The Misuse of Power and Religion in The Crucible

The power of religion and fear is prominently displayed throughout The Crucible; the characters holding power of the court misuse it, and the motives of credible, honest, worthwhile characters are lost to lies and deceit. Out of all the characters in The Crucible, John Proctor and Reverend Hale are the most deserving of authority but receive very little, if any. The majority of the power is distributed between Danforth, Hathorne, Parris, and Abigail. The power and ability to decide innocence and guilt is given to those who can ask questions while evading answering any.

Danforth, Hathorne, and Parris avoid answering accusations and questions by charging the speaker with trying to undermine the church and therefore the entire theocracy of Salem. For example, in response to Proctor’s presentation of the list of people confirming the good character of the accused women, Parris says, “This is a clear attack upon the court!” (94). This shifts the blame from Parris and the rest of the court back on to John Proctor and his comrades.

In response to questions, Abigail plays the victim while accusing everyone else of which craft or consorting with witches. Abigail’s ability to avoid answering questions displays an abnormal amount of power for her age and position in society. In response to one of Danforth’s questions regarding whether or not Abigail and John Proctor had an affair, she replies, “If I must answer that, I will leave and not come back again ” (111). By this response, Abigail avoids having to answer the actual question, and displays the immense amount of power she holds in the court.

Finally, in act three, John Proctor and Reverend Hale are the only characters who make sacrifice in an attempt to shift power away from the co...

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...imself. Once Proctor commits adultery with Abigail, he loses his self-respect. Throughout the course of the play he attempts to find the best method for regaining this quality. In the end, he sacrifices his reputation to try and save his wife’s and to bring down Abigail in the process. He does not succeed, but dies an honorable man of strong character.

Throughout The Crucible power is distributed to corrupt, self-interested members of the theocracy. Abigail manages to warp the puritan religion into a method of forcing the community to give her power. John Proctor and Reverend Hale are the most notably outstanding characters in the book with the most honorable motives. Both of them end up being truly selfless in the end. If the characters in this play were not so worried about themselves, the tragic deaths of many innocent men and women would never have occurred.