After two fall sick, the accusations begin. The girls who were dancing, especially Abigail Williams begin blaming others to look less guilty themselves. Accusations are flying left and right so that soon, hundreds are in jail and over a dozen are executed. Abby’s main goal is to get rid of Elizabeth Proctor, so she can be with John Proctor, a man she previously had an affair with. However, John is not interested in Abby and his
Written in 1791, the Bill of Rights was adopted into American law with 10 key commandments that served as the framework for America’s future government. The First Amendment covers freedom of speech, and in the face of an injustice, one could utilize this right to either speak up or plead the 5th and not say anything if their statement would affect them or others in a negative way. Ultimately, this weighs in how responsible a person feels towards the situation. In Arthur Miller’s play, The Crucible, he highlights the injustice faced by those accused of conspiring with the devil and practicing magic in the Salem Witch Trials in the late 17th century, through unfair trials and biased court decisions. Using the example of a close-knit town, Miller emphasizes the obligation each citizen has to stand up against an injustice being suffered by the town and
The Crucible mocks the way society deals with justice. Salem is torn apart, due to the extent of Abigail's imagination and power. It shows the bias of opinions, as it was shown in the court, and how people tend to choose outcomes that suit them. In the end, injustice thrived upon the souls of the community, leaving many innocent people dead. Justice did not prevail, as the heart behind the case, John Proctor preferred to keep his self-respect and integrity, than live a life of lies.
Written in the 1950s, Arthur Miller’s play The Crucible delineates the situation of the McCarthy conflicts in America while the plays’ events revolve around the Salem witchcraft trials of 1692. In the play, two major characters are Reverend Hale, an expert on witches sent to Salem for investigation, and John Proctor, a man known for his leadership and hard work. Proctor and Hale, in addition to both being Puritans, are alike in their actions and motives since they both see the depravity of the court and seek to protect people from it. However, they have major differences in their characters as they have contrasting dedication to Christianity and the values that they live by.
Of all people to oppose what is supposed to be the most important of gods principles few would suspect the one who interprets the lords laws. The people of Salem had complete faith in Judge Danforth's messages and verdicts on cases because he is supposedly the interpreter of who is innocent in god's eyes. Judge Danforth was also supposed to be a man whom was just and judged all persons fairly in god's honor however, as the play develops it becomes more prevalent that judge Danforth could care less about the residents of Salem. This conclusion was evidenced by the entirety of act three in which good, well standing, members of Salem’s society attempted to present honest evidence to put an end to the senseless witch hunt but, ended up being arrested and sentenced to death instead because of Judge Danforth’s insecurities. Had Judge Danforth truly cared about the fate of those in Salem he would have set aside his fear of ruining his immaculate reputation in order to ensure that these people were being sentenced fairly. The person who was expected to uphold the honor of the lord through just and fair trials completely disregarded all of those things simply so he could continue to deny the fact that he had been duped by a group of clever little girls. Through his actions Judge Danforth proved that his reputation as a perfect Judge was worth the lives of over 12 innocent people whom likely had families and loved ones who they needed to care for. It takes a true monster to be able and accept the fact that the people he senselessly killed had people who needed and depended on them to
In many countries, women are being pursecuted for many different reasons. The people that choose to pursecute women the most are men, most likely because they feel that they are in some way better than women. Women are treated unfairly in everyday life.
The play “The Crucible” is an allegory for the McCarthyism hysteria that occurred in the late 1940’s to the late 1950’s. Arthur Miller’s play “the crucible” and the McCarthyism era demonstrates how fear can begin conflict. The term McCarthyism has come to mean “the practice of making accusations of disloyalty”, which is the basis of the Salem witch trials presented in Arthur Miller’s play. The fear that the trials generate leads to the internal and external conflicts that some of the characters are faced with, in the play. The town’s people fear the consequences of admitting their displeasure of the trials and the character of John Proctor faces the same external conflict, but also his own internal conflict. The trials begin due to Abigail and her friends fearing the consequences of their defiance of Salem’s puritan society.