The Importance Of Reputation In The Crucible

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In a setting of Salem, Massachusetts 1692, religion is the direct reflection of one's social standing. Reputation is extremely important for the town, as it is your only way to get a fair hearing and respect from the people. The protectiveness of reputation is necessary in The Crucible to justify yourself when presented with fallacious arguments. In this play the importance of reputation is revealed though the uses of ethos, logos and pathos. The protectiveness of reputation is uncovered through various characters such as Reverend Hale, Reverend Parris, and John Proctor. Reverend Parris shows the first example of the importance of reputation in the Salem. In Act I, lines 63-66, Parris discovers the girls dancing in the forest; he recognizes the threat of witchcraft that has formed in his …show more content…

In Act It shows that everyone accused was either a witch or innocent, and that evidence did not have to be brought up to prove any source of credibility. Without a good reputation would provoke unjust accusations being placed upon you, and no one to defend you. The protectiveness of self-image reflects on Arthur Miller's message on unfair government practices. The reason the people of Salem were so protective of their reputation was because the government in Salem did not have any uniform limitations. This made the government in Salem very biased towards more respectable and powerful figures in the town. Bias in government is shown in The Crucible and in news media today. The issue of bias in news we hear about everyday is very common. Bias is spread rapidly and is not reliable, this compare to The Crucible as hysteria spread throughout the town and accusations were very prominent. The bias Arthur Miller reveals is how the government tended to follow in compliance to the more reputable people in authority; how evidence did not have to be present to accuse

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