Examples Of Pride In The Crucible

The delicate balance between conformity and rebellion is one that perplexes many. However the decision one choses to make can often define their true character and does so throughout the Crucible. Miller suggests that the ability to rebel when all signs to save your self point to conformity truly shows a person true purity. Miller uses Proctor in the book to display this aspect moral goodness by rebelling against those conforming for their own personal

Courage is shown by many characters all throughout The Crucible, however; John Proctor and Abigail Williams are the most courageous of them all. Both John and Abigail show courage because they aren’t afraid to do anything. These are the two characters who stood to be the most courageous. After reading Arthur Miller’s The Crucible, courageousness is shown through different institutions(such as courts, religion and the church of God), yet; it is genuinely shown through the characters of the play.

Rebecca Nurse then proves herself an honest character that is well respected through the plot of the story. She is so well respected that even male figures throughout the play respect her advice. This is shown when Rebecca gives honest advice to John Proctor saying “No, you cannot break charity with your minister. You are another kind, John. Clasp his hand, make your peace” (Miller 181). This is important to Rebecca Nurse as a character because it entails an honest opinion that John should just make peace with Reverend Parris rather than fight fire with fire against him. In addition, when Goody Nurse is convicted of witchcraft, Reverend Hale knows that Rebecca is a very honest and trustworthy person and that in the end she would not be convicted in a trial of witchcraft. This evidence is essential when analyzing Rebecca considering the fact that she was able to Justify in the short time she was with Reverend Hale the honest and trustworthy women she is. All in all, Rebecca Nurse manifests herself as an individual who is can always give her honest opinion and is well respected.

Since pride is in all human beings, does that make everyone weak? It is definitely one of man’s many weaknesses and for Macbeth, his tragic flaw. His pride combined with the witches’ prophecies and a few

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.

We should not judge people by their peak of excellence; but by the distance they have traveled from the point where they started”(Henry Ward Beecher). In 1692 Salem, Massachusetts Madness is consuming Salem, and everyone is accused of being with the devil. John Proctor’s affair with Abigail jump starts the witch hunts. In the Crucible Arthur Miller embodies Proctor as a tragic hero with many flaws but his fatal flaw was his pride which caused his demise. Throughout the play we witness Proctor’s transformation as a person from a sinful remorseless adulterer, repentant, and to an honorable man.

Enviousness is sometimes described as psychic tumor, and can be destructive at times, how that temptation of jealousy can overwhelm people and ruin people around. This situation is successfully introduced in the play The Crucible, how many characters are jealous of people around them, and such action of envying not only destroyed people who practiced envy but also people around. In the play The Crucible, Miller’s uses of compare and contrast between Abigail William and Mr. Putnam brings out their similar motive for their desire for power, which is envy. As a result of their envying of others, many innocent people died, thus demonstrates the dangers of envy.

A hero is a person noted for brave acts or goodness of character. A person who face the danger and combats the evil. Heroic leaders have the purpose of achieving the goal, regardless of the challenging difficulties. Often sacrificing their own personal concerns for a greater good Some qualities are passion, integrity, honesty, confidence, patience, selflessness, courageous, and humble. An example of a hero is John Proctor. He is a tormented man. He believes his affair with Abigail irreparably injured him in the eyes of God, his wife Elizabeth, and himself. True, Proctor did surrender to sin and commit adultery; however, he lacks the capacity to exonerate himself.

In Miller’s “The Crucible” the pride of the people of Salem leads to a massacre of innocent lives. Pride is delight or elation arising from some act, possession, or relationship. One of the main characters, John Proctor, has pride in his beliefs of purifying the Church of England. His wife, Elizabeth, has pride in her ability to use the trials as an ultimate revenge against Abigail Williams. John Hale is the “expert” on witches his pride springs from his extensive knowledge, but later in the play he recants and loses all his respect. Hale is the chemical that cause the conflict to come into full swing between Elizabeth and John Proctor.      

Pride can be defined positively and negatively, it can mean a sense of one's own proper dignity or value or self-respect, or an excessively high opinion of oneself or conceit, respectively. In the play which portrays both sides of pride we are transported to the late sixteen hundreds and introduced to the town of Salem in the province of Massachusetts Bay during the time of witch trials, and it’s excessively superstitious habitants. Some of the fictitious but notable habitants of the town are John Proctor, his wife Elizabeth Proctor and Reverend Hale, all of whom show various facets of pride, its benefits and its consequences.

In The Crucible, Miller too created a character that would stand against authority; John Proctor. When Proctor is questioned as to why he has not been to church in so long, he admits that he has ill feelings towards Parris and the way that Parris gives sermons. Proctor does not like authority, and since Parris talks as though he is an authority figure, Proctor has an issue with this. Proctor is very critical over representatives of authority. Proctor changes from a timid character held in bondage by his sin, to a strong, righteous man who will die for the truth. This drastic change in his character is the basis of his significance to the outcome of the play. When faced with the prospect of either confessing to something he didn’t do, or dying, he tells judge Danforth that he cannot have his confession and name nailed to the church door because it would betray his friends who have already died for the truth. When Danforth refutes this, John says, “Beguile me not! I blacken all of them when this is nailed to the church the very day they hang for silence!” (143). Proctor seizes the power back from those who are misusing it, simply by refusing to be a part of the false confessions. The unyielding faith of Proctor’s wife, the influence of the people who share his beliefs and his triumph over an inner struggle help him make a decision that he believes will finally set him free from his past.

She screams and writhes as, "Stuck two inches in the flesh of her belly, [Parris] draw a needle out." (Miller, ) Envy even pushes Abigail to inflict pain on herself. To frame Elizabeth, she resorts to extreme and desperate means of proof. She casts away all shreds of morality, religion, and common sense to pursue her treasure. Anne Putnam exposes similar motives for accusing Rebecca Nurse. Francis Nurse quotes the arrest warrant for his wife, "For the marvelous and supernatural murder of Goody Putnam's babies." (Miller, ) Goody Putnam envies the Nurses because they already have a large clan of offspring while they are left with one weak child. Envy and jealousy play a key role in Goody Putnam's decision to blame Rebecca. To obtain vengeance, they accuse Rebecca in hopes to solve their own misfortune. The Putnams envy her success and instead of celebrating their happiness and cherishing their only child, they choose the immoral action and strike back at their scapegoat, Rebecca. Abigail plays a cruel trick on Proctor to try to resolve her envy, and the Putnams condemn Rebecca Nurse to death for some false hope in their lives. Envy encourages ordinary people to feel disappointed, but it encourages the ones without strong ethics to strike back and take revenge. In The Crucible, this revenge takes the form of unreasonable trials of innocent people.

In today's society, honor is something that is respected every day, but in occasions is overlooked by others. The main characters, John Proctor and Abigail Williams, represent multiple types of honor. Abigail Williams shows dishonor towards the victims of Salem and towards Elizabeth Proctor. John Proctor’s name is an example of honor because he doesn't want his title to be disrespected by the community for admitting to witchcraft. Honor continues to become a factor back in the 17th century and even today. In the play, “The Crucible”, honor, and dishonor are represented multiple times throughout the play.

The next example of hypocrisy in The Crucible is Reverend Parris’s character. He is the spiritual leader of Salem, yet Arthur Miller characterizes him as being very greedy and selfish. He only desires money and a high status within the community.

Many characters display acts of courage in Arthur Miller’s play The Crucible. Throughout the Salem Witch Trials, the characters are able to face the truth without the fear of losing. The three characters that show more courage than the others were John Proctor because he is honorable, Giles Corey because he is selfless, and Reverend Hale because he is bold.