Courage, weakness, and truth are personality traits that many authors incorporate into their characters. In The Crucible, Arthur Miller has three characters that are strong representations of these character traits. The Crucible is about these three things, which are represented by Giles Corey, Mary Warren, and Reverend John Hale. Corey represents courage perfectly in The Crucible. Corey has enough courage to accuse Thomas Putnam of “reaching out for land” in court (Miller III,1074).
Arthur Miller implemented heroism in the play, The Crucible, using the characters; John Proctor, Elizabeth Proctor, and Giles Corey. The first person to display heroism is John Proctor. John Proctor did not want to have his confession nailed on the church door and explained why, “I blacken all of them, when this is nailed to the church the very day they hang for silence.” (Miller 143). This shows that John is heroic because he chose to not let the church use his confession and let innocent people die because of it.
Arthur Miller, the author of The Crucible, analogizes Salem to a crucible with violent witchcraft accusations and chaotic events predominating everyone’s lives. For instance, the protagonist, John Proctor, is forced to make a choice at the end of Act Four—to falsely confess of communicating with the Devil and live to take care of his family, or to be convicted and have a pure reputation. Proctor’s ultimate decision to deny the false confession is virtuous because it restricts his inner guilt, saves his reputation, and shows a valiant stance against the insanity of Salem’s witch trials. John Proctor’s affair with Abigail Williams haunts him with internal guilt and tarnishes his reputation, but his decision to sacrifice his life solves these
In Arthur Miller’s The Crucible, most of the characters are those of weak values, afraid to stand up for what is truly right. They see the actions of others, willing to give their lives to show that the leaders have it all wrong, and continue to persecute innocent people. Elizabeth is not such a character; she is devoted, strong and sees what is wrong in Salem. She does not give in to the lies, despite it nearly costing her life. Elizabeth Proctor’s strength and bravery help her to endure a struggling marriage, an accusation of witchcraft, and her husband’s actions as a martyr.
There is nothing wrong with pride, but there is something wrong with letting pride destroy relationships. John Proctor, from the Crucible (Arthur Miller), is a character of many words. Whether he be proud, stubborn, foolish, or noble, the decision has been laid out and the calculations completed. In the end, he saves his soul, but his life is lost forever. Pride has lead John to the court, but a change in thought leads him to nobles actions which result in horrible consequences.
Caleb DeHart Mr. Peddicord English 3 January 3, 2023 Individual Voices In the Crucible, there are many different motifs displayed. However, the main one is that the power of an individual voice can be terrifying. This means that individuals who are not powerful and are weak can still have a powerful voice. This suggests that all people throughout humanity have some power and that one’s voice is their greatest weapon.
Many people would think that a play about the ultra-religious Puritans would not revolve around so many sins and sinners. During this time, if one was caught doing witchcraft, it called for immediate death. However, as clearly displayed throughout the drama, some Puritans were willing to break the rules and others had to take the fall for the rule breakers. In The Crucible by Arthur Miller, many of the seven deadly sins are shown, but pride is most prevalent. John Proctor shows a lot of pride for himself in this play.
The author of The Crucible, Arthur Miller, develops the characters of Abigail Williams, Mary Warren, John Proctor, and Elizabeth Proctor through dialogue and actions, revealing their moral dilemma, their motivations, and the consequences of their choices in the trouble in Salem. The oppressive atmosphere of Salem is vividly portrayed through imagery, contributing to the characters' feelings of paranoia. For instance, Miller describes the courtroom as "solemn" and "cold," symbolizing the unforgiving nature of the town. This imagery not only emphasizes the characters' sense of dread but also highlights the power dynamics at play, where desperate neighbors are pitted against each other in a fight for survival. Moreover, the dense forests surrounding
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. John Proctor is shown to be both a hero and a flawed man in regards to his lechery.
Although Elizabeth was not the best wife at some moments, she loved her husband so much that she lied for him. When questioned by Danforth if Proctor committed lechery she said faintly “No, sir” (Miller 113). Elizabeth lies for the first time to save her husband because she is loving and cares about him. Although Elizabeth is not truthful, she protects her values by doing what she feels is right for her husband. Abigail is revengeful throughout the play at Elizabeth.
Self preservation is one of mankind's base instincts and is ever present in everyone. This animalistic instinct can cause a person to do things seen as morally wrong by others or some will go to the most extreme lengths to keep themselves alive. Within the story The Crucible by Arthur Miller onse such character displays a very evident sense of self preservation and that character is none other than Mary Warren. Within the story Mary Warren is very guilty of raising hysteria amongst the town because of her actions due to self preservation.
Everyone knows it's hard to tell the truth, but how many would if faced with death? Arthur Miller's play, The Crucible, starts with one bad deed that ultimately effects everyone and leads to their death. Throughout the story, John Proctor shows courage by confessing to his wife, trying to convince people the girls are liars , and decides not to sign his confession paper for dignity. Although it's often hard, Arthur Miller uses The Crucible to show it takes courage to tell the truth. Opening up to his wife,
It is ironic how the Puritans were called to lived a life exactly as the bible says, yet many of them sinned and lived quite oppositely. The Crucible, written by Arthur Miller, touches on the misery during the Salem Witch Trials, and also how the Puritan community fell apart. The dark themes are common in most tragedies. Many of the main characters committed sins such as lust and greed, but the most detrimental sin committed was pride. Pride is prevalent in the actions of the tragic hero, John Proctor.
The distress over the noose in the middle of the city of Salem, Massachusetts was no easy situation to be kept out of. In Arthur Miller’s play, The Crucible, the morals and values of the people of Salem were displayed in their actions when helping themselves and others be free of this dread. Upon which, cowardliness, panic, agitation, aggression, and courage weighed upon their shoulders. Courage was shown through people’s ability to speak up for themselves and remain persistent in their claims of innocence. Hysteria ignited this wave of courage amongst the people of Salem, in which those who were threatened by The Salem Witch Trials showed their courage in a variety of ways.
Soon many were accused including some of the most respected people in Salem, testing the courage of many. The major theme in The Crucible is that standing up up for something you believe in takes great courage; as demonstrated by the characterization of John Proctor, Giles Corey, and Rebecca Nurse.
