ACT V It is 1693 and it has been 4 months after the death of John Proctor. It’s a cold morning with clouds of warmth forming from Elizabeth Proctors mouth, a pregnant woman soon expecting. She sits in a grey and rotten prison cell, chained to the wall, waiting for something she knows nothing of. Two women sit in the corners of the cell, one raving mad, the other follows. Tituba and Sarah Good yell jumbled words, praising the devil between every sentence. Elizabeth sits silent and reluctant. Sarah Good, stares at the ceiling as if the devil reaches for her. Elizabeth feels an aching pain in her stomach like she has many times before and she reaches the ground.
Elizabeth: On the floor If the child be born still… I cannot bear another loss
Sarah
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Miller’s countless use of biblical allusions managed to capture puritan times perfectly. Puritans, needless to say, had a large affliction with religion, so Miller used allusions to the bible to emphasize the time period. One example is when Elizabeth, a Christian woman whose husband has committed adultery, is confronted with the means of Abigail Williams who used to be the other woman. Elizabeth mentions Abigail’s manipulation by alluding to the bible “Abigail brings the other girls into the court, and where she walks the crowd will part like the sea for Israel” (Miller 53). Elizabeth makes a reference to Moses, a key biblical figure, to make a point about Abigail. The use of biblical references helps create an identity for the characters as well. Everyone in the play has a different stance on religion and this stance is what sets them apart from each other. An example would be Proctor and his stance against Parris, the current minister of Salem, “I like it not that Mr. Parris should lay his hand upon my baby. I see no light of God in that man. I’ll not conceal it” (Miller 65). Proctor has not baptized all his sons for he believes that Parris does not have the light of god in him. Proctors beliefs make him almost an outcast and play a large role in defining his identity and part in the play. Along with the countless biblical allusions used within The Crucible there are many uses of syntax and diction that help the story. The syntax of the late 17th century was very different in comparison to the 20th so Miller has Proctor say “I have no witness and cannot prove it, except my word be taken” (Miller 73). The placement of words is not modern. Instead of “I did not witness it” Proctors was “I have no witness”. Instead of “take my word” Proctor says “my word be taken”. The structure of speech is
Joseph McCarthy was a Republican senator who did as much as he could to whip up anti-communism in the 1950s. In the time of his term, he didn’t attach his name to anything significant until February 9, 1950. On that day, he gave a political speech claiming that he had a list of 205 Communists in the State Department. Although nobody saw the list of names and it wasn’t clarified by anybody else, the speech made national news. Furthermore, this relates to The Crucible because Abigail, like McCarthy, made multiple false witch accusations on women in Salem. Arthur Miller’s historical play, The Crucible, portrays the historical events of the Salem witch trials through a number of memorable characters and a background based off of McCarthyism. While
The floor creaks between each one of their pauses. The silence is deadly. Should I dishonor my lord? The pressure I just can’t stop pacing back and fourth, my skin is tender and sweaty. Salem’s gone mad! All the women be crying witchcraft! But the only one that bewitching is that whore Abigail Williams. Reverend Parris caught her in the forest leading the young ones into the depths of sin, yet I am the one to blame. Its as if I’ve gone crazy myself. They all be believing the devil is loose in Salem. But the Lord may not shine through the unfaithful. She be confessing that my Elizabeth Proctor be practicing witchcraft. I will not believe none of it. She is the biggest sinner in the house of the lord, a liar. How may she call heaven? She may think God sleeps, but God sees everything. God knows a sinner.
The Crucible tells of a town’s obsession of accusing innocent people of withcraft. One character that stands out and makes a spiritual growth is Elizabeth Proctor. Elizabeth allows her frustrations of her depression to overcome her religious beliefs which separates herself from God and her marriage. She grows spiritually and begins to understand the things going on around her which was the strength she needed in the beginning.
The statement,“The Crucible is essentially about courage, weakness, and truth,” is proven true numerous times, throughout the play. The Crucible was written by Arthur Miller, about the true events that happened in Salem, Massachusetts, between the years 1692 and 1693. The Salem witch trials consisted of many hangings, lies, and complete mass hysteria. The citizens of Salem followed the religion of Puritanism, and the ideas of predestination. The root of the mass hysteria comes from their belief in the sense that in something happens then it must have been planned by God. In Miller’s portrayal of the story, Abigail Williams was the ringleader of the witch trials, and she used the idea of predestination to cover up her own sins. Abigail was a very manipulative girl and ruined many lives. John Proctor, Mary Warren, and Elizabeth Proctor were just a few of the victims in Abby’s game. John, Mary, and Elizabeth exhibit the traits courage, weakness, and truth, whether it was in a positive or negative way.
Miller’s play, The Crucible, is a fictional representation of the Salem Witch Trials, which occurred from 1692-1693 in colonial Massachusetts. He wrote the play to humanize the people involved, and to try and interpret their possible motivations to do all that they did. One particular character Miller focuses on is Reverend John Hale. Hale first appears in Act One, when the citizens of Salem summon him for his expertise on witchcraft. His presence sparks the witch hunts within Salem. Hale goes from being the main accuser and the investigator to later condemning the witch trials and the court’s rulings. Miller displays this change of view through the use of commentary, dialogue, and stage directions.
Fear, resulting in chaos, and overturned lives affected the personal decisions of John Proctor, thus creating inner conflicts, as well as desperation in the story. In Arthur Miller's The Crucible, John Proctor's stand in a society where opinion drove fate created ignominy towards him and his beliefs. At first he hid his horrible sin inside, fearing the consequences. When he finally did, he was placed in a tangled labyrinth of feelings as to what his next action should be. Lastly, it's Proctor's defiance and integrity in his own self that proved him stronger than the entire community of Salem. Proctor's tremulous feelings and general unease of the situation built up to his defining point of confession. Theocracy came together to take coerce control Salem and it's actions. Proctor saw this and feared, for diabolism was a practice unheard of. Danforth states, "You must understand, sir, a person is either with the church or against it, there be no road between. We live no longer in the dusky afternoon and evil mixed itself with good and befuddled world. Now by God's grace the good folk and evil entirely separate"(63).
The Crucible is set in a Puritan theocratic society, where every citizen is concerned with religious piety and purity. Thus, there is imagery tied in with biblical images when a character decides to lie or when a character decides to be honest. For example, when Proctor decides to confess his affair to the court he says, “A man may think God sleeps, but God sees everything, I know it now. I beg you, sir, I beg you-see her what she is…” (II. 131-133). This quote from Proctor is riddled with references to God and the judgment God passes on Proctor’s actions. Proctor also repeats the references to God earlier in the play, when he tries to convince Elizabeth he is not guilty of having an affair with Abigail. Proctor says, “I have roared you down when first you told me your suspicion. But I wilted, and like a Christian, I confessed. Confessed! Some dream I had must have mistaken you for God that day” (II. 67-69). The repetition of the words “God” and “confession” reveals the connection Proctor places between being honest and having religious piety. On the other hand, when Abigail is deceitful, her quotes are surrounded by evil or devilish imagery. The devilish imagery can be seen when Abigail tries to persuade Betty and Mary Warren to lie about her actions in the forest. Abigail says, “Let either of you breathe a word, or the edge of a word, about the other things, and I will come to you in the black of some terrible night and I will pointy reckoning that will shudder you” (I. 131-133). The imagery of the “black of some terrible night” (I.10) and darkness relates back to devilish acts Abigail committed. Abigail can be seen as the evil in the play, as her decision to accuse others for committing witchcraft is the cause of the witch trials. Also, the forest, where Abigail drinks blood to condemn Elizabeth Proctor to death, is seen as a devilish area to many of the Salem
Many people in their life will lie about anything. Whether it be about lechery, false accusations, or just simply the fact that they would lie about the littlest things. In addition, many people don’t want to talk about something that they did that would initially hurt the ones they love: so of course this is what John Proctor did. Lying is and always will be a horrible idea. For an example, just think about all the lies and false accusations Abigail made in The Crucible. More importantly, think about the moment when Elizabeth Proctor lied about the most rippling effect in the book. Lying is not a pretty thing to do and it changes the whole outcome of the situation in many ways.
“You have a faulty understanding of young girls. there is a promise made in any bed “In the Crucible by Arthur Miller, he introduces Elizabeth Proctor in Act 2. Elizabeth is a strong Christian woman that knows her true valves. Her strength and knowledge are show throughout the play.
The Crucible is a famous play written by Arthur Miller. This play centers around the witch trials that took place in Salem, Massachusetts. In Act II, Abigail and her friends accuse several innocent people of witchcraft. Once they leave the court, Reverend Hale goes to John Proctor’s house to inform Elizabeth Proctor that people in the court have mentioned her name. Then officials of the court, Herrick and Cheever, arrive at the Proctor’s house. They claim to have a warrant for Elizabeth’s arrest because the court declares she practices witchcraft. After, Herrick and Cheever take Elizabeth to jail. Injustice in Act II prevails because of the inability to see the truth. Reverend Hale and John Proctor illuminate the theme that closed-mindedness
John Proctor faces many decisions in response to his moral dilemma to try to save his life. One of the difficult decisions John makes is to reveal that he had an affair with Abigail Williams and thereby has committed adultery. If the local court convicts him of this crime, he faces being jailed. Also by admitting this crime, John reveals a weakness in his character. This flaw in his personality will make it harder for him to stand up in the community as an honorable and believable person. In trying to convince others that witchcraft does not exist John’s dishonesty with his wife will make him less convincing to the community.
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.
In the play The Crucible by Arthur Miller goes into detail about the historical event, the Salem witchcraft trials which took place in Massachusetts in 1692. The drama centers on John and Elizabeth Proctor and a young girl Abigail Williams, whom John Proctor has committed adultery with. In order to get rid of Elizabeth so that Abigail can have John to herself Abigail accuses John’s wife of witchcraft, a crime that was highly frowned upon. John proctor goes through a series of changes from being a horrible person who cheated on his wife to a tragic hero who will give up his life to say his wife. John proctor is viewed as many things in this play but at the end he come out an honest and noble man.
Parris: "Aye, a dress. And I thought I saw – someone naked running through the trees.” The play, The Crucible, by Arthur Miller had very many themes in it. Some of these themes stood out more then others. These themes would be hysteria, reputation, and hypocrisy. These themes were present throughout the entire play, from the beginning till the end. When you think of a Puritan religion you may think of a very good, morally perfect society. This wasn’t the case in Salem, Massachusetts. It was actually the opposite in the play, there was lying, cheating, stealing and just about everything else you wouldn’t want in your society.
Out of all the characters in the crucible was great, but in my opinion, Elizabeth is the best character in the cast in the Crucible. She was a faithful wife, a good mother, and strong in her faith/religion. Even though her husband cheated on her she still remained faithful to him. Elizabeth demonstrates a very truthful woman. She’s the wife of John Proctor. Nicknamed Goody Proctor, because she was a good christen woman. Everyone liked her, because she was a woman who never lied. Until, she lied in court one day to save her husband’s life. She acts very frigidly to others. The only person that didn’t like her was Abigail Williams. Abigail wants Elizabeth to die because Abigail wants John Proctor all to her self.