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Arthur Miller's Presentation Of John Proctor's Moral Journey

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Examine Arthur Miller's Presentation Of John Proctor's Moral Journey - The Crucible by Arthur Miller "The Crucible" by Arthur Miller is a play based upon an American settlement during the late 1600's. It is centred around actual events from history to try to portray the way of life in this era. Miller has chosen the confusion of the witch trials of this time, to provide a base for the struggles of his main character, John Proctor. At the beginning of the play the focus is laid mainly on introducing the main characters and storyline, but as the script unfolds, it becomes clear that John Proctor is the main character, something not immediately obvious from the beginning. It is how Miller presents and demonstrates Proctor's …show more content…

Miller also shows Proctor as angry at Parris taking it upon himself to call in Rev. Hale - a specialist in the works of Satan, without consulting anyone else first. He does not believe that it is needed, (though the audience will never know whether or not he would have if Abby hadn't told him there was no witch-craft involved,) and sees Parris as foolish for kicking up a fuss. Although these actions and beliefs are due solely to Proctor's own personal rebellion against Parris, (which at first he thinks he can carry out quietly on his own,) with the events that occur, they begin to look a lot more sinister - this does not bode well for his reputation. The information given on Proctor by Miller as background is very precise. It explains that he has very strong views on what is decent / right or wrong, and that he is not the sort of man to sympathise with hypocrites. This is expressed clearly by Miller about halfway through Act One, "he had a sharp and biting way with hypocrites" Other evidence to show that Proctor's moral standards and principles are high are these quotes, also from Act One, "He is a sinner..but against his own vision of decent conduct" and "Proctor, ..has come to regard himself as a kind of fraud" These quotes show clearly what Miller wants the audience to think about

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