Practice Essay: Analyzing Literary Trends

One night, a group of girls decide to follow a slave of reverend Parris, Tituba, into the woods. All the girls brought an item thrown into the pot wishing for something to benefit them. Abigail wishes Elizabeth Proctor to be dead so she can marry John Proctor. Tituba sings her barbados songs while the girls dance around in a circle, which dancing in such ways in Salem is forbidden. Some of the girls undress while dancing and as Tituba sings and swings a dead

Tituba’s fear of physical harm motivates her to cry witch. Reverend Hale’s harsh treatment of Tituba causes her to cower from him even before being accused of witchcraft. Tituba’s fear increases when Abigail accuses her of making her “drink blood” (43). Reverend Hale in turn concludes that Tituba serves the Devil. Reverend Hale orders her to wake Betty who she has sent her “spirit out upon” (44). Initially, Tituba pleads that she “don’t compact with no Devil” (44) but when she realizes that she

The Crucible starts off with Reverend Parris praying over his daughter, who lies unresponsive on her bed. Reverend Parris questions his niece, Abigail, about what has happened that night in the forest. Rumors spread over town talking about witchcraft going on in the Parris household. A crowd gathers inside Parris house amongst them are the Putnam's who are very concerned for their own daughter who is also sick. Parris wants to root out the rumors of witchcraft so he decides to send for an expert Reverend Hale. Abigail gets questioned by Parris about what she was doing that night in the forest, but she confesses dancing and nothing more. Abigail threatens the other girls and also mentions that she kill anyone who speaks a word about it. Not only was she dancing, Abigail also drank chicken blood as part of a spell to kill Elizabeth Proctor. Abigail blames Tituba by saying that she forced them to drink the chicken blood. Afraid of being hanged, Tituba accuses two women of making deals with the devil. Out of nowhere, Abigail confesses to having seen the devil with other townspeople and Betty and the other girls also confess.

Right from the start of the play, Abigail is not telling the whole story of her and the local girls and their night in the woods to her uncle, Reverend Parris. “Uncle, we did dance; let you tell them I confessed it---and I’ll be whipped if I must be. But they’re speakin’ of witchcraft. Betty’s not witched”(10). Reverend Parris’ 10 year old daughter, Betty was one of the local girls with Abigail that night in the woods, and ever since has been in a strange illness that Reverend Parris believes to be witchcraft in the woods, although, Abigail bares to differ. Reverend Parris names off things that he was seeing when he caught the girls and Tituba in the woods, but Abigail denies all of it and ends the conversation saying, “There is nothin’ more. I swear it, uncle”(11), leaving Reverend Parris half convinced. Although, still in Act I of the play, Abigail says to the girls,”----We danced, And Tituba conjured Ruth Putnam’s dead sisters. And that is all. And mark this. Let either of you breathe a word, or edge of a word, about the other things, and I will come get you in the black of some terrible night----”(20). This therefore shows to the readers of the play that she is not telling the whole truth and is deceiving her uncle and everyone else that she has told her story to.

During the play in act one, Abigail Williams display many acts of jealousy towards Elizabeth Proctor. Abby convinces Tituba, the servant of Reverend Parris, to join her and others in the act of dabbling in witchcraft. Tituba is tricked into being the one to curse Elizabeth and Goody Proctor that would hopefully result in death. “BETTY: You did, you did! You drank a charm to kill John Proctor's wife! You drank a charm to kill Goody Proctor!” (Miller, 116). Trying to cover up the fact that she is in fact to blame for everything she pushes all the blame onto Tituba. Forced between life and death Tituba confesses to the sin of playing with witchcraft. Later on in act two, Abigail frames Elizabeth for witchcraft. “ABIGAIL, with a bitter anger: Oh, I marvel how such a strong man may let such a sickly wife be—PROCTOR, angered at himself as well: You'll speak nothin' of Elizabeth!” (Miller, 202-203) Although never hung, Elizabeth spends a year in jail till she gives birth to her child. Once the child is born,

Abigail Williams in Act I along with many other girls, Tituba being the leader of the event, were caught out in the woods dancing around a cauldron with a frog in it. Reverend Parris testified in court that this is indeed what he saw in the woods. Tituba was charged with witchcraft with the intent to summon spirits. Later in this Act John comes to see what is wrong with betty, and he tries to comfort Abigail who says that she is just acting ill or possessed by evil spirits. While this conversation between the two continues, it becomes clear that they have had sexual relations in the past while abigail still worked at the Proctor residence, better stated an affair. Reverend Hale who is a famed which expert from a town over arrives and suddenly Abigail changes her story to suggest that Tituba did indeed try to call upon the devil. Tituba shocked by this accusation, vigorously denies it. Later in the Act Tituba ( now pretending to accept god again even though didn’t ever denied him) and Abigail begin accusing random women in the village of witchcraft. In Act II Elizabeth Proctor receives a poppet from Mary Warren. Later

Abigail Williams has an affair with John Proctor. Abby feels that they should be together forever, but John does not feel the same way. Abigail and Tituba lead the girls to dance in the woods, but it escalates when Abigail drinks chicken blood and yells out “To kill Goody Proctor”. Rev. Parris catches the girls dancing and they all scatter, but Parris saw Abigail's face. Abigail then gets confronted by her uncle Rev.Parris back at the house where his daughter Betty is sat unconscious under a “spell”. He says he saw her naked and dancing in the woods and questions if they were conjuring spirits. Abby says she was not naked and they were just dancing and they weren’t conjuring any spirits but Parris doesn’t believe her but just goes with it.

One character in particular, represents Miller’s view of individuality and is seen as a hero figure because he chooses to defend his individuality. This play shows one man, John Proctor, in his struggle to keep his pride and name from being destroyed with lies, deceit and accusations of consorting with the devil. Proctor tries to expose Abigail and the girl’s deceit but he is punished for it because children were thought of as the voice of god and they were innocent. When the trial was brought in front of the court officials, Deputy Governor Danforth feared that he will lose power therefore weakens the testimony from the girls which broke the power of theocracy in Massachusetts.

Betty wakes up from her coma and is screaming, which leads the community to believe she has been witched. Reverend Hale speaks to Tituba because he has become suspicious of the girls who danced. Tituba admits to coming in contact with the devil and then the other girls begin to admit that they also saw other people conspiring with the devil. Later, Mary Warren's comes to John Proctor's home with news that Elizabeth, his wife, has been accused of being a witch after Abigail Williams set her up and convinced the townspeople that Elizabeth stabbed her in the stomach and killed her unborn child. John expresses that Mary must go to the court and tell the people that Abigail and the rest of the girls are frauds and have been lying this whole time. Mary tells this to court but the girls turn the tables on her saying that she is the one who truly bewitched them and they cause an uproar acting as if she is controlling them during the court session. Mary then accuses John of being a witch and he is arrested along with his wife. Eventually, Abigail runs away with Parris’s money and Danforth tries to get Elizabeth to talk John into confessing. He confesses but does not include others in his confession, which leads to Hale send John to be hung with the others who were perceived as being witches and this ends the witch

As betty woke up from her faint she ran to the window, as abigail rean and pulled her from the window and said,”I told him everything; he knows now, he knows everything we did”. Bettys response was,”You drank blood, Abby! You didn't tell him that!”.Betty tries to prove Abbigail that she was using witchcraft in the woods by saying as she woke up,”You did, you did! You drank a charm to kill John Proctor's wife! You drank a charm to kill Goody Proctor!” As Abigail response was,”smashes her across the face: Shut it! Now shut it!” Abigail is trying to get revenge on John Proctors wife because she is jealous of him and her being married.As Abigail lies to everyone the other women agree out of fear for their lives.

In this story/play by Miller is a big revenge/wanting story and in the first act this is what happens during the salem witch trials. One example is that Abigail says to uncle ‘’ The rumor of witchcraft is all about… The parlor packed with people’’ (Miller 1103). Kids were dancing in the forest before they started to accuse everyone of being witches. Then after Abigail's uncle Parris caught them Betty fainted which started all of this fuss in Salem. Another example of them doing this is when the girls were caught they said Tituba was there who is slave from Barbados “I saw Tituba waving her arms over the fire” (Miller 1104). Example 3 of some revenge is that when they first see Betty ‘’She does not stir in the bed” (Miller 1104). Because she

Parris believes that his daughter Betty is bewitched by the witches. He brought Rev. Hale to disprove the presence of witches in salem. Abigail Williams is part of the 12 girls who becomes possessed, reports Mr. Parris. Abigail Williams accuses Tituba of witchcraft she says, “Tituba made me drink blood.” Tituba confesses, “I saw four people with the devil.” The devil showed her, Sarah Good and Goody Osburn. Rev. Hale calls for the accused witches for arrest at the end of the trial.

A local farmer named John Proctor enters and sends out all the girls except for Abigail to confront her, but Abigail again denies the claims of witchcraft. She used to be the Proctor family servant before being replaced by Mary Warren; Abigail was fired for her affair with Proctor. Abigail still has feelings for John but John says that he doesn’t. Abigail believes he does and mocks him for denying it, but as they argue Betty wakes up

1. Describe two of the three column styles found in ancient Greek architecture. One column style is Ionic order. It originated in Eastern Greece, and had a more ornate column and capital than the Doric order. The columns rest on ornate, detailed bases and the fluted shaft is slender.

After questioning, the other girls say that Tituba made them, when in fact it was Abigail that asked Tituba to do this. Abigail wanted John Proctor and sought to get rid of Mrs. Proctor in the ritual. Tituba, only practicing what she knew in her home county, Barbados, had no evil intent and was performing a simple prayer in her religion. Nonetheless, Reverend Parris believes the girls and summons, Reverend Hale to inspect his daughter, Ruth Putnam and the town for signs of the devil’s presence. Consequently, Titubas questioned and threatened with death to which she caves and admits to an alliance with the devil. Next, she’s pressured to name those in Salem who are also in allegiance with the devil. As Tituba names the accused the young girls, Abigail as their ringleader, see their chance to be “saved” from punishment and chime in with accusations of their own. ‘I want to open myself! . . . I want the light of God, I want the sweet love of Jesus! I danced for the Devil; I saw him, I wrote in his book; I go back to Jesus; I kiss His hand. I saw Sarah Good with the Devil! I saw Goody Osburn with the Devil! I saw Bridget Bishop with the Devil! (Miller).” One after another, arrested and charged with the crime against God, witchcraft. With pressure from authorities, Thomas and Ann Putnam, and their interests in mind, the girls continue to charge the townsfolk of having alliances with the devil.