“People at war with themselves will always have collateral damage in the lives of those around them.” In Arthur Miller’s play The Crucible, Abigail Williams is a selfish 17 year old who wants everyone around her to be as miserable as her because she cannot get what she desires most in this world, John Proctor. With this being said Abigail is the person who is most responsible for the Salem Witch Trials. Despite the fact that she is the trigger to the mass agitation which happens in the novel, she is not the only one at fault. The role of John Proctor and Judge Danforth are also to blame. In the beginning, Abigail Williams, Betty Parris, Mercy Lewis and black slave Tituba are seen dancing and what appears to be conjuring, in the woods by Reverend Samuel Parris. Knowing the consequence for this sin is a hanging, Abigail lies in attempt to get out of troubles way. After interrogation from many, Abigail ultimately puts the blame on black slave, Tituba, saying she forced Abby and the other girls to perform the sinful tasks. “She comes to me every night to go and drink blood!’’ (Act 1) Since Tituba is a slave, Abigail knows she has power over her and that people won't believe a slave over her. Just incase Tituba was not enough of …show more content…
After witnessing his niece and daughter in the woods, he confronts her in a somewhat threatening manner. “You have promised my very character. I have given you a home, child, I have put clothes upon your back- now give me an upright answer!” (Act 1). He is the one who encourages Abigail to confess her sin of dancing in the woods. If it wasn't for this, perhaps Abigail would have stayed quiet and not caused a disruption in the town. Another act by Parris is the fear he plants in his town. “There is either obedience or the church will burn like hell is burning!” (Act 2) This causes a disturbance of peace in the town and leads everyone to question and accuse each
In Puritan times, women and children held little to no power compared to men. However, Abigail Williams, a 17-year-old girl, obtains power through accusations of witchcraft. To keep her own secrets, Abigail accuses Tituba, a black slave, of witchcraft. Tituba frantically confesses to avoid being hanged, and she and Abigail list names of other women who they claim are witches. These accusations, which only grow throughout the play, give power to the accuser.
Abigail said that Tituba bewitched her in the woods to take off all her clothes and bleed in the huge pot. She also said that Elizabeth Proctor was doing some horrible things to her. While the court session proceeded to go on Abigail started to say that she saw basically the whole town with the devil and after he started to ramble off names the rest of the girls followed. They lied about all this because when they all got back to Betty´s house Abigail said that she would kill or accuse them of being a witch if they said that Abigail was
Yet another accusation made by Abigail to try and get Tituba in trouble. All of these very shallow accusations because she doesn’t want the Reverends to think it was all her fault that she was in the woods. Abigail is sly as a snake and will continue to be. “Give me a word John, a soft word.” Proctor, “No, no.
Additionally, civil disobedience is displayed when Abigail lies to Parris in the beginning of the play. One of the first of her many lies, it similarly accompanies alongside the first example. While originally being accused of dancing with the devil, she pleads to parris,
Arthur Miller wrote The Crucible in 1953. Arthur Miller wrote the play because he was inspired by McCarthyism. McCarthyism was the hunt for communists that was taken too far. In The Crucible he presented a universal message. He was comparing how communists did exist and witches did not, but yet they were both taken as serious.
22. Tituba was forced to confess what really happened because, they were going to beat her until she confessed about what happened. She confessed to witchcraft, and also because Mrs. Putnam’s told Tituba to do the ritual and that is why Tituba did what she did 23. Abigail and the girls knew that at one point they would get caught so Abigail would do anything to keep herself from getting in trouble, so when she found out that people were accusing them, she stared to say that the devil forced them in to doing all those things because she knew that they would get some serious consequences for doing what they did by dancing and doing witch things and plus she is the leader of the group so they do what she says 24. She wants john to go in town and tell the authorities that the girls are lying about what really happened.
Abigail is extremely concerned with her well-being and reputation. In Act One, Reverend Parris confronts Abigail about dancing in the forest, and, instead of confessing, she begins denouncing others. This illustrates how she is willing to allow others to be harmed because of her extreme fear. One example of this is when Abigail states, “Not I sir—Tituba and Ruth” (Miller 15). The character of the residents of Salem is not exceptional.
Abigail exclaims of her passion and love for God when in reality she is filled with sin and lust. Opportunity was given for honesty throughout The Crucible of which
Selfishness Consumes Human beings are innately driven by self-interest. They pursue goals, careers, achievements and all too often are deceitful and cheat in order to obtain them. The character Abigail in the play the Crucible is no different. The play, the Crucible, depicts the mass hysteria that overtook a town in Massachusetts during the Salem witch trials. In the midst of this fear, this panic, in the eye of the storm, lies the character of Abigail Williams.
In the first Act, Abigail manipulates the girls into helping her lie about the forest “incident” in the beginning of the play. "Now look you, all of you we danced and Tituba conjured Ruth Putnam 's dead sisters, and that is all. Mark this let either of you breathe a word and I will come to you in the black of some terrible night and I will bring a pointy reckoning that will shudder you." (Miller I, 20). In this quote, Abigail becomes aware of what she did in the forest along with the girl and threatens them to keep silence if they want to keep their lives.
If The Witch Don’t Fit, You Must Acquit In “The Crucible” 1953 written by Arthur Miller, wrote that hysteria in any place can ruin lives. The year is 1692 in Salem, Massachusetts. In Salem at the time it was a modest town brimming with Puritans. In the town of Salem, little secrets, jealousy and massive hysteria spread around the town.
One of the most powerful human emotions is desire. Everyone is constantly trying to fulfill their own desires. A desire or passion may be so strong it can conflict with morality. In The Crucible by Arthur Miller, Abigail Williams, is driven to go against her moral duty and pursue John Proctor. She will stop at nothing to see her plan through.
Abigail Williams In the play "The Crucibles" by Arthur Miller, Abigail Williams was not such a good Puritan woman. She was a very young and gorgeous women but had sinned a lot against her Puritan religion. Abigail definitely did not make the right decisions for herself. She is an magnificent liar and tends to get others in trouble to save herself from getting caught.
(Miller 12). This quote shows how Abigail has changed and what she’d do if she was confronted with such a situation. She made the decision quickly and opted to only save herself. Over the course of the book it gets represented pretty well that she is capable of doing everything to hold up her reputation: she wants to be a saint. Every decision she makes is like a little test that shows what kind of person and friend she is.
Abigail and the society itself are to blame for the events in Salem causing murder and outrage in this town. Abigail is the character mainly to blame for the outrage in Salem. She is a liar, double faced hypocrite that will stop at nothing to get herself out of the mess that she created. Making her one of the main killers of these innocent puritan people.