The Characters Of Selfishness In Arthur Miller's The Crucible

By admitting he had an affair with a teen John admitted to adultery tarnishing his reputation in the name of justice. John even gives up his life, unwilling to charge other innocent people with witchcraft, because it is the just thing to do. John then Although John committed lechery, he redeemed himself by sacrificing his name, his reputation, and his life in the pursuit of justice.

A tragic hero is a very favored person that suffers from a downfall which leads to their death. John Proctor, like many others, is a tragic hero. The author, Arthur Miller, gives John Proctor the role of a tragic hero throughout the story of The Crucible. This protagonist, John Proctor, made judgement errors that inevitably led to his own destruction. John Proctor is an afflicted individual. He believes his affair with Abigail irreparably damaged him in the eyes of God, his wife Elizabeth, and himself. John Proctor succumbed to sin and committed the crime of adultery; however, he lacks the capacity to forgive himself. When referencing criticism, John Proctor and the Crucible of Individuation in Arthur Miller’s The Crucible, Michelle I Pearson, who also agrees John Proctor is a tragic hero, once said in her article that “While the people of Salem look at Proctor and see a strong, hard-working, no-nonsense man, Proctor himself knows that he is an adulterer, a lecher, and that he drives himself to try to be free of his guilt. Not until faced with a crisis, however, will he leave the persona behind and begin the process of individuation.” The criticism provided helps prove John Proctor fits the role of a tragic hero in The Crucible. In order to convey the message of iniquity in the Puritan society, Arthur Miller casts John Proctor in The Crucible because he is able to overcome his tragic flaw of hubris, but still the circumstances unfortunately led to his death. Proctor is a very respected man in Salem but he also has a few flaws that have proved him to be a tragic hero which are prideful, lustful, and well respected. Later in The Crucible, Proctor realizes his flaws and tries to fix them but it is too late. One of Proctor’s tragic flaws is that he is too prideful.

He commits adultery by cheating on his wife with Abigail. Although this may be true, he atones for his sin by sacrificing his own reputation, something he highly values to save his wife. In addition, he stays true to himself and does not confess, so that the same sacrifice others had made would not be in vain. In addition, he shows a crucial emotion that is needed for redemption. The emotion he shows throughout the play is guilt. Guilt displays remorse, and remorse is only felt when the afflicted acknowledge their wrongdoing and feel the need to redeem themselves. Those who do not regret their actions do not feel guilt. Because John Proctor is an admirable character, he becomes trapped in his own cage of guilt, determined to save his wife and atone for his sin, even when he knew he would be executed for

John Proctor has a dark secret, He possesses a major flaw he has had an affair with Abigail Williams, and eventually he realizes what he has done to Elizabeth, He has committed adultery against his wife. Due to the fact that Proctor has committed adultery against Elizabeth, he becomes a tragic hero, and Abigail Williams shows that when she says “I know how you clutched my back behind your house and sweated like a stallion whenever I come near” (Act I, lines 423-425). John broke his marriage vows, but even though he regrets he has become a tragic hero. It’s too late to regret he has sinned, he has ruined his marriage with Elizabeth and now she is not pleased with him. Due to the fact that he has cheated on Elizabeth, his outlook in life is negative, when He tells her “I have not moved from there to there without I think to please you” (Act II, lines 159-161). The affair also caused Elizabeth to distrust John, who for seven months was trying to get into her good graces and is tired of her suspicion. Because of John's inability to control his desire and resist temptation, his life is being turned upside down by the jealousy and need for revenge of Abigail, marking the beginning of his downfall and path to becoming a tragic hero. As a result, the need for revenge of Abigail marks the beginning of John downfall.

John’s courage is really shown in act 2 when his wife Elizabeth is about to get arrested and he rips the warrant apart to oppose the charges against her. After he tears the warrant, he later says “If she is innocent! ….Is the accuser always holy now?

Many actions dignify the traits of a tragic hero, but only few stand out. In the tragedy The Crucible by Arthur Miller, a tragic hero dies a good man when brought to trial over nothing more than child’s play and dishonesty. John Proctor is an honest, upright, and blunt-spoken man because he fought for what is right and found forgiveness in his fatal flaw. Although he exhibits these traits throughout the story, John dies a dynamic character.

When the play sets in action, John has had a past affair with his servant, Abigail Williams. His wife, Elizabeth Proctor, is very forgiving of his sin, but John has his mind set that he will not confess to anyone else, in fear of ruining his good

The second way John Proctor is an internally conflicted character is that he had an affair with Abigail. John Proctor, a married man with three sons, cheats on his wife with a young Abigail. He confesses to this by saying “God help me, I lusted and there is a promise in such sweat, but it is a whore’s vengeance.”(Act III, 49 ). John did not want to confess but absolutely had to, to expose Abigail’s real desires on why she is accusing Elizabeth of witchcraft. What John had confessed to was adultery and is punishable so he took a big risk. When Proctor said “Whores

In The Crucible, by Arthur Miller, despite the fact that John Proctor has various respectable assets, he is considered a tragic hero and destined to tragedy as a result of his own imperfections. The way that John puts his companions above everything else proves his noble characteristic, his aspiration to correct his previous errors, and his need of justice. However, his imperfections are his temper, him hardly ever going to church, and his affair with Abigail Williams. Although he is a virtuous man, his flaws lead to his ruin.

As Arthur Miller states “the commonest of men may take on that [tragic] stature to the extent of his willingness to throw all he has into the contest, the battle to secure his rightful place in the world.”(Source B) It is John’s courage that inspires us to fight the battle for our own beliefs even though the fear of losing is, among us, what makes us human. John Proctor, the protagonist and tragic hero of Arthur Miller’s play “The Crucible” succumbs to his own flaws and yet earns the respect of the

John Proctor felt so bad for the way he acted and the things he had done in the past and would not give up until they were made up for. John made his sin right by convincing Abigail that their relationship was over and he could no longer have any contact with her because it was such a wrong thing (Miller 22). He was devastated and embarrassed after admitting this situation to the court but begged them for forgiveness because he knew how wrong he was. “A man may think God sleeps, but god sees everything, I know it now” (Miller 110). John himself was way too harsh on his situation, punishing himself far worse than he needed. He told the court he was not worth the dust of the feet on all of those who were hanged because he does not think he deserves as much as others due to his sin (Miller143). Even his wife Elizabeth knew it was not her who needed to forgive him, but it was he himself. “I do not judge you. The magistrate sits in your heart that judges you” (Miller 55). John carried his sin with him until the very last scene of the play. As a hero, John made up for his bad ways. Towards the end of the play, when John had confessed to seeing the devil, he denied seeing anyone else there with him. John stood his ground, pleading to them that it was only him who was there (Miller 140). John made up his sin to his wife, Elizabeth, by fighting hard for her safety and for the court to let her go. He told them how much of an honest women she was, how their accusations were completely wrong (Miller 92). All of John’s heroic actions were to make up or the sin he knew he committed, which was the only way he could think to forgive himself. As readers could see, John’s self-assessment of himself was very wrong, he never saw how good of a person he really

     John Procter is a strong man, who thrives at the chance to be right and known. But by the end of the play he questions himself saying, “Who is John Proctor, Who is John Proctor?” (act 4). The trials to John Proctor are a time of change. When Reverend Hale enters the town John leaves in disgust, he knows the girls are lying. John’s pride springs from his feeling of being smarter then the rest of the town. He was constantly found bickering with Reverend Parris about unnecessary expenses. He is worried to speak at the trials for he would condemn himself as a lecher. His wife has her finger on his button though because after the affair, she uses his guilt so he will promise to accuse Abigail. As soon as John steps into the trials he is labeled as a witch and condemned to death. But from his own pride is unable to confess. But at the same time he does not want to die for such an absurd reason.

He knows that if he comes out, he will hurt Elizabeth, but if he does not come out it will also just end up hurting her. John admits his sins in Act 4, “I act my own sins; I cannot judge another.” (Miller 239). He wants to save Elizabeth by coming out with his sins to the devil. Therefore, he ended up sacrificing that commitment and sinned to it. He hurt Elizabeth the woman he loves, for some girl and a sin, he made the sacrifice of losing who he is and what he stands for. His one lie questioned all of his

Arthur Miller introduces a dynamic character, John Proctor, in his play The Crucible. John, known for his loyalty and detest of hypocrisy, is involved in the adulterous action of cheating on his wife Elizabeth with their housekeeper, Abigail. The question of if John Proctor is a tragic hero surfaces as his downfall is followed by the very truth of his hidden affair. In Miller’s essay, Tragedy and the Common Man, he challenges the basic definition of a tragic hero and explains how the common man could be in the category of a hero. Based on Miller’s arguments, it is apparent that John Proctor encounters the situations that makes someone a tragic hero, and therefore can be considered one.

In The Crucible, by Arthur Miller, John Proctor is a tragic hero. A tragic hero is defined as a person who is good and decent, yet he has a tragic flaw which leads to his downfall. In The Crucible, John Proctor is a highly respected farmer whose tragic flaw is pride. John Proctor plays a crucial role in Salem when the townspeople were being falsely accused and hanged as witches by a group of teenage girls. One of these girls is Abigail Williams, with whom John Proctor had an affair. John Proctor is a tragic hero because he is noble and honorable, he is very protective, yet his tragic flaw is that he had an affair with Abigail Williams.