Throughout the play, The Crucible by Arthur Miller, the main protagonist, John Proctor, changed from a normal citizen and sinner to a tragic hero, then a person with a high sense of mortality. The play takes place during the salem Witch Trials in 1692, where spectral evidence was evident in the courts. John Proctor stopped attending church on Sundays, due to his belief that it was becoming less and less about God, along with his present feeling of guilt and his sinful actions. Rumors and accusations run ramped in Salem threatening to taint the good reputations of the townspeople. Proctor’s own morals, honesty, and religious beliefs were challenged on behalf of spectral evidence in the court and his sinful actions. Proctor harboured guilt for …show more content…
Furthermore, in act three Proctor begins to put his words into actions. He has developed an urge to fight for his wife, due to Proctor finally believing in what he is fighting for. During the play Proctor, “Looks at Elizabeth, but she cannot speak. “She never saw no spirits,” (88), Proctor says defending Elizabeth. He wants to protect her from false evidence and from his past mistakes. Proctor is no longer only worried about himself and what will happen if he confesses. Proctor tries to reason with court, he asks for, ”God [to] help [him], [he] lusted and there is a promise in such sweat. But it's a whore’s vengeance, and [they] must see it,” (110). Proctor exhibits empathy towards his previous actions of adultery throughout act three of, The Crucible, where as in the beginning he had no empathy towards others or his actions. Proctor is quick to protect Elizabeth when she is accused of things that the court has no proof on. “There might also be a dragon with five legs in [his] house, but no one has ever seen it,” (104), Proctor told the court with vengeance. “[His] wife is innocent, except she knew a whore when she saw one!” (111), she has no reason to lie or cover for Proctor, for great sins by Proctor were inflicted upon Elizabeth. Proctor harbors great guilt for, ”She only thought to save [his] name!” (113). Proctor went from a sinner to a tragic hero and is starting to …show more content…
Proctor has gone from a hot-headed adulterer into a person who truly seeks redemption and to make things right with his wife, Elizabeth. Proctor was not truthful in the beginning of the play, however towards the end of the play he relinquished his pride in order to maintain the truth. Proctor died for what he believes in, he went from a sinner to an empathic hero and finally he became a person with high morals and honesty. Miller is trying to convey through the character, John Proctor, that a person should always stand up for what you believe in, no matter the circumstances. Proctor ____ that outside forces can influence a person’s morals, however those influences do not control the person, you can change the affect influences have. John Proctor’s morals, honesty, and beliefs were questioned throughout the play, only to be strong as ever at the
In the play, The Crucible, MIller allows the reader to learn something about the world by showing us that the sins that we have committed will keep weighing us down, until we confess them. John Proctor commits adultery with Abigail Williams, and keeps this affair a secret from Elizabeth. Proctor starts to feel guilty, and mad at himself. He attempts to pretend that the affair never happened. “But I will cut off my hand before I reach for you again. Wipe it out of mind, we never touched, Abby…..Proctor, angered--at himself as well: You’ll speak nothin’ of Elizabeth!” (24) This piece of textual evidence proves that Proctor is unable to forgive himself for what he has done to Elizabeth, and what he has done to himself to lose his goodness.
“That John Proctor the sinner might overturn his paralyzing personal guilt and become the most forthright voice against the madness around him was a reassurance to me, and, I suppose, an inspiration: it demonstrated that a clear moral outcry could still spring even from an ambiguously unblemished soul,” Miller says this about Proctor. Procter the “sinner” was unfaithful to his wife Elizabeth; during the beginning of the play we see Proctor as a cheater and hot-headed adulterer. Throughout the play he truly tried to seek redemption for his wrongdoing towards Elizabeth. He later on changes from this cheater, hot-headed adulterer to a saint who tries to save the lives of the falsely accused by admitting to his sins and fighting for the truth until his very last breath.
Throughout the play, Proctor struggles with his honor as he changes from viewing it as his reputation to believing it is based on his own private moral of truth. The isolated Puritan community in which Proctor lives forces him to try and achieve a pious and perfect lifestyle, which ultimately pressures him into lying about his affair with Abigail in order to maintain a good reputation. This view changes in the courtroom, when Proctor becomes extremely frustrated with the lies and deceit that Abigail is telling the judges, Proctor screams in anger, “I beg you sir, I beg you - see her what she is… She thinks to dance with me on my wife’s grave! And well she might, for I thought of her softly. God help me; I lusted, and there is a promise in such sweat. But it is a
The word “crucible” is also used to describe a severe test or a hard trial. In the town of Salem, Massachusetts chaos erupted with witchcraft. Many were accused, hanged, and jailed by this phenomenon. Unfortunately, various people faced difficult trials throughout this episode, one of them being John Proctor. John, a married Salem-born Puritan who owned his own piece of land, encountered many tragic events during the witch trials. He faced the internal conflict of remorse due to his dishonorable crime. Not only did he face an internal conflict in the play The Crucible, he faced a variety of external conflicts, such as the continuous reminder of his sin directed by his wife; also, John experienced the religious disagreement with the minister of Salem.
It is difficult to find people who haven’t had a major change at some point in their lives. However, even though some may change in a bad way, others change in a positive way. Within the majority of these changes lie a significant moment causing them to differ now from the person they used to be. In The Crucible, a play by Arthur Miller, John Proctor changes from a quick-tempered man who commits adultery to somebody who sincerely wants redemption and to correct things between him and his wife, Elizabeth. In this case, Proctor’s change is caused by Elizabeth’s arrest.
In the play The Crucible by Authur Miller, John Proctor's pride is threatened by the Salem Witch trials. Proctor, like almost everyone else in Salem, is accused of witchcraft and working for the devil. Cracking under constant pressure and fed up with the attacks of the court, most of the accused confess; John Proctor, however, believes that he must stand for what is right and protect his own reputation. Proctor greatly demonstrates the theme of pride, as he constantly seeks ways to improve his reputation and good name; however, when the court tries his wife on account of witchcraft, Proctor is able to turn away from his blinding self-esteem and ultimately sacrifices his life achievements in the hope of freeing his wife of all charges.
"The Crucible" which was written by Arthur Miller, is a shocking look into the events of a tragic period early in history that America will not likely forget. The setting of "The Crucible" is that it takes place in the Puritan community of Salem, Massachusetts in 1692. The story revolves around the Salem Witch Trials. John Proctor is facing a moral dilemma. It turns out that Abigail Williams, Proctor's former servant girl and mistress, along with several other young girls, were caught out in the woods dancing naked and practicing witchcraft.
Change in inevitable in life. You can’t go your whole life without change, and this extends even into the realm of fiction. The play The Crucible by Arthur Miller, is about mob hysteria in the Salem Witch Trials.In this play each of the characters of Proctor, Abigail, and Parris change from the beginning to the end of the play. Proctor becomes more open with himself; Abigail realizes the weight of her lies; and Parris realizes how bad he really is. Throughout the play, each of these characters has their highs and their lows, but none escape unchanged.
Sometimes, one must see the flaws within their traits to judge their character and the characters of others. Though a character can have significant moral flaws, they can be wise enough to recognize their flaws and change their ways. In Arthur Miller’s play, The Crucible, the events that occurred during the Salem witch trials are dramatized, and the truth of judgement and vengeance is examined in a web of lies amongst the townspeople. The play’s dynamic protagonist, John Proctor, is a tormented individual who succumbs to sin and commits adultery with a young girl named Abigail, however he lacks the capacity to forgive himself. Miller portrays Proctor as brave, noble, and honest in order to illustrate how one can make the ultimate sacrifice
In this scene John Proctor took his confession and ripped it up. Later in the scene Elizabeth refuses to try and talk him out of his decisions. ELIZABETH ¨He have his goodness now. God forbid I take it from him!¨ (Miller 1256).
John Proctor In modern society, humanity is viewed as arrogant, sinful, and unwilling to change. As people continue to behave in that manner, humanity has forgotten about the possibility of change. Unfortunately, some people are simply afraid of change because they are frightened about who they will become. Although, if humanity decides to undergo change, they may become brave, affectionate, and admired.
The Crucible, by Arthur Miller, is a play in which one character, John Proctor, turns out to be progressively disconnected. The play is set amid the witch trials of Salem, 1692, and Proctor's significant other is blamed for being a witch by a gathering of young ladies drove by Abigail Williams, with whom Proctor engaged in extramarital relations, making him embrace a journey to spare his better half's life, yet in doing as such yields his own. The characterization of Proctor, and the key scenes in which his disconnection is obvious, build up the group of onlookers' state of mind towards him from one of hesitation to profound respect and acknowledgment as a sad saint. The group of onlookers see John Proctor as a pariah in the group, in light of his absence of regard for specialist and
The play The Crucible by Arthur Miller follows the story of a broken man as he watches his town descend into chaos. The Puritan town of Salem, that this man once called home, has transformed into the breeding ground for the witch hunt that’s been overtaking his society. The Puritans are a stubborn and religious people, they view anything outside of their rules as the devil’s work. In the year 1692 Salem Massachusetts is ravaged with paranoia and false accusations. Amid this chaos lives John Proctor. Proctor has a reputation of being a good and honorable man; however, in this case, looks are deceiving. After an affair with his servant Abigail, guilt for what he has done overtakes and pushes him to do everything he can to redeem himself. As he is dealing with his shame, his neighbors are being falsely accused and hanged for witchcraft. His frustration at this, paired with regret for what he has done, drives him as he undergoes an intense character development. Since John Proctor is motivated by a want to redeem himself, his decision not to confess to witchcraft allows him to free himself of his guilt and go to his death like an honest man.
In the play The Crucible, the events that occurred in Salem sparked much change within all the characters involved. Each of the three following characters, John Proctor, Giles Cory, and Reverend Hale, went through his own crucible - a situation of a severe trial - which put his character’s to the test. Through these trials, each character had a choice of sticking to his beliefs and keeping true to his good morals or choosing to turn over a new leaf and changing his focus to staying alive, rather telling the truth. Throughout the play, John Proctor’s character had changed after enduring the malicious trials of Salem. Reverend Hale’s character changed due to his bearing witness to the effects of the treacherous trials.
Proctors value of life is broken down and shown in The Crucible metaphor down as the Salem Witch Trials. Initially Proctor lies about his affair with Abigail to save his reputation and to save his marriage with Elizabeth. However, when the heat is on durning the trials Proctor shows what ultimately matters most. He confesses his affair with Abigail by saying, “I have known her, Sir. I have known her” (Miller 648). Here Proctor has “cast away his good name” (Miller 648). This shows that Proctor believes that truth and justice is more important than his own reputation. Later, Proctor searches his soul and changes his mind again. First he was ready to sign his confession to save his life but after much thought decides he can not be disloyal to others or give up his own integrity. Proctor states when he is asked why he will not sign his confession, “Because it is my name! Because I cannot have another in my life! (Miller 677). In The Crucible Proctor Faces many trials and test of his values. At each challenge he struggles with his decisions but Ultimately always stays true to