Good And Evil In The Crucible

At the beginning of the play, Abigail Williams lies to avoid trouble. She tries to protect her life over the life of others instead of doing the right thing by being honest about what happened in the woods. She lies multiple times in the play accusing others of witchcraft, although it was false. When the courts put Abigail to the test to see if she tells the truth, she fails and drags most of the town down with her. Unlike Abigail, Elizabeth has always been known for her honesty. Her husband John says that Elizabeth never told a lie. Yet when it matters most, Elizabeth lies to try to save her husband’s life. Ultimately, when Danforth and Hawthorne put her up to the test she fails to tell the truth and kills John. John, attempting to save himself, confesses to witchcraft. He lied to the courts and told them that he indeed was practicing the sorcery, when truthfully he was not. John thinks that this is the right thing to do to save his

The Crucible, written by Arthur Miller, is an intriguing novel about the witch trials in Salem during the 17th century. During the Salem witch trials, innocent people were accused of being witches just so that others could take their land and farms. The main protagonist, John Procter, stands up against the corruption and greed that has infested the very heart of Salem, and tries to overthrow Abigail Williams, a corrupt young maiden who blames and kills the accused witches. This novel explores the depth of evil in human nature through these main characters John Procter and Abigail Williams. But despite the corruption of Abigail and the town, the just emerge to try and stop this evil from occurring. The characteristics of John Procter are

Elizabeth and Johns relationship is certainly not an easy one. Although having been married with two children the intrusion of Abigail could not have come at a worse time. With Elizabeth ill and Abigail’s personality being such a contrast John felt it as an escape from his wife’s absence. The affair that John had with Abigail puts a strain on their relationship creating a physical and emotional divide that the audience easily pick up on. On top of the affair, living in a puritan society which can be demeaning to women makes the

Elizabeth still questions John’s loyalty throughout the play. Elizabeth comes off as an outspoken women and that isn’t really supported in the Puritan society. When convicted of witchcraft she doesn’t fight with the men because she knows she hasn’t done anything wrong. Even though she tries to do what she thinks is the best for John, she ends up saying the wrong thing and Abigail isn’t punished. Elizabeth ends up being pregnant and the trials end before she has her baby so she survives.

The play “The Crucible” demonstrates great themes of spite from many different characters. In a time of such chaos, these vengeful decisions led to many persecutions during the time of the witch trials. For example, Ann Putnam was jealous of Rebecca Nurse, because she had so many kids. This envy turns vengeful, and Ann accused Rebecca of witchcraft.The court believed this accusation because Rebecca delivered her babies,and only one of them survived. Rebecca could not have actually had anything to do with the death of her babies, of course. Francis Nurse in Proctor’s home says to Reverend Hale, “My wife is the very brick and mortar of the church, Mr. Hale...For the marvelous and supernatural murder of Goody Putnam’s babies” (Miller 174). Ann

Life teaches one very valuable lesson: with power comes the abuse of power, which results in hysteria and fear. Fear comes in many forms; fear for loved ones, fear for health, fear of losing reputation and fear of reprisal. Throughout history, a powerful few have abused their power. An example of this dilemma occurred in the 1950’s when Senator Joseph McCarthy started accusing innocent people of being communist sympathizers. Contemporary author, Arthur Miller, visited this concept of corrupt power and disapproval of McCarthyism in his classic, The Crucible. Good Night and Good Luck, a movie which was about the hysteria McCarthy caused to innocent lives, and The Crucible have one major thing in common: the corruption of power. This thematic idea reveals that the corruption of power can not only affect and impair mainstream society, but also the people which live within it.

Later on weeks went on with elizabeth going on trial for the crime she has committed. Abigail was confessing to the judge that elizabeth was dealing with the devil. She was put in jail so that she can be hanged. Before elizabeth was going to be hanged John step and and wanted to confess that he was

Our Sinful Nature Humans can be good, humans can be bad. But every human has a little evil within them. We can be represented as Yin-Yangs. Bad people have a little good within them, and good people have a little bad within them. But we all have bad within us.

Another trait that is needed to make a supernatural horror film is the “unknown” evil. This trait is present as the antagonist or “bad guy” in the film, but usually is not a person. The “unknown” evil is the unseen glimpses of the effect of a demon or ghost. The importance of the “unknown” evil is for the hints or fragments of dangerous, life-threatening occurrences that happen to the characters. In the film Insidious, the “unknown” evil is the unexplainable coma Dalton is in.

There is always conflict in a story. Without a villain, there is no reason for a character to change or develop. Some examples of villains are Darth Vader from Star Wars, Lord Voldemort from Harry Potter, and The Joker. These are commonly known villains from movies and books. They play an important role in the plot, each with unique stories and actions.

The tragic events of the Salem witch trials tested the morality of several individuals, who abided to a government based on religious intolerance and limitation. Arthur Miller’s “The Crucible” highlights the detrimental effects of the religious court, and the impact Puritan societal norms had on its citizens. Reverend Hale, a protagonist in the play serves as a balance between morality versus and the religious conformity that took place within society. His transformation throughout the play demonstrates his true intention in doing what is right and abiding by the correct ideals, instead of following the damaging priorities enrooted in the theocratic system. Throughout “The Crucible,” Reverend Hale transfers from adhering to a theocracy to prioritizing the true value of life, revealing his maintenance of a strong moral code.

It can be argued that the very concept of a choiceless choice disqualifies the action undertaken as ethical. Ethical choices are by their very nature the result of willful choice, even if they are not always the result of rational reflection. However, subject to extreme levels of coercion, those placed in a position of a choiceless choice are compelled to act in ways that have been judged as both self-serving and harmful. In Arthur Miller’s playwright The Crucible, Reverend Parris's slave, Tituba, is turned in by Abigail for calling on the Devil.

In the past, every decade and every generation has had its momentous event that has shaped it and left a mark on its history. The 1600's were no different. In The Crucible, the author, Arthur Miller, demonstrates many examples of the complexity of “good” and “evil” in his characters. He does this through many characters, seen and unseen. The entire village bases its belief system on the conflict between Good vs. evil, or Satan vs. God. It may seem like evil is winning, as one innocent person after another is put to death. The towns people are mislabeling people as good or evil like Mary Warren, although they have very little evidence. Rebecca Nurse is an outstanding example of honesty, and a well-respected member of the

In Nathaniel Hawthorne's novel The Catcher in the Rye, he subtly addresses humans sinful nature. Hawthorne speaks of a woman who had an affair and became pregnant her child, Pearl, is described as dark and demonic by the Puritans. However, Nathaniel argues that Pearl was innocent and free from all evil. Although the Puritans assume that as a result of Pearl’s mother’s sin, Pearl will also be sinful, Hawthorne develops the idea that Pearl was innocent.

What is the difference between good and evil? To most, these terms have absolutely nothing in common. However, if one were to look at these traits more carefully, they would realize that these terms do have similarities, and nothing portrays that better than Arthur Miller’s The Crucible. At the beginning of the play, it is revealed that a group of girls were caught dancing in the woods-presumably practicing witchcraft. To save themselves the persecution, the girls-led by a girl named Abigail Williams-start claiming other people had bewitched them. As the lie spreads, the girls go after both those standing in their way, and those who they didn’t like in the first place. One victim of Abigail in particular is Elizabeth Proctor, for Abigail and Elizabeth’s husband John had an affair, and Abigail believes that if she can get rid of Elizabeth, then she can be with John. The Crucible contains an abundance of symbolism and allegories, one of the most prominent ones involving Abigail and Elizabeth. Throughout the play, Miller uses the two women as allegories for good and evil by showing why and when they lie, how selfish they are, and how other characters describe them.