Character Analysis Of Parris In The Crucible

The play, The Crucible, by Arthur Miller, takes place in the town of Salem, Massachusetts in 1692. This time in Salem, witchcraft was suspected of almost everyone in the town. Preserving one’s reputation becomes recurring concept throughout the play. The witchcraft accusations are usually made by people that have a biased view against others, which is why everyone tries to make sure their reputation looks well with the rest of the town. This concept is proven through the characters of John Proctor, Reverend Parris and Reverend Hale. These three characters go to great lengths to protect what the town of Salem thinks of them.

During the era of accused witchcraft in Salem during the 1690’s, the Puritan society revolved heavily on the words and the will of God, bestowed upon it by the reverends and other church officials. Within The Crucible, written by Arthur Miller, Reverend Parris is arguably the most liable individual for the grave turn of events in Salem. Parris, the newly appointed reverend of the town, allowed his pride, ego, and greed to cloud his judgement and decision making throughout the duration of the witchcraft accusals. The weak reverend’s inability to speak up for those he knew were falsely accused, in lieu of losing his coveted position, was the true catalyst for the grave events that took place. In Act I, Parris understands that the witchcraft has originated not

Revered Parris uses the power that was handed to him to give himself a better name in politics. The witch craze provided the perfect moment to do so. He helped head the committee that determined the innocence of those convicted. By doing so he hopes to create a reputation for himself in politics. He also supports anything the judge Danforth says, calling him “sir” and “Your Excellency” (Miller 88). This brown nosing and condemnation of others, “Beware this man... this man is mischief” (to Proctor), is to keep the searchlight off himself and sustain his

Reverend Parris is exceedingly acquisitive as evidence by his actions towards the community of Salem. Within Act I Parris’ greedy attitude and selfish motives are brought forward and highlighted throughout stage directions, dialogue of the play, the way others react to him, and his feelings towards Betty. Although the minister of the church, he is disliked and prides himself on his reputation. Parris’ caustic attitude and monetary greed is evident to lead him to his downfall. He describes himself as “...not some preaching farmer with a book under [his] arm; [he is] a graduate of Harvard College” and assumes that the people of the village care about his education status (29).

Reverend Parris’ fear of losing his job provokes him to cry witch. Reverend Parris’ daughter feigns to be in a coma. When the doctor bade Susanna tell Reverend Parris that he “might look to unnatural things for the cause of it” (9), he denies that possibility because he fears that rumors of witchcraft under his roof would help his “many enemies” (10) to drive him from his

For example, Reverend Parris was concerned about his reputation, which caused him to listen to the doctor, and allow Hale to check Betty for signs of witchery. Reverend Parris did this to take the blame of witchcraft away from him. Mr. Parris knew if he called Mr. Hale to investigate witchcraft, then the people of Salem would not think he practices witchcraft. Reverend Parris’s plan did allow

The fear of being affiliated with or even being a witch and the shame and dishonor that comes along with it. Reverend Parris is a very paranoid but victimizing character misguided by fear. His daughter Betty becomes ill and he is afraid it’s regarding witchcraft, however he is not fearful for her health. He is concerned with keeping his reputation and position as the Church’s minister. This selfishness is not only a characteristic Parris demonstrates but other people in the town as well. A lot of characters of characters share this interest in saving their own skin under the influence of fear and shame. This will sooner than later contribute to the downfall of the town as a whole. Another reactive character includes Ann Putnam. Another paranoid woman in the town, ready to throw around accusations regardless of how logical or faulty they are. This may be due to the loss of 7 of her 8 children she’s given birth to. On account of this, she is convinced they were murdered by supernatural means, particularly witchcraft. For example she is immediately use Tituba as a scapegoat and blame her for the death of her babies. Other characters within Salem, not only Parris and Ann, will use any opportunity they can to assure their own safety and to save face in front of others. Their lack of consideration for the wellbeing of others will get others into danger and cause a load of anarchy and

Samuel Parris and John Hale are the two ministers in The Crucible and were initially alike in their attitudes towards witchcraft. However, their personalities show some striking dissimilarities. Unlike Hale, Reverend Parris is characterized by extreme paranoia and egotism. He is very static- his traits and motives remain consistent from the beginning to the end of the play. Although a religious man and believer in witchcraft like Parris, Hale values human life and is motivated by personal beliefs and his sense of morality, disregarding his best interests. He is a very dynamic character, becoming progressively less confident and trusting of law and doctrine as his faith is tested throughout the ordeal.

In the play The Crucible by Arthur Miller, the characters John Proctor and Reverend Parris are some of the major characters during the course of the play. John Proctor is a farmer in Salem that lives in the outskirts of town, and is religious like the rest of Salem but rarely makes it to the church due to living far away have having large amounts of work. He is seen as strong and confident by most town members, however “Proctor… has come to regard himself as a kind of fraud” (Miller 20-21). Reverend Parris is Salem’s religious leader. While he does regularly speak to the entire town, he has very little confidence and “believed he was being persecuted wherever he went, despite his best efforts to win people and God over to his side” (Miller 3). By comparing and contrasting both Parris and Proctor’s actions and beliefs throughout the play, underlying truths regarding self-realization and the consequences of our actions can be discovered.

Miller says in his notes that he found nothing redeemable about the historical Parris. As a result, he evidently felt no need to make his fictional version any better. First of all, Parris is greedy. John Proctor accuses Parris of this several times in the play. The Reverend gives weak justifications, but never denies any of the accusations. Some examples of Parris's greed include: quibbling over firewood, insisting on gratuitous golden candlesticks for the church, and

Finally, Parris is a paranoid and fearful man. He thinks that everyone is out to get him and relieve him of his position as minister. He thinks that there is a faction within his church that wishes to overthrow him and would do anything to get him removed. He knows that if this faction discovers what his niece and daughter did it could lead him to be fired from his job, as he says to Thomas

The second person that is responsible for the witch hysteria is Reverend Parris. Parris is a very greedy man that only cares about his reputation. “But if you trafficked with the spirits in the forest I must know it now, for surely my enemies will, and they will ruin me with it.” (Miller 1.9). When he says this his daughter is laying in bed in a death like state, and all he cares about is if the townspeople will use his daughter being sick to overthrow him. The first reason that makes him responsible is that he is an instigator. He is always trying to make people look bad, especially John Proctor. “Such a Christian that will not come to church but once in a month.” (Miller 3.41). When Parris is saying this he is trying to make Proctor out to be an unholy man. Parris is trying to make it seem like John’s word is not truthful because he doesn’t come to church often. Another reason that Parris is responsible for the hysteria is that he lied about finding the girls dancing naked in the woods. He says to Danforth in act three “I do not, sir, but I never saw any of them naked.” (Miller 47), but in act one he say to Abigail “I saw a dress lying on the grass. And I thought I saw someone naked running through

Reverend Parris’s main motivation is to preserve his reputation at any cost, whether by unbelievable behavior or through falsehood. For example, when Reverend Parris discovers the girls dancing in the forest, he hastily warns Abigail that his reputation is in jeopardy by conveying, “Now look you, child, your punishment will come in its time. But if you trafficked with spirits in the forest I must know it now, for surely my enemies will, and they will ruin me with it” (10). Since Abigail is family, Parris has no tolerance when it comes to his reputation so he willingly enforces discipline to maintain his status. Also, as a minister, his role is

Reverend Samuel Parris is motivated to sustain his reputation because he took years to build up his name. Some of the folks already see him as unfit as the reverend. Having the assumption that there are sinful practices taking place under his roof, he, at first, denies the involvement of witchcraft with the odd behavior Betty displays. However, when a majority of the townspeople believe in the involvement of witchery. He does not want his name and reputation to be tarnished due to witchcraft, so he plays along and supports Betty’s and Abigail’s accusations. He uses Tituba as a scapegoat to divert the suspicion towards him. Parris threatens to whip Tituba if she does not confess that she has dealings with the Devil, and pushes her to her breaking point. Parris is motivated to uphold his reputation and tries to divert the possible blame and suspicion towards him to

Some characters in “The Crucible” include Abigail, Reverend Parris, and John Proctor. In order to understand the main conflict of the play, one must understand each character’s motivation and weaknesses. Reverend Parris is the preacher of Salem, and holds himself accountable for directing the people of Salem to God. Parris, however, is deeply insecure about his position in the town, which later on causes many of his actions to be rooted from insecurity. He is afraid of losing his job as minister, and encourages a fear of God. Abigail, who is