Callous attitudes in the Crucible

He is depicted as stubborn, as shown in his response when Giles Corey provides evidence that proves his wife’s innocence. Danforth responds by saying “Do you take it upon yourself to determine what this court shall believe…? This is the highest court…in this province, do you know it?” His refusal to hear evidence that is likely to contradict his guilty verdict indicates that ultimately, Danforth considers himself the final judge of what is right and wrong, reflecting the corruption inherent in Salem’s authority. The authors thus provide valuable insight into the signs and motivations of a corrupt government.

Judge Danforth is also responsible for the Salem witch trials because his rulings to kill people came with no concrete evidence against them, only unreliable witnesses. Judge Danforth has a very cutthroat way for his rulings. One is either guilty or innocent, no opportunity for a second trial or a review of the case. He openly lets the court know this by saying "If you are not with the court, you are against it"(72). This almost proves that Judge Danforth is ignorant to hard evidence, only wanting people to admit that they are with or against him. Neither option is a just opinion, adding to the hysteria, lie so you can live and others die or tell your truth and die while others live. The people of Salem do not want to make this decision, thus leading to more innocent deaths of the people of Salem. If there had been a different judge in the Salem with trials they would have been over without a death and Abigail's deception would have been brought to light. Judge Danforth decides that many people are guilty, when in reality he should have said he was guilty.

Proof of Danforth’s guilt is shown when Danforth believes Abigail and the girls are incapable of lying during the trials. He dominates everyone in the witch trials, except for Abigail and is easily persuaded when it comes to Abigail’s stories. For example, as the girls walk into the court, Governor Danforth asks Abigail if there is any truth to the story. Abigail rises and says there is no truth. From the very beginning of the trials, Danforth shows favoritism towards Abigail's words. Danforth believes she is always stating accurate information. He later asks Abigail about the poppet that was sewn in front of her in the court trial. Abigail saw Mary Warren make the poppet, but she denied it and said it is a lie. The men in the court say she is lying (1201). Danforth is too trusting to accuse Abigail of doing something wrong because she is a child. Danforth is convinced since Abigail is a young girl, she is innocent and always

One of many reasons the witch trials were able to continue was because of Judge Danforth’s ignorance towards what was actually going on in Salem. When Francis Nurse and John Proctor try to explain to him the girls are deceiving him, he over rules their ideas by challenging “And do you know that near to four hundred are in the jails from Marblehead to Lynn, and upon my signature?”(Miller 179). Danforth is proud to say that he has put people in jail, put people to death for witchcraft because his ignorance blocks him from seeing the evidence he is presented with is false. As well as being exposed to false evidence, Judge Danforth also makes the claim that witchcraft cannot be disproved; therefore the court has to rely solely on the girl’s accusations. Danforth declares, “But witchcraft is ipso facto, on its face and by its nature, an invisible crime, is it not?

In Act Three of the play The Crucible, written by Arthur Miller, a Salem trial is presented of the people who are involved in witchcraft. Throughout the trial, almost everyone uses a countless number of fallacious statements that make the trial go chaos. Including Danforth, who is the governor of the case, was unable to stop the hysteria by failing to inspect evidence seriously and to act excessively. Danforth’s ignorance and unreasonable actions show that he is an irresponsible judge and that he messed up the witchcraft case. Danforth makes several appeals to false authority that makes him have the skill to deal with witchcraft and religion.

Danforth the judge tried to make all people confess because it is the less people he has to see die. Proctor's wife Elizabeth tries to convince, at first she wanted him to confess since she had already been convicted and therefore he could take care of the children and still have possession of the land. Goodie Proctor still knows there is goodness in her husband John and changes her mind, not wanting him to confess. Elisabeth persuades John Proctor to not confessing with complying with the Devil.

His reply is accompanied with a vindictive nature towards anyone who opposes the actions of the court or by extension, him. Therefore, his arrogance and pride restrains him from listening to others point of view. Lastly, despite hearing about the mass opposition and rebellion at the Andover witchcraft trials, Judge Danforth refuses to postpone the hangings and orders Reverend Parris that “Now hear me, and beguile yourselves no more… Postponement now speaks a floundering on my part.” (Miller 129). Danforth arrogantly waves off the request of postponement made by Hale and Parris. He thinks that the act of postponement of the hangings will raise the issue of his credibility as a judge. Danforth’s pride of his status as a judge denies him from giving it a thought that his actions can lead to the death of innocent lives. When pride and arrogance interferes with ones wisdom the repercussions are often destructive. Judge Danforth proves this through the medium of his actions which lead to the destruction of trustworthiness in the community and brought tragedy to Salem.

¨Near to four hundred are in the jails… and upon my signature… and seventy-two condemned to hang by that signature¨ (87). Granted that Danforth holds high authority of the court, his stubborn personality is actually what gives him such sway in the town of Salem. This quote shows that he knows how powerful he is in the situation and won't hesitate to flex and use that power to his advantage. Danforth is conveyed as ruthless as he claims that ¨When I speak God´s law, I

Abigail Williams wanted what was best for her. She did not care of others. Due to Abigail’s actions a whole conflict outbursts in Salem, Massachusetts. The girls have been caught in the woods dancing and even naked. They have been caught and accused of doing witchcraft. Betty is then “very ill” and they believe she is going to die. Betty awakes. Abigail threatens the girls to stay quiet. “You did. You did! You drank a charm to kill John Proctor’s wife! You drank a charm to kill Goody Proctor!” (Miller 18). This shows that Abigail Williams was a villain because she was hoping for the death of a person in order to get what she desired. Abigail and the girls were caught doing witchcraft. Abigail comes up with a different story to tell. “Now look you. We danced. And Tituba conjured Ruth Putnam’s dead sisters. And that is all. And mark this. 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 back of shudder

Deputy Governor Danforth is a selfish, arrogant, and corrupt man who only cares about his own goods. His flawed personalities and hypocritical attitudes make him blind and irrational throughout the entire witchcraft, which directly causes the calamity of the town. Danforth feels embarrassing and doesn’t know what to do when Proctor brings Mary Warren’s deposition that shows his previous judgments are wrong. He is baffled and find a reason to defend himself, “ there lurks nowhere in your heart, nor hidden in your spirit, any desire to undermine this court? Are you in all respects a Gospel Christian? Not come to Church?”(94). Instead of taking a closer look at the details and the evidence of the case, he chooses to question Proctor’s credibility, and he believes people who confound his theory are challenging his authority and he will never let that happen. Furthermore, Danforth is somewhat terrified and worried

When an entire crowd is choosing to go down the same path it makes it easy for us to follow the leader, even if the outcome may be against our morals or not truly what we believe is right. In The Crucible, by Arthur Miller, we see people follow one false accusation with more. Sadly, it’s human nature to choose to make the same decisions and behave similarly as those we are surrounded by. This is distinguished in two ways: mob mentality and mass hysteria. Mob mentality is the behavior of a large crowd who are solely followers. Mass hysteria is a condition affecting a large group, characterized by anxiety, irrational beliefs or behavior, and inexplicable symptoms of illness. All of these signs are very much present in the Salem mass, but when it comes down to it, who was the person that started all of this? Abigail Williams is the one responsible for creating the mass hysteria in Salem, Massachusetts.

Danforth starts the play with a lot of arrogance. He believes his side of the trial is correct, and only his side. Through out the trials, he starts to see faults in Abigail’s story and begins to question his court decisions. Danforth knows that Proctor’s wife, Elizabeth, is an honest woman and would never lie in court. Since he believes some truth in Proctor’s confession, he decides to bring Elizabeth into the court. When Proctor exposes himself to lechery with Abigail, she has no choice but to give in. Danforth illustrates the theme by deciding to call Proctor guilty and sent to jail. With Proctors statement, she knows she has no choice but to confess before Elizabeth confesses and she will be punished in a worse manner. As act two progresses, Danforth shows that having a lack of knowledge can lead to irrational

Abigail Williams is a great example of how vengefulness undermines the court’s authority. Abigail Williams, a girl who has an “endless capacity for dissembling” (Act I), seeks revenge not only through the court system, but through Tituba, her slave, and the girls she manipulates. Jealous of Elizabeth Proctor, who she thought was a “cold, sniveling woman” (Act I), for firing her after learning of her affair with her husband John Proctor, Abigail sees no other method to regain her “lover” other than killing his wife. After Abigail comes to this conclusion

To add on to the last point, not only did Danforth not let people defend themselves, he also used misleading questions with little or no evidence. For example, In act III Danforth asks Giles Corey, “Do you take it upon yourself to determine what this court shall believe and what shall set

Explanation 2: Danforth allows himself to be so easily persuaded and tricked by Abigail and the other children. He lets his guard down when listening to Abigail because he believes her to be trustworthy: “Danforth, weakening: ‘Child, I do not mistrust you-’ ” (Miller 108). Part of this trust comes from Abigail having tricked the town into believing that she has been saved and it is her duty to point out the Devil’s people, but as a judge, it is Danforth’s duty to be impartial in the