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Examples Of Lying In The Crucible

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“Things come apart so easily when they have been held together with lies” (Dorothy Allison, Bastard out of Carolina). In The Crucible, by Arthur Miller, the town of Salem is being held together by false truths, and the people of the Salem witch trials are to be prosecuted for it. Lying is to blame for the Salem witch trials because it lead to the deaths of many innocent people. Lying is to arraign because Abigail, a 17 year old girl and the niece of Reverend Parris, starts spreading rumors to protect the scandalous episode in the woods with the other girls. Similarly, Elizabeth Proctor, a good wife, could also be blamed for the trials. In the court, Danforth, a cantankerous judge, asks about John Proctor, a wealthy landowner and husband to …show more content…

However, Mary Warren may be to blame because of her accusation of John Proctor. She cries, “My name, he want my name. ‘I’ll murder you,’ he says, ‘if my wife hangs! We must go and overthrow the court,’ he says!” (Act III, Line 1121-1123). However, Mary only pointed a blaming finger to one person, while the girls called out and ruined many lives. Danforth questions the girls and says, “Then you tell me that you sat in my court, callously lying, when you knew that people would hang by your evidence?” (Act III, Line 581-583). Naturally, they all deny the fact that they lied because Abigail said she would kill anyone who revealed what happened in the woods. Also, even though Danforth implicates them, Abigail is quick to dismiss any thought that the girls were not being forthright in court. Even though they were just feigning, people believed them and the events spiraled out of control. Another specific girl to frame yet again is Mary Warren. She states about John Proctor, “He wake me every night, his eyes like coals and his fingers claw my neck, and I sign, I sign…” (Act III, Line 1127-1129). Mary accuses John Proctor even though he is completely innocent, just to remove the suspicions about herself and be on the good side of Abigail’s heart. In the end, John is hanged because of Mary’s selfishness and many others die because of pure rumors. Consequently, many people were innocently hanged because of unnecessary

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