John Proctor: Tragic Hero or not? By definition a Tragic Hero is a literary character who makes a judgment error or come in contact with a fatal flaw that inevitably leads to his or her own destruction. John Proctor, a farmer in the play The Crucible, is debated as a tragic hero. John Proctor suffers from a tragic flaw that leads to his demise, that fatal flaw is his excessive pride. John Proctor suffers from a sense of excessive pride throughout the entirety of the play. In Act II of The Crucible the reader sees Proctors pride when he is arguing with Elizabeth, his wife, about sin he committed with Abbigail. One line that supports this is “I have not moved from there to there without I think to please you, and still an everlasting funeral marches round your heart. I cannot speak but I am doubted, every moment judged for lies, as though I come into a court when I come into this house!” (Miller 58) Proctor acts as if he has done no wrong and will not have a soft heart towards his wife who is doubtful after he committed …show more content…
As act III progresses Mary Warren decides to turn on Proctor saying, “John Proctor you are the Devil’s man” (Miller 121) and “I will not hang with you I love God…” (Miller 121)which then causes Proctor to lash out in rage against her lies. The court marshals arrest John and place him in jail, where Arthur Miller says they have to chain him because he throws fits of rage and he then sits like “a great bird”. (Miller 151) All of those events leads up to Proctors Tragic Flaw, which is pride. Proctors pride inevitably leads to his death because he won’t give up the good name to live out his life with his wife and children. Proctor says that he can’t lie and ruin his last name because how could he raise he boys to be men with a tarnished last
For John Proctor, this moment comes when he tears up the false confession and chooses to be hanged rather than compromise his integrity. He realizes that his pride has led him down the wrong path, and that he must pay the ultimate price for his actions. Aristotle's definition of a tragic hero includes several key characteristics. The hero must be of noble birth, have a tragic flaw, and suffer a reversal of fortune. The hero must also experience a moment of recognition, and their downfall must evoke feelings of pity and fear in the audience.
John Proctor’s excessive pride evidently led him to his downfall. In the beginning of the book, John is seen as a strong man, “in Proctor’s presence a fool felt his foolishness instantly” (Miller 20). He was seen as such a high man that he let his pride get the best of him, at first he didn't want to confess to the court about his affair with Abigail to keep his name from being blackened. When John eventually confesses to the court about his adultery with Abigail; His wife, Elizabeth, didn't know that John had already confessed, so she lied about it to keep him safe, which only made matters worse. In the end, he dies in order to keep his good name in the town.
How may I live without my name, leave me my name! ( pg )”, he gave an example as to how much he cares for his name, he didn’t want any name except for the name they had with a good reputation. Proctor was so worried about his reputation, it often got in the way of his morals of staying true to his beliefs. Proctor wasn’t aware of the fact that he and his family already had a “bad name” because of the incident at the courthouse. John Proctor was the kind of man who stuck true to his beliefs but wasn't strong enough to uphold his life and finish what he started, leading to demolition to his family's and ancestors
At last, a tragic hero realized his bad and try to fix that into right way. In the book “the crucible” John Proctor said to lawyer and judgement that “Tell them I confessed myself: say Proctor broke his knees and wept like a woman:say what you will, but my name cannot-”(p62). It reflects that he is trying to be honest, and also trying to be a good father to his child and husband to Elizabeth. This is because, if he confess and avoid death, his child cannot inherited anything and Elizabeth lived with suffer because her husband is a witch. But, Proctor doesn’t confess that he is witch, and be honest to his child and wife.
What Makes Someone a Tragic Hero? What would you do if you were involved in hysteria? How would you try to stop it from hurting the people who are most important to you? Would you let your own secrets stop you from doing the right thing?
There are many ways that John Proctor’s actions, speech, and decisions in Acts 3 and 4 illustrate a man in conflict with his society. One way that his speech shows him being in conflict with society is when he yells --with a cry of his whole soul “Because it is my name! Because I cannot have another in my life! Because I lie and sign myself to lies! Because I am not worth the dust on the feet of them that hang!
We can see where Proctor struggles with his pride in Act II, when he says to Elizabeth, “I'll not have your suspicion anymore” (Miller). Proctor gets defensive when Elizabeth questions him about his relationship with Abigail, even though he knows he has done wrong and sinned, he refuses to confess to the affair publicly. His pride gets in the way of him doing what’s right and confessing the affair to the community because he is afraid of ruining his reputation and suffering the consequences. Proctor's unwillingness to put his pride aside is one of his tragic
The Crucible, by Arthur Miller, is categorized as a dramatic tragedy, and all tragedies, by definition, have a tragic hero. So who is that hero? In this story, it would be John Proctor. According to Aristotle there are five characteristics of a tragic hero, he must have a flaw or error of judgement, he must cause his own downfall, he must recognize that he caused his own downfall, he must have pride, and his fate must be greater than he deserved. In this play, John Proctor has all of these characteristics.
In the play The Crucible by Arthur Miller, the town of Salem is afflicted with hysteria, intolerance, and accusations that lead to death. According to philosopher Aristotle, a tragic hero possesses a tragic flaw, excessive pride, and an inevitable downfall. Protagonist John Proctor illustrates a tragic hero because he is presented as happy, powerful, and privileged, which later leads him to suffer because of his own actions. First of all, John Proctor possesses a fatal flaw, pride, which is a characteristic of a tragic hero. Proctor’s fatal flaws includes honesty and pride.
John Proctor was a man of honor and had a well respected name in the town of Salem. Sadly he died tragically but as a hero. He was hanged because he was accused of doing the devil’s work. He was given the chance to save his life if he admitted on a piece of paper that he was working with the devil but he refused to tell that lie. He wanted his sons to be able to walk the streets without being shunned from the world because they deserved better.
JOHN PROCTOR: TRAGIC HERO Arthur Miller’s The Crucible is a greatly revered work, and it reflected the times of America in the days of McCarthyism. Perhaps the character that connected to the audience most was John Proctor, the protagonist of the play. He reflects the mistakes that we have made in our lives, and the struggle that some of have while trying to take the blindfold off of other people. He should be considered a hero because he feels guilt, and therefore tries to make up for the fact that he once had an affair.
Proctor is a well respected upperclassman and him sacrificing his life led to his family living a greater life. To the court with great emotion proctor states “ Because I am not worth the dust on the feet of them that hang! How may I live without my name? I have given you my soul; leave me my name!” (143).
John Proctor, the protagonist of The Crucible, qualifies as a tragic hero because he has a tragic flaw, is ethically superior to the other characters in the play, and struggles to find peace with himself in midst of the lies and chaos during this play. John Proctor possesses a tragic flaw that forces him to hide his prideful mistake, which eventually brings about his downfall. I guess the old saying is true, “Pride comes before the fall”. John Proctor’s tragic flaw is his excessive pride, and he expresses it abundantly throughout the play. In Act I, it states, “ Proctor: Abby, I may think of you softly from time to time.
Proctor doubts his goodness and constantly seeks forgiveness. This is evident when he says "I cannot mount the giblet like a saint, my honesty is broke elizebeth, I am no good man. When Proctor finally has the bravery to go to court, despite the risk of exposure, he breaks down under the pressure of Abigails power and denounces god in frustration. As a result of this he is arrested. In act four, Proctor's integrity outweighs his will to live.
(…) Proctor tears the paper and crumples it” (Miller 133). It is at this point that he is given the chance to be with his wife, children, and live, but he throws this all away because he values his name over the ones he loves and fails to see the harm his arrogance and stubbornness