Caleb Owens Mrs. Page English 11P 22 September 2017 Yeah, he’s selfish too John Proctor is the main character in the play The Crucible by Arthur Miller. Near the end of the play he is accused of witchcraft and decides to sign a confession to escape the death penalty. He ends up ripping the paper to pieces saying “how may i live without my name? I have given you my soul, leave me my name!”. Despite being one of precious few “good” characters in the play the argument proposed is that this act was done only out of selfish motivation. The first reason... john acted selfishly is the fact that he had other options earlier on. Such as, he could have at any time loaded up a carriage and run away out of Salem even after his wife had been accused of witchcraft. Although running away would have been out of his character and would have made for a boring story line, it is no doubt a possibility that he could have done this to escape the unfair trials, loaded questions and people trying to incriminate him. The second example john acted selfishly is when he ripped up the confession he in essence said that the welfare of his wife and children was not worth lying and preserving his name. He ripped it up and publicly declared it …show more content…
Your name is not who you, are a wise man once sang “The paparazzi flashes, and that they think that it's you, But they don't know that who you are is not what you do” in this case i agree. Another stated “It's not who you are underneath, it's what you do that defines you.”. I disagree, motive is everything. Is it wrong for a spy to lie to his authorities to save millions of lives? No. however, if he lied to save himself over the other hundreds or millions of people that is not a worthy motive. Many people lied to save the jews hiding in their basements during WWII, was it wrong for them to lie to their authorities and the military? Should they have saved themselves and allowed thousands to be
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.
Even though he knew it was wrong it was up to him to admit that he had done it to stay honest to himself, keep his name clean, and live free from guilt. The act of confession by John also demonstrates his act of self preservation. If John had not confessed he would not have been physically hurt, but moreover mentally impacted. His act of self preservation was through relieving himself of the guilt he would have had to endure if he had not told his wife, Elizabeth, of his actions. Elizabeth demonstrates her act of self-preservation by tiptoeing around Johns feelings. “Quietly, fearing to anger him by prodding” (51) Due to Elizabeth’s social status, she is unable to speak out and say what she may truly feel. In a ways, Elizabeth said many of the things she said in a mild tone in fear of causing John to lose his temper.
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.
John Proctor became a tragic hero in “The Crucible” by Arthur Miller has brought a big problem to the Village of Salem, after Procto had an affair with Abigail Williams, she began to look for revenge and she started accusing people of witchcraft. John Proctor; a well-respected man in Salem, who is a hard worker always working for his family, love his children and his wife, is founded in a critical situation after committing adultery with a girl in the village. John Proctor, the protagonist of the play “The Crucible”, a well-respected man, a noble man who has done a lot for his family, possesses a major flaw he has had an affair with Abigail Williams, and eventually he realizes what he has done in Salem and to
People’s true character is revealed through their actions. Their morals and ethics can be told from how they choose to act in a situation. In Arthur Miller’s The Crucible; the character of John Proctor is an honorable man despite having committed wrongful acts. He was able to redeem himself through acts that is considered courageous, such as when he refuses to contribute to the lie of witchcraft in Salem, when he fights for the people who were convicted of witchcraft and when he regrets being a dishonest man.
The primary dramatic focus in the play The Crucible is the moral struggle of its protagonist, John Proctor. Certain characteristics of John Proctor's character and also the environment of the Puritanical Salem alleviated this problem for him. The main issues running through out the play are a series of dilemmas that John Proctor faces. The first and foremost of these is his guilt over his adulterous affair with Abigail Williams, the second his hesitation to testify against Abigail to bring out the truth and the third, his final decision to make the ultimate sacrifice.
The first example of John Proctor’s internal conflict is that he had a huge argument about Abigail with Elizabeth. John Proctor loves his wife but Elizabeth tests his patience by judging his honesty. In the play John Proctor said “I cannot speak but I am doubted, every moment judged for lies, as though I come into a court when I come into this house!” (Act II, 28). What John meant by this is he is getting judged every time he talks and is being questioned by his wife Elizabeth, every time he comes home. John and Elizabeth Proctor talk about Abigail. John Proctor said “I have gone tiptoe in this house all seven month she is gone.” ( Act II, 28). This is a lie because John is seen talking to Abigail in (Act I, 14). Proctor swears to Elizabeth that he only thinks of pleasing her but still has the audacity to lie to her.
Throughout the story, John expresses qualities of an honest man by defending his wife Elizabeth when she is
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
In the book, The Crucible by Arthur Miller, John Proctor is a farmer and a prominent member of society. However, he had an affair with a girl in town, Abigail Williams which leads to his wife being convicted of witchcraft and himself convicted of dealing with the devil. John Proctor is a strong and effective speaker and proves his point with the three rhetorical appeals and devices such as personification, similes, metaphors and tone.
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
In The Crucible, John Proctor is put into several sticky situations as he is determined to clear his wife’s name and dispel this corruption and nonsense of the court. Proctor’s wife, Elizabeth, is put into jail and is to be tried on the accusations by Abigail Williams that
In life everything is about choices whether it is a serious choice such as moving place to place because of your parents career or it being like wanting to eat a muffin or apple for breakfast. In the Crucible written about the Salem 1692 witch trials, John Proctor is one of the main characters in the play. John is 35 years of age and is Married to Elizabeth Proctor. A concept we have to understand is in this era Witch accusations were always coming from different people to random innocent women and men. These accusations are obviously false, but due to what they believed in, and how strong they were in religion, witch trials became of it. All the choices people made during the Salem witch trials, were always looked upon corresponding to
People could see this deed differently. Those belonging to the church may have the perception of him as evil because he is trying to overthrow the church with the truth. Those that were accused and sided with those innocent lives that have been put to death would see John in the light of goodness. When John Proctor had committed adultery, he had gained a bad reputation and known as evil for it was forbidden. However, by depicting the voice of the accused, he is seen in a better light. John Proctor shows the court that he can change his life choices for the ones he cares
The consequences of shirking accountability for ones actions are depicted through the tribulations John Proctor faced, in Arthur Miller's, The Crucible. Although John reluctantly became involved in the Salem witch trials, his initial silence proved to be the downfall of not only himself, but of his fellow townspeople as well. John Proctor remained silent for one reason, and that was to protect himself. As a result of his self-serving desires to avoid the consequences of his actions, innocent citizens were put to death.