John Proctor Opposites

733 Words2 Pages

1. Which two characters are opposites of each other? What purpose does this opposition serve in the play so far?
An example of a character foiling one another is John Proctor and Reverend Hale. Proctor and Hale both go through a moral journey that leads each other on the opposite ends of each other. In the beginning, Hale starts out devoting himself to find out the truth in Salem through his work and faith. In the end, he then preaches the other prisoners to lie in order for them to save their lives. When convincing Elizabeth to confess, he says, “Let you not mistake your own duty as I mistook my own. I came into this village like a bridegroom to his beloved, bearing gifts of high religion the very crowns of holy law I bought, and what I touched with my bright confidence, it died, where I turned the eye of my great faith, blood followed up.” After taking part of the mass hysteria, Hale now feels unsure and even guilty for putting religion before the truth. John Proctor, on the other hand, goes from being uncertain of telling the truth all the way to dying as an honest man. He tells Elizabeth, “Show honor now, show a stony heart and sink them with it!” He wants the town …show more content…

At first, Proctor says, “I cannot mount the gibbet like a saint.” What does he mean by this? Why does he later change his mind?
John Proctor believed that he wasn’t a truthful person to begin with, so giving in to a lie would not automatically make him a sinner in God’s eyes. When speaking with Elizabeth, he says, “Nothing’s spoiled by giving them this lie that were not rotten long before.” Proctor doesn’t believe he should have a heroic death due to his past sins such as his affair with Abigail. His implication was that he has lied before and therefore it would be no different if he lied again. He later decides to tear up his confession because he realizes the only way to save his soul isn’t by continuing to fall from evil, but rather get up from it and die as much as an honest man that he

Show More
Related

  • John Proctor's Lies In The Crucible

    603 Words  | 2 Pages

    Although John Proctor isn’t much of a pious man, he does choose to do the right thing in the end. He doesn’t go down to the level of Danforth, he stays truthful and prideful to himself. Not many people would confess to something if it meant they would be hanged or imprisoned for their actions, John Proctor did. These three personalities of John Proctor prove that he is an overall good man even if he made a few poor choices in his lifetime. He ultimately shows that everyone should be proud of who they are and always tell the truth because if you want to be successful, you must be true to

    Read More

  • Near The End Of The Play John Proctor Says To Elizabeth ‘I Am A Good Man.’ How Does Miller Present John Proctor? Is He A Good Man In Your View?

    721 Words  | 2 Pages

    ...The repetition of the speech that ‘he will confess’ shows how it is shocking that Proctor would do something like that. To show he is a good man he admits to something that he didn’t do to save the lives of others.

    Read More

  • Compare And Contrast The Salem Witch Trials And The Anti-Witch Trials

    723 Words  | 2 Pages

    Reverend Hale was correct, John Proctor possessed an excessive sense of pride. Proctor chose to be hanged because he didn’t want to put his name in vain by claiming to be associated with the devil. Proctor refused to confess he was acting honorably. Thus, earning himself respect in Salem by dying. His actions were foolish; he committed adultery with Abigail Williams.

    Read More

  • Examples Of Direct Characterization In The Crucible

    505 Words  | 2 Pages

    In the story, “The Crucible”, John Proctor is thought to be a sinful person because he does not know all of the commandments and sometimes plows on Sundays. The author does not reveal this to the readers directly but tells them what others have been saying about him. Readers can also learn that Proctor is quite prideful. His main goal was to save Elizabeth from hanging, but when Danforth gave him a deal that would save Elizabeth he did not take it. Proctor was too proud to take the deal. Also when Proctor confessed to seeing the devil, his pride got in the way from saving his life. He did not want his name to be slandered.

    Read More

  • Is John Proctor A Tragic Hero

    820 Words  | 2 Pages

    According to Terry Otten, “a tragic hero is both weak and strong, innocent and guilty,” indicating that a tragic hero must appeal and remain perceptible to the average, everyday man (3). John Proctor, a man of pride and courage, has a concealed sin that remains hidden from the public eye. Throughout the novel, Proctor connects himself to the main theme of intellectual unjust and hypocrisy by enduring the guilt and sin of adultery that remains inside himself. As he continues to right his wrongs, Proctor begins to face the injustice of his society, and relentlessly stands up to save his wife and the people of Salem from the ignominious reign and consequences of his immoral offense. Some characteristics that allow John Proctor to identify as a

    Read More

  • John Proctor: A Character Analysis

    970 Words  | 2 Pages

    To begin with, Proctor was considered a strong person in the community, and he was respected for it. He was a handsome, hard-working, and revered man in the community. To the people of Salem, he was a dedicated farmer that had done nothing to blacken his family name. His attitude was “. . . even-tempered, and [he was] not easily lead. . .” by the rumors and hysteria surrounding Salem at the time of the witch accusations (Miller 21). When other were jumping to the conclusion of witchcraft and starting to fear, Proctor kept a realistic, skeptical look on the situation. Contrary to the ideas of the time, Proctor would miss church and openly disagree with Reverend Parris (Scheidt and Calandra). Despite this, he had a strong belief in God and followed his own moral standards more than strict rules the Puritan church set out at that time. He was revered in Salem as an honest man who always spoke his mind, and who had the ability to silence the hypocrites with his quick logic (Sparknotes Editors). Whenever Reverend Parris would try to tear Proctor down with criticism on his church attendance and Sunday activities, Proctor would always cou...

    Read More

  • Lies And Deceit In The Crucible

    1080 Words  | 3 Pages

    When Proctor is put on trial, Danforth brings in Elizabeth to questions about the affair. Elizabeth must feel her heart racing because his life is in her hands. The words that came out of Elizabeth’s mouth is taken seriously. When Danfourth questions Elizabeth he says “Look at me! To your own knowledge, has John Proctor even committed the crime of lechery?”(Miller 105). Elizabeth answers faintly and says “No, sir”(Miller 105). At that moment, things went terribly wrong. Elizabeth tries to protect Proctor’s name, so she does not tell the truth. Little does she know, Proctor confesses beforehand. Obviously, she does this because no matter what, she still loves him. After the trial, Elizabeth talks to John about the situation. When Elizabeth soothes John about the situation, she says “John, it come to naught that I should forgive you, if you’ll not forgive yourself” (Miller 126). Elizabeth’s forgiveness makes John want to keep lying. If he knows she is okay with it, he will deny it to others. Her opinion is so important to him because he wants the best for her. Although, he decides to confess. This proves Elizabeth does not want him to die. Finally , after everything Proctor has been through, she lies to the court, so they do not hang him. This proves Elizabeth is a loyal

    Read More

  • John Proctor's Courage Throughout The Crucible

    1328 Words  | 3 Pages

    In this act he finds the goodness in himself to take responsibility for something he did not do just to make up for his sins. He says to Elizabeth, “Spite only gives me silent. It is hard to give a lie to dogs…” (4.136) He wants to confess, but he has to find the courage in him to confess it. He has to swallow his pride in order to confess of something he did not do. After he finds the courage to confess, Danforth makes him sign a confession statement, but he cannot. In support of this Proctor says, “I have confessed myself! Is there no good penitence but it be public? God does not need my name nailed upon the church! God sees my name; God knows how black my sins are! It is enough!” (4.142) Proctor has already confessed and he feels as if that is already enough, but he has to sign the confession or he will be hung. He finds the courage to sign it but then rips it apart before it is hung upon the church, and he could not build up the courage to re-write it. This leads him to being executed. Henry Popkin once again helps support my sources by stating, “The real, the ultimate victim in this play is John Proctor, the one independent man, the one skeptic who sees through the witchcraft "craze" from the first…This is a climactic moment, a turning point in the play. New witches may continue to be named, but The Crucible now narrows its focus to John Proctor, caught in the trap, destroyed by his effort to save his wife, threatened by the irrationality that only he has comprehended.” (143) Abigail’s idea did not go as planned because Proctor rebelled against her. Therefore Proctor was accused and died because he was not going to let Abigail ruin the pureness of his

    Read More

  • Live a Lie or Die Honestly in The Crucible by Arthur Miller

    843 Words  | 2 Pages

    “I want my life, … I will have my life” (137). In the drama of the “Crucible” John Proctor is accused of being a witch. John is unaware of the reason he is accused, but it is obvious that every time someone comes close to getting to the bottom of the girls lie that is the person the girls accuse. Before the beginning of the play John had committed lechery with Abigail Williams. John Proctor is almost ready to admit that he is a witch even though he is not, some reasons that he doesn’t admit it could be that it could help to make the girls seem like they are telling the truth, because he doesn’t want to live a lie and because he doesn’t want other people to look at him as a witch, nor does he want people to follow his lie and start admitting to things when they didn’t really do it. John Proctor would rather die honest than live a lie!

    Read More

  • How John Proctor's Eyes Opened To The Needs of Others

    742 Words  | 2 Pages

    John Proctor was just one example of how the characters in the play underwent changes in regards to selfishness and he exhibited the most change. He showed it is important to think of others before you think of yourself and that past sins, motivated by your own wants, can come back to haunt you, and in his case cause a great number of problems.

    Read More

  • The Crucible: Good Puritan or Good Person?

    994 Words  | 2 Pages

    The first incident in the play where we see Proctor's honesty is after the affair he had with Abigail. He realized his mistake and was honest and admitted it to his wife Elizabeth.  In the next situation where Proctor is involved he tells the Reverend Parris why he does not like him, and it also gets him into trouble. He tells him, "Can you speak one minute without we land in hell again, I'm sick of hell! (p. 30). He is honest, yet disrespectful to his reverend.  While in court, John Proctor is too honest to the judges. He admits his guilt of not being a religious Christian and says " I have once or twice plowed on Sunday" (p.91) and he also admits not going to church every Sunday. He  also admits that he committed adultery and had an affair with Abigail. His most commendable moment of honesty was when he was on death row and would rather die than confess and lie.

    Read More

  • The Foolish Death of John Proctor in The Crucible by Arthur Miller

    963 Words  | 2 Pages

    John Proctor is, at first, willing to offer up a false confession that his life may be spared. Inevitably, John Proctor possesses that fateful attribute known to fall fatal to many human beings - pride. While he has, indeed, been ashamed of his many sins throughout his life, Proctor's soul still clings to his pride and his good name, however soiled it may have become. On the morning scheduled for his execution, Proctor wrestles with the realization that one more sin so heaped upon the rest in his life will make precious little difference in the end; "I cannot mount the gibbet like a saint. It is a fraud. I am not that man.... My honesty is broke... I am no good man. Nothing's spoiled by giving them this lie." (126) He attempts to calm his pride by telling himself that the other accused witches who will not give false testimony to save themselves from the gallows have every right to do so; they led lives free of blame. He, however, he tells himself, did no such thing; what right has he to hang among the righteous? "Let them that never lied die now to keep their souls. It is pretense for me, a vanity that will nor blind God nor keep my children out of the wind." (126) Thus the conviction first reached by John Proctor is to save his life rather than to throw it away in mock martyrdom.

    Read More

  • Free Essays on The Crucible: John Proctor's Search For Identity

    799 Words  | 2 Pages

    John Proctor is a good man. He is a puritan, a husband, a citizen, and an all around valuable member of the community. All of this is represented by his name. The name of John Proctor could be considered his most prized possession. It is his most priceless asset. Proctor is very strong-willed and caring. He does not set out with any intentions of hurting anyone. He is a farmer and village commoner who is faced with incredible inner turmoil. He has committed adultery and had absolutely no intentions of joining in the witch trials. After his wife got involved and eventually was set free due to the fact that she was pregnant, he feels that he can't sit back and accept what is happening to the town. John Proctor is a good and noble man and because of this he believes that he can't be hanged and die a martyr when he has this sin blooming over him every waking moment.

    Read More

  • How Is John Proctor An Anti Hero

    590 Words  | 2 Pages

    Although both John Proctor, from Arthur Miller’s play, The Crucible, and Walter Lee Younger, from Lorraine Hansberry’s play, A Raisin in the Sun, demonstrate qualities of the anti-hero, such as being ordinary men who are “disillusioned with the society around [them],” Proctor is less of an anti-hero because his downfall benefits a greater cause than Walter’s.

    Read More

  • The Title of The Crucible by Arthur Miller

    836 Words  | 2 Pages

    Throughout the play John Proctor was an honest man, as was his wife, Elizabeth until she was asked to testify against her husband about his affair. One thing that never changed about Proctor throughout the whole play was his willingness to stand for his beliefs. Time after time, he was bombarded with questions about why he didn't regularly attend church or why he didn't have one of his sons baptized. He answered these questions with integrity and questioned the ministry of Parris. No one in the town of Salem had done that before.

    Read More

More about John Proctor Opposites

Open Document