The Crucible Reputation

In the play “The Crucible” written by Arthur Miller, demonstrates a them that is represented in each character in which they all treasure the most, and that is reputation. Abigail Williams is charged with participation in which craft, and tries save herself by confessing to the court all of the names of the girls she seen with the devil. Reverend Parris is worried about his status in Salem because he is worried that the rehearsal of witchcraft was in his home, and that it might ruin him. Lastly there’s Judge Danforth, and he wants to prove to all and others in the court that he knows how to do his job and he wants respect from the town of Salem. Reputation is a key theme in this play because reputations is important to human lives as well. We all want to be known for great successes and at times we feel that we want to be accepted in society, just like these characters.

Purist Salem, Massachusetts in 1692 suffered from a rapidly increasing phenomenon: witchcraft accusations and trials. The Crucible is a play that recounts the times of this incident. For the most part, it follows a man known as John Proctor. He is a sensible, honest, and hardworking man who made the mistake of succumbing to lust which sets off a chain of events that leads to the witch trials, and to his own demise. Arthur Miller’s The Crucible’s protagonist John Proctor proves to be a flawed human being who struggles to make sense of his past relationship with Abigail, his love for his wife, and his pride.

In Arthur Miller's play The Crucible, Arthur intrigues audience time and time again with the historical context, social implications, and the Salem, Massachusetts Witchcraft Trials of 1962. Most members in Salem feel the need to prove their authority in ways such as accusing those who have done nothing or hanging them without proving their innocence first. The thing is authority is not made up by an authority figure, but by society. Miller’s The Crucible, demonstrates how people misuse their authority for cruel purposes through a fascinating plot, well-crafted characters, and well-set theme. During the hysteria of witchcraft trials in Salem, there were multiple figures of authority or per say the community who abused their power, Reverend Hale, Abigail Williams, Reverend Parris and Judge Danforth.

Who remembers hearing stories about witches when we were children? We all thought of them as fairy tales, no one would have believed that “witches” were a part of daily life back in Salem Massachusetts in the year 1692. In the play The Crucible, by Arthur Miller, these were no fairy tales to the inhabitants of Salem. This alluring play is established on an authentic story. The story commenced like this, A girl named Abigail who is seen acting in a bizarre manner, is accused of practicing witchcraft. The only way that Abigail could save herself was by confessing and accusing other people so therefore, she did. This started a wide outbreak of mass accusations of witchcraft. This effectively initiated the witch trials. Arthur Miller really tries to teach us lessons that he integrated in the book. Fear, reputation and intolerance are the three major themes this essay will delve into.

Parris is the minister of Salem. He is very concerned about his reputation and what his enemies could do to him. When Betty was “asleep” after dancing in the woods with Abigail, Parris freaks out and delays addressing the issue because he doesn’t want his reputation to be ruined. He is also very concerned about his enemies to find out and then use it against him to take his power. “But if you trafficked with spirits in the forest I must know it now, for surely my enemies will, and they will run me with it”(170).

Most everyone longs to keep an admirable reputation and self-image to keep the positive impression of honesty, trustworthiness, and  most of all one’s ethics and responsibilities. This idea is important in today’s society to keep a positive image about one’s self--but what about in the 1600s? Regardless of time period, self-morality and reputation are important factors in everyday life, and Arthur Miller does just that to characters in The Crucible. Miller uses these characters and themes of integrity and reputation to promote a broad topic of self-image, the way someone--and others--view them. John Proctor, Elizabeth Proctor, Abigail Williams, Reverend Hale, Rebecca Nurse, and many more characters help to portray the vision of Miller’s themes. The plot of the story follows a series of witch trials in Salem Massachusetts, revolving around a large group of girls simply telling lies to many people. Plot and character decisions allow the reader to grasp a deeper meaning of the portrayed themes of reputation, and the character’s ideas and thoughts throughout the play. In Arthur Miller’s The Crucible, Miller uses the themes of reputation and integrity to successfully portray John Proctor, Elizabeth Proctor, and other characters’ actions, thoughts, and decisions in the play, leading to the final conclusion of self-image.

One innocent man being crushed to death, 141 people being arrested, and 19 being hanged were some of the many gruesome events that took place during the infamous Salem Witch Trials of 1692. In Arthur Miller’s The Crucible, some few unnatural events cause mass hysteria to sweep through a small town, placing dozens of innocent people in jail. When rumors sweep through Salem of an unconscious girl who will not wake up, people automatically point to witchcraft. Accusation after accusation, fear of being accused themselves causes people to suspect the worst about the people they associate with. In result, many people turn against themselves and others around them in fear of losing the normal life they have accustomed to. The three characters in the play that acted out of fear and caused an unnecessary hysteria against innocent people are Mary Warren, Judge Danforth, and Abigail Williams.

“Reputation is only a candle of wavering and uncertain flame, and easily blown out, but it is the light which the world looks for to find its merit” (Lowell). The theme of reputation emerges over many events in The Crucible. It sustains many characters to misinterpret the true light in the world but reveal their anguish about how their loss of reputation will impact the effect in their lives. In the play, The Crucible, by Arthur Miller, a little town in the late 17th century, a group of Puritan girls are accused of witchcraft, including their leader, Abigail Williams. Out of revenge and resentment, Abigail deceives the town about the group being bewitched. As a result, all the characters have to face a crucible or trial of their own.

The Crucible by Arthur Miller was based on the Salem Witch Trials. In Salem, there was suspicion of witches which caused many people to be hanged. Many characters’ reputations were questioned throughout the book. The plot is driven by Abigail Williams wanting to be with John Proctor because they used to have interest in each other. The author was trying to show that when people value reputation they would do almost anything to keep it.

The choices that Mary made in the play “The Crucible” were all based on her desire to have a good reputation which led to her wanting to go back with God. Mary wanted to have a good reputation this desire ended up messing her up in the end.

In Salem, Massachusetts no act is private. Sins conducted within one’s home or in seclusion are eventually discovered by the public. The attendance of church is monitored and those caught dilly dallying outside of church during mass are punished. Everything anyone does becomes knowledge to the public. One’s entire name rested upon their ability to follow the rules of the Bible. When a group of girls in Salem began falsely accusing those they did not like, the importance of one’s name evident. It is the theme of reputation that is cause for many of the events in the Crucible. By examining Arthur Miller’s play The Crucible, it can be seen that the theme of reputation plays a strong role in the actions of the characters.

The movie The Crucible has played a large part in our modern understanding of the Salem Witch Trials of 1962. The playwright became so popular that was added to many junior and high schools required reading lists. Although the writing style of Arthur Miller is both complex and compelling, the playwright is not historically accurate and was intended to be an allegory for the “witch hunts” that McCarthyism and the red scare brought about. The Crucible focuses mainly on the fictional romance between John Proctor and Abigail Williams, this relationship, and Abigail’s jealousy that stems from it, results in the false witchcraft accusations of many innocent townsfolk and the hanging of 19 people. This essay will attempt to separate fact from fiction

How important is your reputation to you? There is a variety between who wants to be known for something specifically and between what there name stands out for. During this time in Salem, Massachusetts there was witch trials, where many people were being accused of doing the extraordinary. This why the Judge from Salem accused them all of witchcraft because everyone thought it was best for him not to risk anyone’s life when it came to witchcraft. I think it was morally wrong for accusing someone of something that they didn’t even see or do. This is how it was in Salem back then, many were accused of witchcraft because of what someone said. Abigail Williams and Reverend Parris were a few people who were accusing other people of witchcraft. It was wrong because they were sentencing them to death for the action of witchcraft that they didn’t even do.

In the Puritan town of Salem, Massachusetts in 1692, no one is safe from accusations. A group of girls and a slave (Tituba) are seen dancing in the woods, and the first explanation is witchcraft. Tituba confesses to save her own life, but points fingers at many of the other girls in the process. This puts the whole town in a frenzy, and everyone is being accused. If you are accused you could get your land taken away or hanged, so people who did not like you could falsely accuse you just to take your land. Relationships between friends and families were tested. Everyone in The Crucible was trying to protect their own reputation no matter what the cost.

Reverend Parris is the first character introduced in the book. Parris is in his middle forties. He is not married. He has one child named Betty. He has a dark past that the town people do not know about. Parris often plays the victim role in every situation that he is involved in. His daughter Betty that falls ill. Tituba is the slave of Parris. Betty, Tituba, and Abigail were dancing in the forest when Parris sees them. He then recognizes that witchcraft might be being practiced in his own household, and he worries about the possible danger to his reputation if the townspeople learn that his daughter and niece could be associating themselves with the devil. Parris says “Abigail, I have fought here three long years to bend these stiff-necked people to me, and now just now when some good respect is rising for me in the parish, you compromise my very character..” (Miller P.63-66). Parris is mad at Abigail for dancing in the forest since it could damage his reputation that he has been trying to build for