Comparing Arthur Proctor And Dimmesdale In The Crucible And The Scarlet Letter

We also see Dimmesdale protecting his reputation when he goes and meets with Hester in secret. He never really wanted anybody to see them together for fear that somebody would make the connection. Another example is seen in The Crucible, in which John Proctor wanted to keep his reputation in check. He had also committed adultery by having an affair with a younger girl. Much like Dimmesdale, Proctor was able to keep it a secret for most of his life. We also see how important John’s reputation was to him when his life was on the line. John Proctor had a decision to make late in the story. He had to choose between his reputation and his life. John chose to be hanged rather than have his confession posted on the church door for all to see (Miller 143). These examples show how much reputations meant to the people of the time period in which these texts take place.

“The Scarlet Letter” written by Nathaniel Hawthorne and “The Crucible” written by Arthur Miller are two pieces of literature written around the same era. They were written in the early days of the Massachusetts colony. Both of the pieces of literature have many similarities including the theme, setting, conflicts, and some major plot elements. But the two pieces of literature are also very different. They both use have a common theme but are completely different stories. Each of the plays tell a different portrayal of the effects of sin on the protagonist, how they deal with the situation, and also how they will be effected by their choices made throughout the play.

Proctor, who is very religious but does not attend Church regularly, will lose his status in the eyes of the townsmen if his sin is revealed to them. Proctor does not attend Church because he does not like the minister in his town. It has nothing to do with his involvement in the religion. He would be banished from the community, as would his family, and his name would be destroyed. Proctor and Dimmesdale, despite having very similar personalities, were written about in extremely different time periods.

When Proctor confessed to adultery to the judge to save his wife showed he was very honorable. “I thought of her softly. God, help me, I lusted, and there is a promise in such sweet”(193, line 865-866)...”My wife is innocent, except she knew a whore when she saw one.”(193, line 876-877). Even though John Proctor knew adultery was a big and very bad sin he still confessed. He knew it was wrong to let Elizabeth get into trouble when she had done nothing wrong. His actions

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Proctor personally feels he violates his own moral code because in the play he is unfaithful to his wife (Popkin 142). John Proctor committs adultery with his former servant, Abigail. John’s wife, Elizabeth, later fires Abigail because she was suspicious of her and John and wanted her to leave him alone. In The Crucible Reverend Hale is talking to the Proctor’s and asks them to prove their knowledge of their religion by reciting the ten commandments. Proctor starts to name them and accidentally misses the seventh sin, “Thou shalt not commit adultery” (Popkin 6). This was more than a coincidence it was John Proctor unknowingly confessing to his sin. When Proctor is wrongly accused of witchcraft, Proctor suffers more from his guilt for his adultery not because of the accusations (McGill 3). “The hero’s action is guilty from one point of view and innocent from another” (McCollom 4). Towards the end of The Crucible Elizabeth Proctor relieves John from his guilt. From her point of view, John’s mistake was also partially her fault. She feels that she pushed him away and she was not a loving wife like she could have been. On the other hand, John feels extremely guilty for committing his sin. Throughout the play John suffers from enormous amounts of guilt for his adultery, and his wife reprieves him of his guilt and sin. A classic tragic hero commits a fatal flaw,

The two texts The Crucible and The Scarlet Letter both contain themes of guilt and shame. "The Crucible's" Proctor, struggles to deal with the unrelenting reminder of his sin and how it has affected his marriage. The Scarlet Letters Dimmesdale, is a man who is seen as a respected member of his society and has committed a sin he talks against. He struggles with the reminder that he is acting on the principle of

Mekenna Kociemba The Crucible The decision John Proctor made in the end. John Proctor made an effort in defending himself and his wife Elizabeth Proctor. Making the decision of getting hanged. What lead up to that?

Although Rev. Dimmesdale and John Proctor were from different writings, they shared many similarities. One major similarity stands out: Adultery. The definition of adultery is voluntary sexual intercourse between a married person and a person who is not his or her spouse. In both writings, their governments moral standards were based on their religion. Although they do not admit it at first, John Proctor and Rev. Arthur Dimmesdale committed the crime adultery. In The Scarlet Letter, Rev. Arthur Dimmesdale has a high eminence to the people around him because he is the minister in town. Also every Sunday, he convinced the people to confess their sins, and guided them to worship. In the play The Crucible, John may not go to church because of the minister, but he is looked upon the people with high stature.

He sacrifices his life in the name of truth. Proctor and his wife believe that if he would have lied and didn’t confess, he would of went to hell. But since he confessed, they believe that he would rise up and go to heaven and spend all eternity with his family when it’s their turn to go. Elizabeth is devastated of Proctors death, and regrets him confessing. She feels abandonment from him but then she thinks about how it could of went the other way and he could have just been guilty forever. In conclusion, Elizabeth goes out and marries again. She says she is devastated about his death, but she didn’t let that overrule

Both in the novel The Scarlet Letter, written by Nathaniel Hawthorne, and the play The Crucible, written by Arthur Miller, women play an important role in the story. Whether it’s for the good of the town or for the worse is the main difference in the stories. Both take a different view on women, and make them the main driving feature of the story, leading to be an interesting comparison when put side by side.

For the time that stands in this moment let us change our perspective to those who took the stage of a perfidy, the point of view from those in The Crucible and The Scarlet Letter. Both stories follow the same path, when it comes to sharing a focal point with the protagonist, and then switching over to the viewpoint of an antagonist. In The Scarlet Letter a chapter switches from the eyes of Hester to the eyes of Dimmesdale, but The Crucible's change in viewpoints was through discussion. Their discussions being of a society that condemns sinners, Puritan ruled America, and an open, biased, opinion towards accused and those "caught in the act."

Sometimes it is more morally correct to preserve our own reputation than it is to conform to others’ demands of us. John Proctor in the play The Crucible by Arthur Miller, is faced with the challenge to either conform or uphold his name. Through Proctor’s challenge of self-preservation or confession, we understand the idea of reputation throughout the play.

“Henry, all i said was, should i ask Edward-” Elizabeth chuckled, “You have no idea what i was going to say.” She had realized the past few days how everyone was treating her and Edward. Like they were together and she didn't understand it. She had liked Edward from the very beginning. He was a smart, handsome man, however she wasn't one for relationships. Mainly because she had never really been in one. Relationships that hadn't affected her life at all.

Those words swirled about in Elizabeth’s subconsciousness, reawakening a memory from long ago when she said them to Tiffany, contemplating how true they were then and how true they are now.