Rebecca Nurse Quotes From The Crucible

On the surface Rebecca appears to demonstrate the conventions of the romantic genre. The storyline includes a heroine, who is thinks herself to be very plain “with straight, bobbed hair and youthful, unpowdered face, dressed in an ill-fitting coat and skirt…”, as well as a hero, who the heroine believes is

Hale knows that people will confess to anything to avoid being hanged, and he is deeply troubled when he learns of Abigail’s motifs for revenge. Respected people have told Hale that the trials are non-sense. He has tried to find holes in these people’s reasoning, so he can be reassured he hasn’t made a big mistake in his aiding of the conviction of these people, but their reasoning is completely logical. Hale becomes more aware of the truth near the end of Act II, when Giles Corey and Francis Nurse report that their wives have been taken away. Reverend Hale is surprised, but disturbed by the news because he thought of Rebecca as surely being innocent when he met her. He says that, ‘‘ if Rebecca Nurse be tainted, then nothing’s left to stop the whole greenworld from burning’’ (71). Hale then tries to explain her arrest by saying (in great pain) : ‘‘Man remember, until an hour before the Devil fell, God thought him beautiful in Heaven’’ (71).

Rebecca Nurse was one of the most respected people in town and known for being a good person. In the play, Rebecca shows good pride when she was accused of witchcraft. When Rebecca Nurse was accused of killing Putnam’s babies she said, “let us go to God for the cause of it. There is prodigious danger in the seeking of loose spirits. I fear it, I fear it. Let us rather blame ourselves and—” (Act I 26). Rebecca prided herself in believing that Goody Putnam’s accusations of her were false. Throughout the play the accusations of witchcraft became more and more serious once they started punishing people. Though if one confessed and turned in other people, they would be safe from hanging. Goody Nurse prided herself into not giving up people’s names and lying just to save herself, “why, it is a lie, it is a lie; how may I damn myself? I cannot, I cannot” (Act IV 129). Even though Rebecca Nurse was put to hang, she kept with her morals and did not give up other people’s names. She stuck with what she truly believed in even when her life was on the line. Miller showed good pride through the acts of Goody Nurse because she held pride in her beliefs and did not give up on them even when her life was at stake.

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.

Rebecca Nurse was a good person at heart. Her image changed when she was accused of witchcraft and people started to consider her as an evil person. "As for Rebecca herself, the general opinion of her character was so high that to explain how

It is 1692 in the small town of Salem, Massachusetts; fear and hysteria are running rampant. In The Crucible by Arthur Miller, the residents of Salem are allowing their grudges and personal rivalries to distract themselves from the truth. The witch trials are escalating, more and more people are being accused, and the tensions are high. The Putnams have different motivations and grudges that are driving the accusations. Ann Putnam is using the trials to harm the women she deems responsible for the deaths of her seven children. In contrast, Thomas Putnam is driven by his greed for wealth and land to accuse those he is envious of. A young girl, Abigail Williams, is a devious teenager seeking revenge on the innocent wife of her past lover.

None of the females in The Crucible possess extreme power, but the truthful, pure-hearted, and family oriented women seem to be even less powerful than the others. Elizabeth Proctor and Rebecca Nurse are two of the less powerful women in The Crucible. Both of their lives are led by an instinct to serve their families and communities (Alter 1). Elizabeth Proctor is convicted in

Also, Rebecca Nurse was treated unfairly in court due to suspicion of being involved in witchcraft, but should have been judged based on solid evidence. Rebecca is a positive individual who suggests to solve everybody’s problem: “let us go to God for the cause of it. There is prodigious danger in the

Miller portrays Rebecca Nurse as someone who is gentle, trustworthy, and favorable. Her character is a great example of how her good reputation meant nothing in the end of The Crucible. He mentions in the play, “As for Rebecca herself, the general opinion of her character was so high that to explain how anyone dared cry her out for a witch - and more, how adults could bring them-selves to lay hands on her -we must look to the fields and boundaries of that time” (26). What would make him provide this description? The answer is because Miller sets up her character as the last person anyone would think to have any involvement with witchcraft to prove a point.

One character that proves the community ranks more than the individual is Rebecca Nurse by being most respected and charitable in the town, as well as disapproving the practice of investigating in the devil. In this instance Rebecca advises John Proctor to stay calm when he questions Reverend Parris’s

Another example of vengeance dictating a characters' actions would be the dispute between Mrs. Putnam and Rebecca Nurse. In a scene at Parris's house, Mrs. Putnam asks Rebecca to take a look at her daughter, Ruth, who is also ill. Rebecca dismisses her anxiety and explains that she is just going through a silly season and will tire of it and wake up. Rebecca's optimistic interpretation of Ruth's condition is not favorably received by Mrs. Putnam. She comments that, "You think it God's work you should never lose a child, nor grandchild either, and I bury all but one" (Miller 1249). Shortly after, one might conclude Mrs. Putnam suspects Rebecca of murder, when she asks Hale, "Is it a natural work to lose seven children before they live a day" (Miller 1256). Since every child Rebecca delivered that belonged to Goody Putnam died, she believes that Rebecca is using her spirit to kill

John Demos’s nine point portrait of a witch is one way to analysis the case of Rebecca Nurse. To do so, one must first evaluate and understand the history of Rebecca Nurse and her role in the Salem in the late 1600’s. Rebecca Nurse was the wife of Francis Nurse, a farmer who became wealthy after buying and tending a large plot of land between Salem Village and Salem Town. Together they had eight children, and as a family they were prosperous. Connecting this information to Demos’s portrait of a witch, Rebecca Nurse falls under the first four points made in his sketch. These first two points are that she was “female” and that she was of “middle age”. However, the latter point is slightly inaccurate because Nurse was older than sixty years. The final two points that Rebecca Nurse falls under in Demos’s portrait of a witch are that she was of “English” and “Puritan” descent and culture, and that she was “married”, with little or no children. Again, the latter point is not fully accurate because Rebecca Nurse, while married, had, in fact, eight children in her lifetime. The significance of these traits of Rebecca Nurse agree, for the most part, with the

p.127 Rebecca is a pillar of the church and if she is given the opportunity to speak then she will show the town what a righteous woman she is by her prayers and then the town will turn on those that have condemned these righteous and respectable people.

Rebecca: Rebecca was trying to construct a positive learning environment for her classroom. She genuinely care for all her students and she wants all of them to have an opportunity to learn.

"Against you? Against him and all authority! Why, then I must find it and join it. He does not mean that. He confessed it now! I mean it solemnly, Rebecca; I like not the smell of this "authority. " No, you cannot break charity with your minister. You are another kind, John. Clasp his hand, make your peace." (27-28) She is an example of strength and resolve for those who choose not to confess, even though it means going to their death.