¨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
He begins to try to convince Proctor and others to sign documents saying they are witches so that they can go free. Hale has returned to Salem because he feels guilty for signing the death warrants of many innocent people as he says, "There is blood on my head!"(Miller 131). He pleads with the judges again to give him more time or to pardon them as there are orphans walking around Salem, and the judges seem to know they are wrong also. Reverend Hale's last attempt to save Proctor is to try to have Elizabeth convince Proctor to confess. Proctor strongly considers it but tears the confession paper up as he does not want to ruin his family name. Hale, defeated, weeps in prayer as Proctor is sent to hung.
He has begun to question what is really going on in Salem. At the end of act one, there were 12 people accused. Reverend Hale visits the Proctors to try and find out the truth of this whole thing. He is starting to question what is really going on. He does not know what to believe but he knows something is going on. John gives Hale information that helps urge him to question the court and the truth. What finally puts Hale over the edge to believing is that he finds out Rebecca Nurse has been accused of witchcraft and killing eight babies. “I am a stranger here, as you know. And in my ignorance I find it hard to draw a clear opinion of them that come accused before the court. And so this afternoon, and now tonight, I go from house to house - I come now from Rebecca Nurse’s house and -” (Miller, 198). He has been going house to house to let people know that they have been accused. Right before coming to the Proctor’s house he went to the Nurse’s house to tell them that Rebecca has been accused of being a witch. Rebecca Nurse is a godly woman and everyone knows that she is not a witch. Now that Hale knows the truth, even though he is still struggling to believe it, he urges John to testify in court. Reverend Hale has found out the truth but he is still struggling to accept
Power is said to corrupt anyone sadly not even children are immune. In The Crucible written by Arthur Miller tells a story about witchcraft which is based on actual past events that happened in Salem. In this story, Reverend Hale plays a very important role being one of the few who realizes that the witchcraft claims are a sham. It is interesting to see Hale as he is forced to deal with a major conflict, come to terms with his own motivations, and characteristics.
Arthur Miller, a prominent twentieth century playwright, is well-known for his play The Crucible. The play opens in the Puritan town of Salem, Massachusetts, in 1692. The Puritan religion is against dancing and singing because the Puritans believe these are sensuous activities. The Puritans also believe that Satan tempts human beings to carry out his work. Fear and hysteria strike Salem over the belief that the devil is in the town because Parris’s niece, Abigail Williams, was found dancing in the forest with other girls and Parris’s servant; and soon after two young girls fall sick. The town suspects the girls of witchcraft; however, Parris does not want to believe witchcraft is the cause of the trouble in Salem; so he calls in Reverend
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.
When John Proctor, a townsman falsely accused of witchcraft, says that he would rather die than confess to something he has not done, Hale tries to convince him to confess. “Life is God's most precious gift; no principle, however glorious, may justify the taking of it. ... it may well be God damns a liar less than he that throws his life away for pride.” (132) By saying this he shows that finding and revealing the truth isn’t as important to him as saving someone’s
In the book Crucible written by Arthur Miller took place in 1692. Some may believe that Reverend Hale is not to blame for all the deaths of innocent people in Salem.The only reason Reverend Hale is involved in this case, is because he is pushing his limits to get the truth. Also, to not let any guilty doers off the chain, for the reason that they will keep repeating their dirty crimes. There has been many witch trials taken place in salem, of which many people have been accused and persecuted.
Throughout the play The Crucible, there are several transformations among characters. One strong transformation is that of Reverend Hale. Hale epitomizes a very dynamic character. Throughout all of the drama in Salem, Hale changes drastically from a man with intentions to free the world from the clutches of satan to a person who realizes the Salem witch trials were all based on lies and tomfoolery.
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.
He said, "I dare not take a life without there be a proof no immaculate no slightest qualm of conscience may doubt it" (Miller 188). He did not want anyone to hang for a crime they did not commit, and he did not want any guilty conscience of it afterward. He started to realize that people are accusing others for their own gain, and when no one would listen, Hale quit the court. In Act 4, Hale tries to save people's lives by convincing them to confess. He doubts his own Puritan faith and pursues the falsely accused on his own. 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
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
He accepts that the witch trials are not true. He wants to save everyone that is still alive and accused. Since he no longer believes in the witch trials, he tries to get the accused to lie. Hale wants Goody Proctor to convince John Proctor to lie and save his own life. Something else he loses faith in, is the law. Hale says “There is blood on my head! Can you not see the blood on my head!!” (Miller, Act 4, Line 312). He says this because because he let the law decide the witches fait. Hale no longer believes in the witch trials, the law or telling the truth, especially if their life depends on
Gandhi once said, “Be the change that you wish to see in the world.” In The Crucible, written by Arthur Miller, when characters are faced with differences between one another, they tend to show what they want the world to see instead of their true beliefs. Reverend Hale fights a battle between what he has been studying his whole life against what he feels is truly right. In the end he completely undergoes an important inner change, he sees the false accusations in the witch trials and changes from believing completely in witchcraft, to protecting the innocent and doing anything in his power to save their
The first time Hale truly Stands up for Proctor is when hale says," But it does not follow that everyone accused is part of it."(Miller 513). He says this to Danforth about all the people accused and how some may be working with the Devil but that doesn’t mean all of them are. Hale now truly believes that the whole trial is a scam. At last Hale has realized what he has got himself into and now does everything in his power to stop it. Hale says at the end of act 3," I denounce these proceedings, I quit this court."(Miller 525) giving Hale his final conclusion of his thoughts on these Salem witch trials. Hale knows it's only bound to get