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The Tragic Sense Of Pride In Arthur Miller's The Crucible

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Arthur Miller’s “The Crucible” depicts the horrors and hysteria that swept through the town of Salem in 1692. The events in the town, now known as the Salem Witch Trials, resulted in brutal and unjust executions under the false pretenses of witchcraft. John Proctor, the main character of the play, embodies the essence of a tragic hero with the tragic flaw of his affair and his excessive pride, along with his ability to evoke feelings of pity from the audience John Proctor has strong opinions that he firmly believes as correct and has never budged from those beliefs. John always seems to value his own personal thoughts over others’, however the extent of this superior sense of sense of self remains hidden for most of the play. The final act reveals the extent of his excessive pride after he claims himself above the actions of Sarah Good and Tituba in saying “[they] will not use me [because] I am no Sarah Good or Tituba, I am John Proctor!”(1231) In saying this to the court and the audience, he effectively portrays that he believes himself better than those who have lied and falsely admitted to witchcraft. Proctor then proceeds to shout that he does not want his confession and “his name” displayed in front of the church. (1231) Although he is aware of his current danger, Proctor’s pride will not allow him to have his name plastered all over town and used as fraudulent evidence of witchcraft in Salem. After his receiving his sentence, death, for not complying to his

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