In the play, “The Crucible,” there is a series of changes among some of the characters. One of the characters that has change is Reverend Hale. Reverend Hale is the “spiritual doctor” that is needed in Salem to help solve the problem of witchcraft. Hale has strong beliefs in witchcraft, but by the end his whereabouts begin to change. No one but Hale has different thoughts about the witchcraft in Salem. In the beginning of the play, Hale is summoned to Salem in need of help with witchcraft. He is summoned by Reverend Parris. The reasoning for this summoning is because of some girls that were discovered in the woods dancing. When Hale arrives he treats Betty for witchcraft and he believes that the state that she is in is from witchcraft. Everyone …show more content…
As the trials start to progress more and more, there are changes in Hale. These changes are visible to those who know what he was like in the beginning of the play. Witchcraft was a huge ordeal in these days and anyone who was accused of it was sentenced to be hanged. Hale was not accused of witchcraft however he did start to have his disbeliefs in it. Hale’s confidence in dealing with witchcraft begins to dissipate immensely from when he first arrived in Salem. Hale starts to consider that the girls that were caught dancing in the woods are pretending what they are actually saying to be true. Hale, other than John Proctor, is the only one who starts to have these …show more content…
He states that those condemned to be hanged will not be punished for confessing to a crime they are innocent for as well as dying for a crime the did not commit. He urges to those that have been accused for witchcraft to confess whether they not the truth behind it or not. Hale had changed so much that he did not want to see innocent people die for something they did not actually commit. In other words, Hale urges the innocent to tell a lie to save their lives. In the very end it is clear that Hale has changed very drastically than what he was when he first arrived in Salem. John Proctor says to Reverend Hale that he is a broken minister, and by the end of the play, it is clearly visible that this were not a false
(35) This shows that Hale is so involved in his work that he could possibly end up accusing someone who was not guilty of witchcraft. Hale seems overly conscious about his own life and his duty to serve the people to find the devil in Salem; he doesn’t seem to like the idea that he himself could be wicked. This shows that Hale too, did not show himself to be truthful and courteous when it came to the
Miller chose to have Hale change because of the guilt Hale holds as he watches all the people he initially thought worked with the devil be killed. In the beginning of The Crucible by Arthur Miller, Reverend John Hale was brought to Salem during Act one in order to look at Reverend Parris’s daughter, Betty. He is a doctor who examines others for signs of witchcraft, and then tries to find a way to rid the victim from witchcraft. He is from Beverly and has dealt with witchcraft prior to Salem. At first, he was convinced that witchcraft was painted all over Salem because he examined both Betty and Tituba while he was there.
What transformation does Hale have as the play progresses? Do Salem-like witch hunts still happen in the world today? What are the major themes of the play?
This stage first develops when he travels around Salem, personally investigating the people mentioned in the court. The conversation between the Proctors and Reverend Hale shows that he has suspected the girls of lying due to their fear of being hanged. Furthermore, when Giles Corey and Francis Nurse come to the Proctors’ household claiming that their wives have been taken to jail for witchcraft, it becomes evident that Reverend Hale is becoming increasingly doubtful. “Hale, in great pain: Man, remember until an hour before the Devil fell, God thought him beautiful in Heaven” (Miller 68). Although he is defending the court’s decisions, the words in italics point out his increasing misgivings and reservations.
Evan Clark Cochran English III 20 February 2023 Dynamic Character essay According to N.J Simmonds, “Dynamic character is one who changes and evolves throughout the story.” Few characters show change within The Crucible. The character that appears to change the most throughout the play is Reverand Hale. Hale appears in Salem initially trying to condemn the ones who had “been with the devil.”
Reverend John Hale's amazing change of his point of view can be related to that of someone with a bad drug addiction who finally frees themselves from the darkness of their addiction. In Arthur Miller's play, The Crucible, Rev. Hale undergoes changes throughout the play due to the ridiculous trials of witches in Salem, Massachusetts. These changes consist of his belief in who is a witch, the people he believes and trusts in Salem, and the outcome of the trials themselves. At the beginning of the play Rev. Hale is supposedly the "expert" on witches.
When Hale entered the story he believed that he was going to be the savior of the town ridding them of witches. When Rebecca Nurse and John Proctor were arrested Reverend Hale was deeply shaken with his beliefs. Hale near the end of the story he tells Elizabeth that you should not have religion when it brings you harm but you should keep faith in God. Reverend Hale near ending of The Crucible is the complete opposite of the Reverend Hale that first entered the story, because he came in believing he was the authority on how to find witches, then he was shaken by arrest of Rebecca and John, and finally by him telling others to throw away religion when it brings harm to
Throughout The Crucible, during the Salem Witch Trials, Reverend Hale slowly changes from a ‘confident man with a plan’, to a haggard preacher who seems to be losing himself amongst the chaos of these colonial trials based off of lies. After a life-altering experience, Hale is never again the same person he started out as. In the beginning of
¨Hale, continuing to Elizabeth: Let you not mistake your duty as I mistook my own. I came into this village like a bridegroom to his beloved, bearing gifts of high religion; the very crowns of holy law I brought, and what I touched with my bright confidence, it died; and where I turned the eye of my great faith, blood flowed up.¨. Hale recognizes the way he had first acted when he was introduced in the play he had false confidence, was falsely assertive, a title of the best witch hunter in that region meant nothing and being a reverend, he had failed miserably to bring justice to the town of Salem. Along with being a failure he has realized that those that he had convicted were innocent and the girls that had played the system were the actual ones guilty and had escaped their well deserved punishment. The whole point of Hale being the tragic hero was that Hale would have been able to prevent all of these things onto the town but having a title does not mean you are qualified for the
When trying to save John Proctor, Hale tells Elizabeth, "You know, do you not, that I come of my own Goody Proctor" (Miller 206). Hale did not associate with the courts, he wanted to do what he viewed as
Zach Quigley 1/24/2016 Ms. Hempstead English 12 everyday, people's thoughts change. For example, politics, people's thoughts on politics can change. in the play, The Crucible, Reverend Hale's Thoughts over witchcraft in salem changed. To begin, reverend Hale in the beginning of the play, reverend hale was determined to get to the bottom of what's going on in Salem.
Reverend Hale is the character that changes the most in Arthur Miller’s play The Crucible because his feelings on witchcraft turns from full belief to unbelievable doubt, his thoughts on Proctor changes from thinking that he is evil to thinking that he is a good and honest man, and he switches from doing God’s work to doing the Devil’s. Reverend Hale makes a huge change on his claim of witchcraft. In the beginning of the play when Reverend is called to the town of Salem to see if the reason why Betty and Ruth are unconscious is due to witchcraft he brings with him many books. When Reverend Parris sees this he makes a comment that Hale responds to him explaining his expectations. This shows that Reverend Hale is focused on one thing, finding
In the beginning acts, Hale was trusting the court more than John and was a big part of handling warrants of the accused individuals along with having much confidence in himself, his knowledge of witchcraft, and knowledge of witches in Salem. In Act 2 and 3 in the play, The Crucible by Arthur Miller, the character Reverend Hale was changing a lot. Throughout the first act of this play Reverend Hale had much of his trust in the court and fully believed the devil is in Salem but as the trial begins and goes on things start to change when Hale starts to question the court shown when he pleads
The witches are on the hunt for the innocent souls of Salem with Hale stating, “The Devil is alive in Salem, and we dare not quail to follow wherever the accusing finger points” (Miller 1251). Hale is determined to use God’s mighty hand against the “evil witches”. This shows that Hale is faithful to Abigail’s accusations against the common people of Salem. At first, Reverend Hale is eager to prosecute, but as more innocent people are condemned, his compliance turns into distaste. His dissatisfaction eventually turns into rage when Hale shouts, “I denounce these proceedings!”
Reverend Hale, from the play The Crucible, is a dynamic character who was involved in determining the guilt of convicted witches in the Salem Witch Trials. The Crucible, a play by Arthur Miller is based on the true events that occurred in the Massachusetts Bay Colony in 1953. Reverend Hale enters Salem with the assumption that there is witchcraft in the colony due to many unexplained events. Hale's character change can be traced in events that occurred throughout the story. He seeks to convict and condemn the witches in the beginning of the play, but by the end, he realizes the corruption of Salem in the convectors, judges, and witnesses and seeks to change the fate of the accused.