The Foolish Death of John Proctor in The Crucible by Arthur Miller

Accepting one’s shame inevitably generates a sense of expiation and even plants the seeds for the nurturing of newfound self-regard and self-esteem. That is why he right away bids Elizabeth to tell him “what would” she “have” him “do”, as well as appeals to her to have her “forgiveness”. The latter request denotes John’s urgent need to alleviate his own guilt and be able to believe again in and act pursuant his reaffirmed “goodness”, his identity as John Proctor. Moreover, John’s obvious concern about his soul’s fate in this act testifies to the definitive passing of his nihilistic crisis (e.g. “it is a vanity that will not blind God” he says when referring to the potential hazards of choosing not to confess), while his preoccupation with his posthumous reputation (“my name I cannot sign” he says when he decides to confess but realizes that his name will be forever maligned owing to his false confession being publicly known) shows a man who is looking ahead, to the future, not someone who has lost all hope and has withdrawn from

The only way John Proctor can save himself is by falsely confessing to being involved with witchcraft; however, he does not confess. This describes another example of situational irony. Proctor decides to tell the truth and not lie to himself because he now understands the meaning of a good reputation. As critic Richard Hayes says, “The dilemma of man, fallible, subject to pride, but forced to choose between the ‘negative good’ of truth and the morality, and the ‘positive good’ of human life under any dispensation.” Proctor would rather die than live with the town believing untrue statements about him. When Proctor is asked to explain why he decides to tell the truth he replies, “Because it is my name!...How may I live without

After being tried and condemned to death, John refuses to confess. But he doesn’t want to die because of some witches that are just making lies. So he signs the paper that is going to be nailed to the church door saying he has committed sins. He asks himself “God in heaven, what is John Proctor, what is John Proctor.” He is asking if John Proctor is considered honest or a liar. Because he knows he did nothing wrong in his life but he is accused and no one wants to believe him. But he shortly takes back his claim and refuses to sign it because he doesn’t want his friends being condemned for his actions, “I speak my own sins, I cannot judge another. I have no tongue for it.” So by doing so he answers part of the question “What is John Proctor” by coming forth on his own view of himself. John Proctor cannot live with the lie if he had signed that confession, so he will die by his own honesty.

When asked why he will not sign the confession, Proctor dramatically replies, “Because it is my name! Because I cannot have another in my life! Because I lie and sign myself to lies! Because I am not worth the dust on the feet of them that hang! How may I live without my name? I have given you my soul; leave me my name!” (143, Act IV). John Proctor sees no good coming out of a false confession; even death would be preferable to it. He claims his name is more important than his life and even goes as far as to hold it in more favor than his soul. Proctor implies that his name is what gives him his humanity, “Because I am not worth the dust on the feet of them that hang!” and his sense of self, “Because I cannot have another in my life!” Furthermore, he attests that, without his name, he would not be able to be a proper model for his sons, “I have three children—how may I teach them to walk like men in the world and I sold my friends?” (143, Act IV). Making a false confession would damage Proctor’s self-worth and integrity enough to make him an unfit father. Yet, as he refuses to betray himself, Proctor sees a glimmer of hope in his conscience, “I do see some shred of goodness in John Proctor. Not enough to weave a banner with, but white enough to keep it from such dogs.” (144, Act IV). Proctors sacrifice does more than benefit Salem, it relives his burden of guilt and preserves his identity. That “shred of goodness” in him is enough to give him the principles to stand up to the unjust officials of the

Another inner quality that defines John Proctor is the value he holds to his good name. Proctor is a firm believer in the fact that one’s name is the only thing that remains after death, and what is done with it while living can affect one’s posterity for generations. This is the driving force behind his actions in the final act of the play. At first, he felt no shame in lying to the court about his accusation of witchcraft because he felt there was no more damage he could do to his reputation and that one more sin would not make any difference. His attitude changed when he realized his confession would mean blackening the name of those who already had died, and his sons would have to live with that mark on their names. He knew he could not teach his sons “. . . to walk like

Another tragic flaw that, like most tragic heroes in Greek drama, John Proctor exhibits is pride. Proctor has the choice between life and death on pen and paper, to sign his name means life, to refuse means death. “Because it is my name! Because I cannot have another in my life! Because I lie and sign myself to lies! Because

p;    When Proctor was first faced with the decision of living with a lie or dying with the truth, he chose life.   He decided that a lie was a minute sin in comparison to voluntarily giving up the life with which God blessed him.   After signing his confession, he was notified that it would be hung above the church entrance for all to see.  Besides believing that publicity was unnecessary to a valid confession, Proctor did not want to blacken his name.   Because of committing adultery, he knew what it was like to live with a bad reputation and did not want his sons to have to live with a name marked by witchcraft.  Proctor crumbled up the paper in front of his accusers and chose death rather than advertise a lie. 

The second moral dilemma John Proctor faces is to tell the truth and die as an honest man. He has the choice to either lie in order to live or die with his friends in an honourable way. Proctor realizes that if he choses to tell the truth he will no longer be the sinful man he thought he is, but would keep his name in good standing and be a good role model for his sons. “‘I have three children---how may I teach them to walk like men in the world, and I sold my friends?’” (IV.I). If John chooses to live he will be looked upon by his friends and family as a liar and an unmoral man. He will not be able to function in the Puritan society, so he comes to the conclusion to tell the truth and be put to death. He believes God will save him because he is doing the right thing by choosing to die and he will be remembered for his dignity. His wife Elizabeth watches the hanging and says, “‘He have his goodness now. God forbid I take it from him!’” (IV.I). As Proctor is about to be hanged, sunlight shines throughout the town representing John made the right decision and he will be going to God. After all, John Proctor does give up his life, but he knows he saves his sons from walking around with a tainted name and keeps the names of his friends clean, not betraying them.

Since John Proctor behaves as an essentially good and upright man throughout the story, his tragic death stirs pity and fear in the audience. The audience cannot help but

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

as his beliefs. This paper will discuss Proctor's change in character and his struggle with getting to

In conclusion, John Proctor is the sternest of all three characters when it comes to pride and most definitely the one that had to pay the most because of his fatal flaw. His last act which was accepting the death sentence instead of lying and getting to live was what turned his character around and the complete opposite of excessive pride. The decision between life and death was his crucible, his place or occasion of severe test or trial and the decision of dying is what redeemed his character, what separated him from living a miserable life filled with faults against dying as a martyr that wanted

This human weakness proves to be John Proctor's tragic character flaw. It not only leads to his demise, but to the loss of many innocent lives as well.

The Crucible, authored by Arthur Miller, captures John Proctor’s sacrifices that ultimately emphasizes the value he places on his reputation. In an effort to preserve the only thing left for himself, Proctor exclaims to those around him that “I have given you my soul; leave me my name” (Miller 130). Once he was met with the realization

            One more characteristic of the tragic hero, which Proctor possesses, is that he learns from his mistakes.  His mistake, which was also his tragic flaw, was his adultery.  He learns from his mistakes, which can be seen by how he will not be lured back by Abigail.  Even when she says