Examples Of Integrity In The Crucible

John Proctor’s decision to die for his name was the wrong one because despite his attempt to die an honest man, his name would remain tainted by his sinful affair regardless of whether he decided to live or die. The reality of Proctor’s decision is that he abandoned his wife, their three sons, and their unborn child for an ultimately futile act of self-sacrifice made for the approval of the townspeople. Throughout the course of the book, Proctor’s guilt from his affair with Abigail continuously guides his decisions and the moment it came time to decide whether to confess and live or maintain his innocence and hang was no different. Proctor decided that he would rather die than taint his name, but this decision stems from the guilt which constantly

The play The Crucible by Arthur Miller has one character that is true to himself and stands out above all the rest. Throughout the play, John Proctor shows some ideal qualities that are not found in the other characters. Proctor is a man of integrity because he shows honesty, he stands by his beliefs, and he makes sacrifices.

Integrity and honesty are virtues that are highly valued within the society we live in today. Society honors those that do the right thing and those that show integrity. Most of the population perform acts of righteousness in the hopes that they would be rewarded for their actions. However, there are some who still perform good deeds and maintain their integrity, knowing they would not be rewarded for their actions. In the play The Crucible by Arthur Miller, John Proctor is the most admirable character because he always does what is right, damaged his reputation to end the witch trials to save others, and stayed true to himself in the name of human dignity and justice even if it meant his death.

People’s true character is revealed through their actions. Their morals and ethics can be told from how they choose to act in a situation. In Arthur Miller’s The Crucible; the character of John Proctor is an honorable man despite having committed wrongful acts. He was able to redeem himself through acts that is considered courageous, such as when he refuses to contribute to the lie of witchcraft in Salem, when he fights for the people who were convicted of witchcraft and when he regrets being a dishonest man.

This human weakness proves to be John Proctor's tragic character flaw. It not only leads to his demise, but to the loss of many innocent lives as well.

In Arthur Miller's play The Crucible, Arthur intrigues audience time and time again with the historical context, social implications, and the Salem, Massachusetts Witchcraft Trials of 1962. Most members in Salem feel the need to prove their authority in ways such as accusing those who have done nothing or hanging them without proving their innocence first. The thing is authority is not made up by an authority figure, but by society. Miller’s The Crucible, demonstrates how people misuse their authority for cruel purposes through a fascinating plot, well-crafted characters, and well-set theme. During the hysteria of witchcraft trials in Salem, there were multiple figures of authority or per say the community who abused their power, Reverend Hale, Abigail Williams, Reverend Parris and Judge Danforth.

If he chooses falsely and publicly confesses to witchcraft he will damage his name even more so, even though he will be able to live and see his children. If he chooses not to confess, placing his moral integrity above the value of his own life, he will be put to death. This brings upon some conflict at the end of the story. “I have confessed myself! Is there no good penitence but it be public? God does not need my name nailed upon the church! God sees my name; God knows how black my sins are! It is enough!”(142) Although it may come off as selfish, Proctor speaks the truth when he says this. This part of the story brings out Proctor’s true colors. He cannot live on knowing that he has confessed to a crime he did not commit,and letting the townspeople believe he was involved with witchcraft. Danforth does not understand why he won’t allow his name simply to be tarnished in order to live, Proctor retaliates by saying, “Because it is my name! Because I cannot have another in my life! Because I lie and sign myself to lies! Because I am not worth the dust on the feet of them that hang! How may I live without my name? I have given you my soul; leave me my name!” (143) John Proctor’s main fatal flaw was his excessive pride which ultimately sealed his fate. Although in the end it made him a better Christian, by staying true to his word and dying with his soul and name in

Accepting one’s shame inevitably generates a sense of expiation and even plants the seeds for the nurturing of newfound self-regard and self-esteem. That is why he right away bids Elizabeth to tell him “what would” she “have” him “do”, as well as appeals to her to have her “forgiveness”. The latter request denotes John’s urgent need to alleviate his own guilt and be able to believe again in and act pursuant his reaffirmed “goodness”, his identity as John Proctor. Moreover, John’s obvious concern about his soul’s fate in this act testifies to the definitive passing of his nihilistic crisis (e.g. “it is a vanity that will not blind God” he says when referring to the potential hazards of choosing not to confess), while his preoccupation with his posthumous reputation (“my name I cannot sign” he says when he decides to confess but realizes that his name will be forever maligned owing to his false confession being publicly known) shows a man who is looking ahead, to the future, not someone who has lost all hope and has withdrawn from

“The arrogant are wise in their own eyes, but the wise will recognize their lies” (Anonymous). This quote accurately describes how the events in the Salem Witch Trials unfolded. The Crucible, written by Arthur Miller, places the reader into the city of Salem, Massachusetts. Arthur Miller tells a fictional story based on real events of how people who were wise in their own eyes used others to better themselves in a community based on honesty. Three characters from the story stand apart in their arrogance. Abigail Williams, John Proctor, and Reverend Parris were conceited and cared only about their personal gains. These characters used their power to blame, but not to be blamed or accused of alleged witchcraft which resulted in the deaths of several townspeople. Arthur Miller used these characters to illustrate how simple lies and rumors can spread and become an unstoppable force. With these simple but powerful accusations, well respected citizens soon became the targets of these characters manipulation.

Another inner quality that defines John Proctor is the value he holds to his good name. Proctor is a firm believer in the fact that one’s name is the only thing that remains after death, and what is done with it while living can affect one’s posterity for generations. This is the driving force behind his actions in the final act of the play. At first, he felt no shame in lying to the court about his accusation of witchcraft because he felt there was no more damage he could do to his reputation and that one more sin would not make any difference. His attitude changed when he realized his confession would mean blackening the name of those who already had died, and his sons would have to live with that mark on their names. He knew he could not teach his sons “. . . to walk like

In the Crucible written by Arthur Miller, he essentially talks about “courage, weakness, and truth.” Arthur Miller gives multiple scenarios when different characters have their time to shine and take the reader's attention. They’re multiple examples to prove this statement. For example would be when Thomas Putman stated, “he felt that his own name and the honor of his family had been smirched by the village, and he meant to right matters however he could.” In this specific quote he is very courageous to say something like this and take the law into his own hands.

When John Proctor saw his life, everything he had constructed, being held by another’s hand he could not bear it. How dare those officials make an honest man lie and use his name against him? What proof was so necessary if his word was given in front of the ones to blame him? There was no way John could tolerate such non sense. His most shallow feelings allowed him to think he would be capable of giving up his name in order to survive. Unfortunately to Proctor, to survive is not the same as to live, and to live was what he wanted. His name not only was being stabbed to a door, but was being stabbed in everyone’s life. They wanted Proctor to be an example of a liar, of the existence of witches as he had a heavy name. They wanted to destroy his weighty name and make it barely inexistent or make of it a deception. Proctor’s conscience or ability to distinguish what is right to what it wrong acted upon him, but death was sadly the only alternative he had.

The only way John Proctor can save himself is by falsely confessing to being involved with witchcraft; however, he does not confess. This describes another example of situational irony. Proctor decides to tell the truth and not lie to himself because he now understands the meaning of a good reputation. As critic Richard Hayes says, “The dilemma of man, fallible, subject to pride, but forced to choose between the ‘negative good’ of truth and the morality, and the ‘positive good’ of human life under any dispensation.” Proctor would rather die than live with the town believing untrue statements about him. When Proctor is asked to explain why he decides to tell the truth he replies, “Because it is my name!...How may I live without

American Playwright, Arthur Miller, in his play The Crucible (1952), suggests that witch hunts still exist in American Society. Miller supports this claim by drawing parallels between the Salem Witch Trials and the Senator Joseph McCarthy Trials. His purpose is to warn his readers of the dangers of mass hysteria. He uses emotional appeals and logic to convince the reader that mass “hunts” are still a danger to Americans today. The central way, however, that Miller achieves his goal of warning his reader of the dangers of reputation versus integrity is through the characterization of John Proctor. Proctor develops into a character with internal conflict as he begins to risk his life to save his reputation by simply telling the truth, trying to get the girls to tell the truth, and refusing to confess.

The Play ‘The Crucible’ by Arthur Miller is a play that explores the theme of integrity. Throughout the play we see the character, John Proctor, develop from being corrupted into a noble man with a high level of integrity. At the outset of the play we see John is corrupt through his affair with Abigail Williams, however as the play progresses we see John redeems his integrity as he confesses to lechery and redeems himself with his wife Elizabeth.