Moral Conflict in the The Crucible
Arthur Miller’s play, The Crucible, is a great portrayal of humans and their struggles. This
play takes place in the 1690’s in Salem, a small Puritan community based on a rigid social
system, where an outbreak of rumors claiming witchcraft contaminated the small village. The
witch hysteria was initiated by a group of young girls (headed by Abigail Williams,) who were
afraid of being accused of swaying from the strict regulations. This caused conflict among the
people of the community and ultimately resulted in absolute chaos. I am going to write about
three of the main characters, Reverend Hale, John Proctor and Mary Warren, who have some of
the most intense internal and external struggles in the play.
Reverend Hale’s battle is initiated by his personal commitment to God. In Act I, the
Reverend is described as an eager-eyed intellectual pondering the invisible world. Hale seeks
witches and gets them to confess, so god can bless them and rid them of the devil. An example of
this is when he said to Betty, “In nomine Domini Sabaoth sui filiique ite ad infernos,” which
means: In the name of the lord of hosts and his son get thee to the lower world. This shows
Reverend Hale’s views on witchery. He is a deeply religious man who was unrelenting in his
quest for the devil. Originally, Hale believed that there was witchcraft in the town and wanted to
drive it out. However as the play develops, Hale witnesses sincere and respectable townspeople
being sentenced and hanged. Hale tries to gain a perspective on those accused, by going to their
houses and putting questions to them, about their nature and religious behavior. He soon learn...
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anything to keep their personal lives a secret, and so Mary would not have felt the need to
condemn John to witchery to save herself. The actions of Mary Warren, causing John Proctor to
hang, affect Hale’s life dramatically, making him question all that he has held dear (himself, the
fairness of the judicial system and his religion.) This was probably the most dramatic point in
Hale’s life, and he soul searches himself to the point of leaving Salem promptly after Proctor’s
hanging. So, this shows that all of these pivotal characters had a good deal of influence in the
way the play turned out individually, but more importantly, their individual actions
affected the others’ actions, both creating and enhancing the obvious moral conflicts in The
Crucible.
Bibliography:
Miller, Arthur- The Crucible
His respect for authority disintegrates as he learns that everything in life that he once placed emphasis on, like the power of the written law and the authority of the court, is corrupt in the town of Salem. Hale comes to the end that the law is not absolute, one does not need to strictly adhere to the law, and that authority does not always preside over everything. He recognizes the evil in the town of Salem, yet in response, he does not choose defiance, but surrender. When he stops believing in witchcraft, he stops believing in everything that he once believed to be true. Not only does he no longer believe in the prevalence of law, he no longer believes in the ascendancy of religion over all aspects of life. As Reverend Hale loses his conviction for authority, he correspondingly loses his identity, yet, in our eyes of the reader, he gains respect and sympathy in its
We have all heard the tales and seen the movies of evil witches cooking little kids up for supper. For the people of salem in 1692-1693 this was a reality. In the matter of less than a year more than two hundred people were accused of witchcraft and more than twenty were executed. In these historic events author Arthur Miller wrote a play about the people and events in this play there is a man, Reverend Hale is well versed in the study of witchcraft and has come to try and save the girls that have been gripped by the Devil. Miller has Hale change very much throughout the event of this play. In the beginning he believes that the Devil is at work in Salem, how ever near the climactic ending of this play he realises that this witch talk has gotten completely out of hand
(p. 44); "Who came to you with the devil?" and ".perhaps another person in the village?" (p. 45). A few of his faults are that he judges too much by appearances, ".you look as such a good soul should" (p. 37); ".a claim so weighty cannot be argued by a farmer," (p. 99); and he uses people to question other people.
story takes place in Salem in 1692, during the Salem witch trials. The story starts
that Mary is a witch. In response, Proctor confesses his lechery to weaken the perception
Life as a human is dictated by an inborn hunger or purpose, and people, in general, will act on this hunger for their own personal gain in their individual ways. This hunger, be it for wealth, land, love, power, revenge, or pride, can, and will be the undoing or failing of all mankind as Miller so clearly points out in his play 'The Crucible';. This essay will explore the motives of characters within the play and even the motives of Arthur Miller himself and therefore show how conflict stems from certain recognisable human failings including those mentioned above, fear, and hysteria.
The play is based on the real life witch hunts that occurred in the late
Arthur Miller expresses the concept of oppression being present in every society through the characters of The Crucible. "It is still impossible for man to organize his social life without repressions." As discussed, personal motives, disputes and misuses of power, as well as distorted religious beliefs are the roots of the maltreatment in Salem. Miller’s statement and message is valid and applicable in every society, and for every
The Crucible is a play that is based on a true story by Arthur Miller.
Hale’s radical change takes place throughout the play in three stages and throughout the play contributes greatly. He is the model by which the townspeople follow, though they are behind him they do eventually take his stance on the trials. His conformity and inward questioning are quintessential examples of what every story needs: the unsure character.
In the Crucible, Arthur Miller shows us how fear and suspicion can destroy a community. As the play develops, Miller shows us how fear and suspicion increase and destroy the community. Throughout the play it becomes apparent that the community gets more and more divided as time goes on. In the beginning there were arguments about ownership of land between some of the villagers. As the story progresses people fear for their own safety and begin accusing their neighbours of witchcraft in order to escape being hanged.
Hale slamming the door behind him intensifies his words -- he is through with the court and will never be returning again as a supporter of the court's 'justice'. The anger of Danforth and the tone of his words, "Mr Hale! Mr Hale!" also indicates the effect Hale's actions and fears will have on the court.
Reverend Hale’s presence in Act Three is resigned, he is positive that he and the court are incorrect and he just wants to right the wrongs done and prevent more wrongs from being committed. Hale’s acquiescence is shown first by a stage direction where he is hesitant to respond to Deputy Governor Danforth’s question and shown again by the quote “Your Honor. I cannot think you may judge the man on such evidence” which shows his disbelief and his disagreement with the court’s decisions. Reverend Hale voices his disagreement with the court’s actions by saying “Is every defense an act upon the court? Can no one” And is instantaneously shot down and silenced. He then reiterates his fears by talking about the fear of the courts in the country, and saying “But it does not follow that everyone accused is part of it”. Mr. Hale repeatedly tries to appeal to Danforth and the court, one example of this is the quote “I have this morning signed away the soul of Rebecca Nurse, Your Honor, Ill not conceal it, my hand shakes yet as with a wound! I pray you, sir, this argument let lawyers present it to you.” Hale is defeated for a while but is brought back into the act by him saying “Excellency, it is a natural lie to tell; I beg you, stop now before another is condemned! I may shut my conscience to it no more - private vengeance is working through this
“livestock die because of witchcraft, family members turn against each other because of witchcradt, servants defy masters because of witchcraft. For every ill in Salem, witchcraft is the scapegoat.’ (56)
One night the girls were caught dancing in the woods naked by Reverend Parris. Abigail threatened the other girls she would kill them if they ever said what they were actually doing, which was conjuring spirits. Abigail was the one who had done most of the wrong dong including drinking blood. Because of this event the start of the whole witch hunt and hysteria can be accredited to Abigail. Whenever she would be accused she would make up a lie, and threaten the other girls to say it was the truth.