The Integrity In John Patrick Shanley's Play 'Doubt'

The line between losing and keeping your integrity is extremely fine and small. John Patrick Shanley supports this statement in his play Doubt. The play Doubt outlines the accusation of molestation of Mr. Flynn who is a priest. In the play there are a plethora of details and inferences to be found that either support or refute Mr. Flynn’s guilt. Based upon the evidence I discovered in Doubt, it is apparent that Father Flynn is guilty due to his overfriendliness towards Donald Muller as well as the presence of metaphorical signs. To begin, Father Flynn appears to be guilty due to his fondness and overfriendliness towards all the boys. First, Flynn suggests attempting to strengthen bonds with the children of the school by taking all of them

For example, Patrick Shanley inserts a crow into multiple parts of the play. After conversing with Sister James about his concerns with his reputation and the accusations, Father Flynn proceeds to write in his Sermon book, “He takes out his little black book and writes in it. The crow caws,” (Shanley 42). Authors do everything for a reason; every little detail no matter how big or small has a hidden connotation behind it. The presence of a crow is no exception because crows are often associated with dark and negative actions. Molestation is clearly considered a negative and an action deserving of disdain. The crow may signify the darkness present in Father Flynn’s heart and how he is trying to come to terms with it. This is evident as when Flynn notices the crow landed near him, he proceeds to shoo the bird away. Furthermore, Flynn is a priest and is viewed as graceful and goodness; the crow offers a clash between the virtuous of Flynn being a priest and the wickedness of the actions he may have committed. While Flynn is should be perceived as guilty due to some ominous signs, it is also understandable why some people may view Flynn as