Rayhan Khan
11/1/15
English 10 Block Three
Crucible Essay
Is John Proctor a Hero: A tragic hero is a person who is born with certain heroic qualities in a dramatic tragedy who is destined for downfall, suffering, or defeat because of a specific fatal flaw. Tragic heroes have been seen in many works of literature such as Oedipus Rex and Romeo and Juliet. The iconic tragic hero in The Crucible can be defined through John Proctor, due to his heroic quality of persisting with the truth and his fatal flaw of excessive self-pride. His devotion to the truth and fighting against the system ultimately drives his fate towards death. Every tragic hero has a heroic quality that sets them apart from ordinary characters, that quality is often outstanding and brings greatness to the person. In John Proctor’s case, his
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Proctor confides to his wife that if he confesses to witchcraft so he may be able to live and spend time with her. “With great force of will, but not quite looking at her: I have been thinking I would confess to them, Elizabeth. (She shows nothing.) What say you? If I give them that?”(Act 4) Proctor is trying to overcome his fatal flaw of self-pride so that he can spend his life with his wife Elizabeth. However, when Proctor writes his confession he is told to sign it so that the town of Salem could see it. Proctor's flaw of excessive self-pride starts to become evident when he has an outburst about honor. “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 feet of them you have hanged! How may I live without my name? I have given you my soul; leave my name.”(Act 4) Proctors self-pride finally gets the better of him when he exclaims that his name is more important than his own life. Proctor accepts his fate and ends his suffering through the
I have given you my soul; leave me my name!” (Miller 143). Proctor is giving significant credit and recognition to those who did not give into lying to protect their lives but rather died truthful. He is saying he is not worth even the dust on the feet of those that were hung simply because he even for a little gave into the confession. Miller’s element of tragedy that emphasizes a man laying his life down for his integrity is clearly evident in this scene.
John Proctor was a tragic hero because he was a well-respected man in the community of Salem, how he redeems himself from his downfall, and why he died. To begin with, John Proctor was a tragic hero because he was well-respected in many ways. One reason how he was well-respected was because he had a well productive farm. He was a very intelligent and hard-working man. John was also well-respected because he was a honest and upright guy that spoke his mind.
In the play The Crucible by Arthur Miller, the town of Salem is afflicted with hysteria, intolerance, and accusations that lead to death. According to philosopher Aristotle, a tragic hero possesses a tragic flaw, excessive pride, and an inevitable downfall. Protagonist John Proctor illustrates a tragic hero because he is presented as happy, powerful, and privileged, which later leads him to suffer because of his own actions. First of all, John Proctor possesses a fatal flaw, pride, which is a characteristic of a tragic hero. Proctor’s fatal flaws includes honesty and pride.
Goodness and nobility is determined by an individual’s morality and their willingness to follow a virtuous path in their life. It is also determined by the ability of an individual to acknowledge their shortcomings and become more self-aware. In The Crucible by Arthur Miller, John Proctor is a good man as he showcases righteous morals and principles. This is shown, as he ends his affair with Abigail, protects his wife and his friends’ wives, and dies to preserve his integrity and honour. First, John Proctor shows his goodness, by refusing the physical advances of Abigail, who wishes to continue their love affair.
John Proctor didn’t want his name to be the ruined because he felt that was all he had left. John Proctor was tragically killed for a sin he had not committed but was found a hero because people followed in his footsteps by not confessing to something they didn’t do. “A tragic hero is a character
He felt guilt and remorse, a sure sign that he was an honest man, and honest men do not deserve to die. In conclusion, Arthur Miller’s John Proctor is a hero. Proctor trying to explain to that the witch hunts are led by a lovesick girl to an unforgiving crowd exuberates his characteristics as a hero. Not only does he do that, but he also has feelings that every tragic hero has, such as guilt, and the want to fix his
Proctor is a well respected upperclassman and him sacrificing his life led to his family living a greater life. To the court with great emotion proctor states “ 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).
John Proctor, the protagonist of The Crucible, qualifies as a tragic hero because he has a tragic flaw, is ethically superior to the other characters in the play, and struggles to find peace with himself in midst of the lies and chaos during this play. John Proctor possesses a tragic flaw that forces him to hide his prideful mistake, which eventually brings about his downfall. I guess the old saying is true, “Pride comes before the fall”. John Proctor’s tragic flaw is his excessive pride, and he expresses it abundantly throughout the play. In Act I, it states, “ Proctor: Abby, I may think of you softly from time to time.
I have given you my soul; leave me my name!” (Miller 153). This quote truly demonstrates Proctors character as a whole, as he is willing to be hung for the sake of proving his worth to the court. Specifically, Proctor knows he is truly innocent, and wants to make the courts aware of his innocence. His unwillingness to confess to witchcraft, is because of his personal beliefs regarding reputation.
Published in 1952, during a period of cold war tensions, which culminated in the ideological witch trials of the mcarthy era in America; The crucible by Arthure miller is set in 1692 during the witch trials in salem massachusetts. The author has used allegory to position the reader to draw parrelels betweeen the to time periods and critisize the persecution that occured in both eras. One of the main themes that Miller has used to portray this viewpoint is the representation of personal integrity. Integrity is the quality of having strong moral pronciples. This is acheived through strongly contrasted characterisation of characters such as Abigail williams and and Rebecca Nurse, aswell as the inclusion of textual features such as irony, symbolism
Proctor's downfall in the play is initiated by a human flaw, which qualifies him to be the tragic hero. Arthur Miller illustrates John Proctor as a common honest
Hero: A person, typically a man, who is admired or idealized for courage, outstanding achievements, or noble qualities; however, heroism is not synonymous with perfection. Man can be a hero in spite of having some flaws. This is apparent in The Crucible, by Arthur Miller, a story about the Salem Witch Trials in which Abigail Williams accuses dozens of innocent people of witchcraft. Despite being flawed, John Proctor, Reverend Hale, and Elizabeth Proctor can demonstrate their heroism in The Crucible. John Proctor is shown to be both a hero and a flawed man in regards to his lechery.
I have given you my soul; leave me my name!”(1272). These words by John Proctor exemplify his character by making, in my opinion, not a very wise decision. In the play The Crucible, John Proctor’s unwillingness can be seen as selfish because others hung before he confessed his affair with Abigail but he redeemed himself by undoing his confession and refusing to sell the court other names, which Arthur Miller used to convey a message about a crucible being put through a fire/trial and coming out in its purest form, through the character of John
Moreover, he would be justifying the existence of witches, which would further galvanize future spurious accusations. In addition, Proctor claimed, “I have three children - how may I teach them to walk like men in the world, and I sold my friends?” This quote insinuates that if he were to lie to his kids, they would not admire him as a role model and instead feel ashamed of him. Clearly, Proctor’s honor contributed to the ultimate decision of ripping up the signed
He considers his name to have more value than his life. In Act IV, on page 1352, Proctor says, “Spite only keeps me silent. It is hard to give a lie to Dogs.” He is saying that his pride keeps him from “confessing” to witchcraft and saving his life. On