I do not agree with Ryder's assessment of Abigail. Initially, I think Abigail is selfish and is doing everything for herself so that she can have John Proctor. Abigail says, specifically, "oh, I marvel how such a strong man may let such a sickly wife be -." The quote supports what I think because Abigail wants John. Another one is, she started blaming other people to keep from getting whipped. For instance, she says " I saw Sarah Good with the devil." Abigail thinks that she can just blame someone else and she will get out of trouble. Abigail is the villain for blaming other people instead of saying she lied to try and get what she wanted.
During the late 17th century a total of 200 people were accused of participating in witchcraft, while 19 people lost their lives to the mass hysteria. In The Crucible by Arthur Miller, a group of girls start a huge uproar in Salem, Massachusetts when they start screeching about Salemites being associated with the Devil. Throughout the play write, it shows the consequences of mass hysteria and how it puts people's lives in danger. Abigail Williams causes a wave of mass hysteria and because of her trickery, innocent people have died by her and the other girl’s actions, for this Abigail is the most unforgivable character in The Crucible.
This is the most defining characteristic that shows her malice. All cultures have definite laws to punish those who take the life of someone else. It is abhorred by everyone, especially in a culture of piety. Murder is so abominable because it ends life, the God given right of life. Even the malicious Abigail knew this, whether or not if she did respect her Puritan religion. The more people she killed, the less it meant to her. The town started to realize the horror taking place--even some of the girls. But Abigail no longer had any consideration for her sins and continued to persecute more and more innocent people.
Abigail is one example of a character that allows jealousy to control her actions. For example, when John and Abigail talk to each other at the beginning, Abigail keeps broaching the topic of their love and also calls Elizabeth “...a cold, sniveling woman” (Miller 24). This shows that Abigail still loves John and hates Elizabeth because she is John’s wife which embodies jealousy. There are also many people in Salem that Abigail could have accused and Elizabeth has a good reputation which makes her a smaller target. Therefore, it is conspicuous that Elizabeth’s allegation was not coincidently by the girl her husband had an affair with, but instead completely out of
The way that Abigail’s actions come full circle adds irony and John’s execution adds an element of remorse. Their relationship was doomed from the start, Abigail knew this and simply wanted to be a homewrecker. She gets what she deserves but not in the expected way, she now has to live with the result of her actions for the rest of her life. She has caused the whole town to resort to complete chaos and paranoia all for the attention of a man and not wanting to convict herself of her “bewitching” actions. Without the scandalous and twisted relationship between Abigail and John, neither the book nor the movie would be quite the
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 is willing to accuse any one in her path of witchcraft even if it means taking the lives of those close to her. Abigail Williams’ emotional desire guides her actions even if it conflicts with morality.
Abigail is the villain in this play. She’s the woman who holds grudges, is selfish, and a great liar. Abigail seems to be especially gifted at spreading destruction and chaos wherever she goes. She is able to manipulate others, for example, all her friends and the whole town. In addition, she obtains control over all of them and sends nineteen uninvolved people to their deaths. All these things add up. Abigail 's heartless attitude is shown in act two when she frames and accuses Elizabeth Proctor for witchcraft. She desired and longed for this revenge on poor Proctors innocent wife, aiming for her through out the play. Later on in Act Three she seems to lose her last attachment of society by destroying John Proctor, who she claims to love with all her heart. When John attempts and threatens to expose Abigail’s wrong doings, she skillfully manages to turn the whole problem around on him, sending him off
Abigail Williams calls Elizabeth’s name in court accusing her of witchcraft: “she (Abigail) wants me dead, john, you know it” Elizabeth said. Abigail started this hysteria hoping to kill Elizabeth so she could have her husband. By looking at The Crucible by Arthur Miller, one can see how the people were being accused of witchcraft in Salem, which is important because it all started upon John’s adultery with Abigail Williams and ended up causing innocent people to die.
The Salem Witch Trials began in Salem Massachusetts in 1629. Many people were accused of being a witch and many lives were lost.
One character flaw that Abigail Williams had acquired was lust. She was completely driven and had no self-control of her lust. She lusted John Proctor. Abigail Williams was madly obsessed with John and it made her, in the long run, go completely insane. One quote from the play that supports this is “ Gah! I’d almost forgot how strong you are John Proctor!” This proves that Abigail still had feelings for John Proctor, and that she still lusts for him. Another example is “John- I am waiting for you every night.” This shows her obsession
“The Crucible” is a play, by Arthur Miller, about the Salem Witch Trials. After reading “The Crucible”, you will be asking yourself, is it necessary for a person to suffer? The answer to the question is shown through the characters, Giles Corey, John and Elizabeth Proctor, and Abigail Williams.
When people think of the play, “The Crucible”, they usually picture the witch trials and women being hanged, but Arthur Miller depicts the witch trials in a completely new light. He shows through a story that the witch trials were much more than just people calling others witches. There was deceit, pain, greed, and more. Through the play, we follow the character, Abigail, observe her actions and their consequences. We witness the lives of people she impacts, what happens to them, and how many times she lies to get her way. Abigail does all this for the man that she loves and had an affair with, John Proctor. If the reader begins to focus on John, his actions and what he stands for, they are easily able to recognize he portrays characteristics of the flawed nature of an individual. It is shown through the fact that he had an affair, isn’t able to forgive himself, and at the end of the book, is unable to give up something dear to him to save himself and others.
One common question about The Crucible is how Abigail Williams is the most evil force in the play. It is shocking when a girl talks back to authority out of disagreement, but few go as far as Abigail Williams. While she may only be 11 years old, her manipulative and vengeful personality allows her fool her Uncle and later turns a whole town against each other. She is really a master of manipulation and trickery, and she gets herself into affairs without punishment and has threaten all who oppose here. Abigail really is the devil in human form.
In The Crucible, many of the characters were slightly altered from the original Salem Witch Trials to make the story more interesting. Abigail Williams was one of those characters. She has several changes, some major, some minor, but they affect the story in a big way. While there are many differences, there are also some historically accurate things about her thrown in as well. Abigail Williams from The Crucible has several similarities and differences from the Abigail Williams from the Salem Witch Trials.
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. The cause of all this? A group of young girls in the town (ages 8 to 18) were secretly dancing and chanting naked in the woods. And at that time of the Puritans, that behavior was extremely inappropriate and looked down upon. The consequence was to be whipped. To get out of their punishment, the girls claim to have been “bewitched” by the devil himself. From this little lie at the time, it caused a massive fear and hysteria throughout the town. Further in the story we find there are hidden hatred, jealousy, and lust between the people