Reverend Parris Conflicts

Reverend Hale, and apparent expert on witchcraft who insists on doing everything by the book, demonstrates his social responsibility by solely doing his job correctly. Even though in today’s society it is clear that witchcraft does not exist, it is apparent that in this play, witchcraft is studied to the extremes. This being said, Hales social responsibility was simply to determine whether or not each accused person was a witch or not. Hale determines and eventually realizes that his own good intentions and commitment to god governed his actions of keeping certain people alive despite the “by the book” evidence which had been

Throughout Act I of The Crucible, Reverend Parris’s selfishness and Abigail’s manipulation becomes apparent. Giles Corey and Parris get into an argument about Parris’s income before Reverend Hale arrives. In this argument, it is revealed that Parris demanded the deed for his house. Traditionally, the minister does not own his house, but Parris wanted the wealth associated with owning land. Reverend Parris also demonstrates his self-serving mentality when questioning Abigail. Parris explains, “Now then, in the midst of such disruption, my own household is discovered to be the very center of some obscene practice. Abominations are done in the forest-”. Instead of worrying about Betty’s health, he cares about his reputation and employment.

In the third stage is Reverend Parris, who is controlled by his reputation. In the beginning, he is afraid of what Betty’s illness, should it be related to “unnatural causes” will do to his repute. Salem had had more ministers in a few years than he thought it should have, and he did not want to be put out like the others. When Danforth comes to town, Parris becomes one of his peers, and is closely related to Abigail Williams, the girl who has been selected by God to purge Salem of its evils, and this strokes Parris’ ego. At the end of the play, Parris is no longer so concerned with what others think of him as he is worried that Proctor’s death will be on his conscience.

The most hypocritical person in The Crucible is Reverend Parris, the town’s minister. Although he should be a beacon of light and grace, Parris preaches about hell and barely mentions about the forgiveness of god. Parris is extremely hypocritical, he is greedy and wants more money because he went to Harvard and believes he is above and more educated than everyone. “The salary is 66 pound, Mr. Proctor! I am not some preaching farmer with a book under my arm; I am a graduate of Harvard College.” – Parris. He only cares about his reputation. “But if you trafficked with sprits in the forest I must know, for surely my enemies will and they will ruin me with it’ – Parris. Parris’s hypocrisy shows the audience what kind of a character he truly is, it reveals his internalizing role.

In the beginning, Parris was portrayed as very cruel person. He yells at Tituba, “Out of here! Out of my sight!” (169). By the end of the play, he becomes more humble and modest. This can be seen especially when Abigail takes his money, “Hathorn: She have robbed you? Parris: Thirty-one pound is gone. I am penniless.” (231). Reverend Hale is also another person who drastically changed. When he arrives at Salem, he claims to be very smart and is able to save everyone from the devil and witchcraft. He starts to preach as soon as he gets there, “No, no. Now let me instruct you. We cannot look to superstition in this. The Devil is precise, the marks of his presence are definite as stone, and I must tell you all the I shall not proceed unless you are prepared to believe me if I should find no bruise of hell upon her.” (185). He becomes very different by the end of the play. He not has feelings of guilt for the people he accused. He also was starting to think that he was wrong about the devil and witchcraft. Hale tells his feelings to Elizabeth, “Let you not mistake you duty as I mistook my own… I cannot think he will listen to another.”

In Salem having a good Christian reputation is vital, as any degree of bad social standing indicates opposition to and potential ostracization in the absolute good vs absolute evil theocratic system, therefore many individuals immorally twist their faith in order to maintain their reputation. Hale, a Christian reverend of Salem, states that one has to have a perfect standing as a devout Christian as no “crack in a fortress may be accounted small” in Christian faith (p.67). Then Danforth, the highest official of the law, argues that a person is either “with this court or he must be counted against it” - no grey-zone exists for good and bad. If your reputation can’t be considered absolutely good, then you will be considered absolutely bad. Therefore, at the beginning of the play, Parris panics when he discovers his daughter Betty appears sick, as potential rumors of witchcraft would ruin his reputation and strip away his position as reverend. This constant paranoia concerning reputation has twisted effects, as it makes Parris first prioritize his ministry and then

The fear of being affiliated with or even being a witch and the shame and dishonor that comes along with it. Reverend Parris is a very paranoid but victimizing character misguided by fear. His daughter Betty becomes ill and he is afraid it’s regarding witchcraft, however he is not fearful for her health. He is concerned with keeping his reputation and position as the Church’s minister. This selfishness is not only a characteristic Parris demonstrates but other people in the town as well. A lot of characters of characters share this interest in saving their own skin under the influence of fear and shame. This will sooner than later contribute to the downfall of the town as a whole. Another reactive character includes Ann Putnam. Another paranoid woman in the town, ready to throw around accusations regardless of how logical or faulty they are. This may be due to the loss of 7 of her 8 children she’s given birth to. On account of this, she is convinced they were murdered by supernatural means, particularly witchcraft. For example she is immediately use Tituba as a scapegoat and blame her for the death of her babies. Other characters within Salem, not only Parris and Ann, will use any opportunity they can to assure their own safety and to save face in front of others. Their lack of consideration for the wellbeing of others will get others into danger and cause a load of anarchy and

Samuel Parris and John Hale are the two ministers in The Crucible and were initially alike in their attitudes towards witchcraft. However, their personalities show some striking dissimilarities. Unlike Hale, Reverend Parris is characterized by extreme paranoia and egotism. He is very static- his traits and motives remain consistent from the beginning to the end of the play. Although a religious man and believer in witchcraft like Parris, Hale values human life and is motivated by personal beliefs and his sense of morality, disregarding his best interests. He is a very dynamic character, becoming progressively less confident and trusting of law and doctrine as his faith is tested throughout the ordeal.

In the play The Crucible by Arthur Miller, the characters John Proctor and Reverend Parris are some of the major characters during the course of the play. John Proctor is a farmer in Salem that lives in the outskirts of town, and is religious like the rest of Salem but rarely makes it to the church due to living far away have having large amounts of work. He is seen as strong and confident by most town members, however “Proctor… has come to regard himself as a kind of fraud” (Miller 20-21). Reverend Parris is Salem’s religious leader. While he does regularly speak to the entire town, he has very little confidence and “believed he was being persecuted wherever he went, despite his best efforts to win people and God over to his side” (Miller 3). By comparing and contrasting both Parris and Proctor’s actions and beliefs throughout the play, underlying truths regarding self-realization and the consequences of our actions can be discovered.

If it were not because of the self-preserving and greedy nature, also the paranoia of the people in Salem, the Salem Witch Trials of 1692 would most likely not have occurred. One of those people is Reverend Parris, who is the minister of the church in The Crucible. All Reverend Parris cares about is his reputation/good name and the amount of wealth he has. He is paranoid that there is a faction of townspeople that are trying to get him thrown out of his position. Because of his need to preserve his good name he goes along with the false proceedings of the witch trials. In the end he starts to doubt the trials for the same reason. He also suppresses evidence that would have discredited the court, but

When he first appeared in the first act of the play, when Parris called him to Salem after Betty had been acting strange and witchcraft was first thought of, his motivation with justice was to the Church. He wanted the devil or any other evil spirits out of the human world. “Aye. But the Devil is a wily one, you cannot deny it. However, she is far from accused, and I know she will not be. (pause) I thought, sir, to put some questions as to the Christian character of this house, if you'll permit me.” The quote previous to this sentence was said by Hale in act two when he was at the Proctor's house in search of signs of witchcraft. In act four Hale had realized by then how the people who were accused of witchcraft and being dealt with the devil had been innocent and the girls accusing everyone had been lying and trying to get the attention and blame off of themselves. People were scared for their lives if one person shall speak lowly of them in Salem. “Excellency, there are orphans wandering from house to house; abandoned cattle bellow on the highroads, the stick of rotting crops hangs everywhere, and no man knows when the harlots' cry will end his life-and you wonder yet if rebellion's spoke? Better you should marvel how they do not burn your province!” People had been dying that had no reason to die. He was feeling regretful and wanted to right his wrong

In The Crucible by Arthur Miller, Reverend Parris is an important character throughout the story. Parris cares a lot about what other thinks of him and would do anything to be on the “winning” side. His character shaped a lot of the events in The Crucible.

If witchcraft is discovered in the Reverend's own home, it can very quickly ruin his reputation. Parris is worried “they will howl [him] out of Salem for such corruption in [his] house”(14). The Reverend is the one preaching God and against witchcraft. If the Devil is found in the Reverend's home, his reputation will be destroyed and he will probably have to leave town. The reverend will be seen as corrupt. Betty is aware of this, but does not change the way she is acting. Betty’s act causes her father to act with . He is supposed to be a calm and a role model. Quaking with fear, mumbling to himself through sobs, he goes to the bed and gently takes Betty’s hand. Betty. Child. Dear Child. Will you wake…” (8). Daughters typically do as their fathers say, but Betty is ignoring her father’s begging. She is able to make her father, the village’s Reverend, cry for his young daughter to do as he says. In a way, Betty causes Parris to lose his ‘masculinity’. During this time, women are the ones thought of to be hysterical and men are supposed to show little emotion, especially strong sadness. Now, the reverend is hysterically crying and repeatedly asking his daughter to wake up. Betty is controlling her father’s emotions and his job. If Betty seems to be working with the Devil, it can force a witch hunt to occur in the town. Reverend Parris wants to stop this from happening. She is in control of whether or not she wakes up and stops the witch hunt. If Betty was to wake, the whole situation would be over. Since she is not, Hale asks Tituba, Abigail, and Betty to “give [them] all their names,” (47). The religious leaders are seeking information from people who are typically of low power. Tituba and the girls start to name ‘witches’ in Salem, which is going to force Parris and the other authoritative figures to make accusations. Betty, regardless of her power status before, now

Preserving one’s reputation was a prevalent theme in The Crucible. In a place where reputation plays such an important role, the fear of guilt by association becomes detrimental. Reading the book, there was one character that clearly stood out, this was Reverend Parris. Parris was always very concerned about himself. He made this clear in the novel as he repeats it took him forever to gain everyone's respect in the church. When Betty was initially suffering from her “sickness” he cared for her, but he also cared about what others would think if witchcraft was involved. He thought that if she was conjured by a witch in his "holy" house that it would look bad upon him because he is a Reverend and reverends are suppose to be pure and holy.

The next example of hypocrisy in The Crucible is Reverend Parris’s character. He is the spiritual leader of Salem, yet Arthur Miller characterizes him as being very greedy and selfish. He only desires money and a high status within the community.