Reverend Hale Quotes From The Crucible

John’s affair created and inner struggle/conflict for him. He was always wanting to what was right but his affair with Abigail constantly held him back. How could he accuse others for doing wrong when he was holding a dirty secret himself? He wanted Abigail’s lies to stop but he couldn’t stop her unless he came out clean. Then finally, one day he couldn’t take it anymore, the guilt was eating him alive and he had to put an end to Abigail’s lies, so he admitted to the court that he had committed lechery. He worked through his fears and struggles and did what was right for a greater cause. But it ended up not doing anything.

Hale requires everyone who is accused of being a witch to go to court and agree that they are witches in order to prevent being hanged. If they admit that they aren’t a witch they would be hanged immediately. Hale seems to be very involved with the accusations, questioning those that are accused everything they know about god and the church (asking Hale to recite the 10 commandments, questioning the victims’ attendance in church, baptism, and things he sees as strange). When Hale goes to John Proctor’s house we witness the interrogation process: “I thought, sir, to put some questions as to the Christian character of this house, if you’ll permit me…I note that you are rarely in the church on Sabbath day…how comes it that only two [boys] are baptized” (2.621-671)? Later on in the play, when Proctor is testifying in court, they mystery starts to unravel inside of Hale’s head. At the end of Proctor’s trial, he yells that he no longer supports what is going on after Judge Danforth is unwilling to listen to Proctor’s testimony that the whole thing is pretense: “I denounce these proceedings, I quit this court” (3.1499-1500)! He is ashamed that everything he has been trying to find was false and made up by Abigail. We see that in the jail scene he is begging Goody Proctor to have her husband confess in order to save his life: “Will you plead for his confession or will you not” (4.486-487)? This dynamic character change truly captures how Hale has changed since the

Proctor is later found guilty and he is ordered to be taken to jail. With anger, Hale speaks out, “I denounce these proceedings, I quit this court” (1151). Hale can no longer take part in a court system that hangs innocent people. He publicly declares that the court’s rulings are wrong which reveal his frustration and his rejection to the court. Reverend Hale is no longer the same man who had his faith in the court when he had first arrived in Salem.

In this act, and with much consideration (adverb phase #2), Reverend Hale seems to be less full of himself, and more hesitant. He talks about how he has a difficult time drawing “a clear opinion of them that come accused before the court,” because he doesn’t know the people of their town (adverb phrase #3) (Miller 1169). This is only one of Hale’s problems as the play keeps moving along. Act three brings more complications and hesitance from Hale. Proctor’s wife has now been seized and taken to court, along with others accused of witchcraft. During these court sessions, Reverend Hale is beginning (gerund #2) to realize that the court really is unfair (noun clause #1). For example, even though evidence is given by Giles Corey (adjective clause #2), the judge refuses to accept (infinitive #2) it and simply asks for more evidence (Miller 1195). Now, Hale is starting to become frustrated. He’s also beginning to realize that he has made some aberrations (noun clause #2). When John Proctor is sentenced to be hanged for witchcraft, Hale respondes to the prejudice court by declaring , “I denounce these proceedings! I quit this court!” (Miller 1213), and proceeds to walk out of the courthouse. This is only the beginning of Hale’s

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

Reverend Hale tell the accused witches to confess because he doesn’t believe in witchcraft anymore and he doesn’t want them to be hanged. He wants the witch trials to end.

In all four acts of the play, the false notion lead intertwined into each other, bringing innocent people down with them, including John himself. John had confessed to his prior sins with Abigail and told Elizabeth to tell the truth to the court, she didn’t realize that he had already admitted to his affair with Abigail. Elizabeth defends John in court by lying to save her and her family’s name. Elizabeth meant well, did she not? This is the common flaw in us all, we try to do good to protect our names to such an extent that it in the end, some lives have been taken for the sake of your good name in the village.

When the play begins John Hale is much like Reverend Parris- he is naïve and controlled by the dogmas of the church, but unlike Parris, he truly believes that what he is doing is right while Parris's intentions were never pure. When he first enters the play, he is the force behind the witch trials- probing for confessions and encouraging people to testify. As the play continues, however, he experiences a transformation, making him one of the most dynamic characters in the play. He begins to empathize and has independent revelations regarding the nature of the trials after listening to John Proctor and Mary Warren.

John is Elizabeth’s husband and they have children this is why she loves him, but Abigail only loves John out of lust. John loved Elizabeth and always tried to make up for the wrong he had done and show her how he did not want anyone but her. John never showed Abigail attention in that way again; he hated Abigail and knew he never loved her that he had just lusted after her. Elizabeth always tries to do what is best for John even if it means raising children, keeping up a house, and providing on her own for the family. Elizabeth knows the truth will always be brought out there is no use in telling a lie. Just like Abigail and John’s untruth was eventually brought about all other untruths will be. Abigail always resolves to lying to try and get her way, but Elizabeth always told the truth even if it meant being in prison for innocence. All Abigail wanted is what she could not have, but her untruthfulness lead to the death of the one person she cared for other than herself. Abigail was believed by many when Elizabeth was believed by

Secondly, after Hale returns he wants to try and help postpone the hangings because he knows the accused are innocent. He returns just in time for the day John Proctor is to hang. He comes back to town because he knows that John is truly innocent. He has changed into a better man and he wants to now save the lives of those who he had a help in condemning. So he says to Danforth, “Excellency, if you postpone a week and publish to the town that you are striving for their confessions, that speak mercy on your part, not faltering.” (Miller 130) Hale is trying to show them, that they are helping the Church rid of evil by postponing the hangings and having the accused confess to dealing with the devil. Hale has become more desperate because he wants the accused to live; he blames himself for them being accused and not seeing that the accusations were false earlier. Hale came the first time to rid the town of what he thought was evil, and now he has returned to save the lives of the so called “evil people”.

“Why it is simple I come to do the Devil’s work. I come to counsel Christians they should belie themselves. There is blood on my head! Can you not see the blood on my head!!” (201). This quote is so powerful to the audience, Hale is admitting he feels guilty. He feels he has killed innocent people. How many people had to die for him to finally realize? In act four, Hale also begs Elizabeth Proctor into getting her to make John confess. Elizabeth would argue that it isn’t her job to control him. “You know, do you not, that I have no connection with the court? I come of my own, Goody Proctor. I would save your husband’s life, for if he is taken I count myself his murdered. Do you understand me?” (202). Hale is saying he has no connection to the court's decisions. He comes to help Salem not destroy it. If John decides not to confess, and gets hung, Hale won’t think he did enough to help him, he could’ve done more. If John dies, with Hale knowing he’s an innocent man, Hale will call himself John’s

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.

     John Hale represents the voice or authority and reasoning. He appears to be strong and assured himself that there was a whole world of witches around him at any given time. He believes in the churches power to be the ultimate law in the situation at hand. This is his source of pride. He sees himself as the person come to save the lives in the New World. As the case progresses though he starts to doubt himself and realizes that he had caused many deaths. His pride is swiftly destroyed and he asks

Reverend Hale wanted to preserve his integrity and maintain his honesty as a priest. However, that no longer was the case when the court continued to only believe Abigail when it came to the witchcraft. Reverend Hale could not take it anymore because he knew that Abigail was lying, but the court would not understand and just kept believing in her. He was basically the only one how slowly started to realize what she was doing and Hale started to defend John Proctor. When Reverend Hale was at the court he just could not take it anymore so he wanted to leave Salem. That is why he said,“I quit this court!” (Miller 120). This is when Reverend Hale is done with the court and leaves Salem. This also makes Reverend Hale a tragic hero because he realized that he needed to leave the court and Salem. He did not feel that the court was doing the right thing for the people. The court was only believing Abigail and would not listen to anyone else. Reverend Hale was on John Proctor’s side and he knew that what Proctor was saying about Abigail was true. Abigail only made up these lies because she wanted Elizabeth Proctor dead so she can be with John Proctor. An article said, “in The Crucible the religious authorities are villainous, seeking to force people to act against their consciences to save themselves—to sacrifice their souls to save their bodies in the name of fighting the devil” (Puckett 1). This

Hale starts believing Proctor and Marry and he becomes convinced that there telling the truth. But it is too late now and the trials are no longer in his hands but rather in those of Danforth's and the theocracy. The failure of his attempt to help them turns Hale into a broken man. As his belief in witchcraft falters so does his faith in the law. He then tries to get the people accused to lie just to save there own lives but in the end he fails at that because most people didn't want to ruin their names. So Hale after all turned out to be a good