John Proctor's Archetype In The Crucible

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. He also goes on and tries to explain to an unforgiving crowd that the witch hunts are a fake, and that it is all led by a lovesick girl.

In the Crucible, many of the characters go through changes because of the intensity of the situation. But there is only one character that I think changed the most, and that is John Proctor who is the protagonist of the novel The Crucible by Arthur Miller. I think that John Procotor changes the most in the Crucible because he is in every act and mostly in every scene, and throughtout  the play I see more drama (Dynamic Character) in him than any other character in the Crucible and I will go through and tell you how John Proctor changes in the Crucible.

In the story known as, “The Crucible”, a character known as John Proctor has wishes and desires that conflict directly with the society where he lives and his own conscious. The ramifications for his natural and circumstantial disposition of anti-conformity clearly create conflict in between John Proctor and the town which he called home. To further investigate the reasoning behind his rebellious zeal and untimely death we need to examine John Proctor’s main two conflicts during the Salem witch trials.

“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! How may I live without my name? I have given you my soul; leave me my name!”(1272). These words by John Proctor exemplify his character by making, in my opinion, not a very wise decision. In the play The Crucible, John Proctor’s unwillingness can be seen as selfish because others hung before he confessed his affair with Abigail but he redeemed himself by undoing his confession and refusing to sell the court other names, which Arthur Miller used to convey a message about a crucible being put through a fire/trial and coming out in its purest form, through the character of John

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”.

“Everyone thinks of changing the world, but no one thinks of changing Himself.” Leo Tolstoy is correct about how we like to blame others before we see each other. However In “The Crucible” by Arthur Miller. There are Dramatic changes in many characters and their journies.One of the hardest lessons in life is letting go. Whether it’s guilt, anger, love, loss or betrayal. Change is never easy. We fight to hold on and we fight to let go. So does John Proctor the guy who changes somewhat, Abigail Williams who changes the people that surround her, and John hale who changes very dramatically throughout the book.

Death, can tear anyone apart, but when it's for a cause it can open a family, friends, or even a nation's eyes. When a national icon dies for a cause it can a can make the whole nation take a step back and look at what's really going on. An excellent examples are John F. Kennedy, Martin Luther King Jr, or in this case John Proctor from The Crucible, by Arthur Miller. In this play people are being hanged for an accusation of witchcraft, which is necessary to restore the social justice in Salem. This play can be compared to history, with information about the play itself, and lastly how the tragic hero's death makes a difference in this play.

In the book, The Crucible, Arthur Miller introduces us to John Proctor. Proctor is married and simple, yet he's argumentative toward his town for the persecution of “witches.” Proctor faces conflict throughout the town, his morals are challenged and his view on ethical implication are changing.

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? In The Crucible, John Proctor is dragged down by his flaws of guilt and lust. His journey shows that honesty and loyalty are very important traits to have. He redeems himself by being selfless and helping other people rather than thinking of himself. John Proctor qualifies as a tragic hero because his wrongdoings lead to his downfall. This downfall helps John to forgive himself which makes him a better person at the end of the story. In the face of hysteria, John decides not to focus on himself, instead he

Arthur Asher Miller was born on October 17, 1915 in Harlem, NY, and was the son of two Polish immigrants. His father owned a successful clothing shop and the family was wealthy until the stock market crash of 1929, the start of the Great Depression. The family moved to Brooklyn afterwards. Unable to go college after high school, Miller worked numerous odd jobs until he was accepted into the University of Michigan. There he wrote his first play, No Villain. Miller’s playwright professor was Kenneth Rowe, who taught him various techniques to create intricate plays. Due to a college football injury, he was not in active service during World War II, thus starting his writing career.

John Proctor is a good man despite anything others may say about him. He displays three very noble qualities throughout the witch trials which are bravery, honesty, and an overall goal to save lives even to the point where he sacrificed his. While many argue John is a bad man because he committed adultery they are entirely mistaken. Just because he had one bad sin gives no right to anybody to call him a bad person when clearly the good side of him is shown more than the bad. John Proctor is a good man who displays the characteristics of a hero and could be seen as one for giving his life for his friends.

“I have given you my soul; leave me my name!” (Miller 1357). This quote is said by John Proctor, a character in “The Crucible,” who is pleading to keep his name reputable when accused of witchcraft. Arthur Miller writes “The Crucible” to portray the Salem witch trials of 1692. The people of Salem have grievances in which they need a scapegoat. As a result, people begin to blame witchery on others whom they have vengeances with. These actions result in many well, respected people's execution. A prime example of a character who goes through this process is John Proctor. The court of Salem tests John Proctor by threatening him to confess in exchange for his life. This brings out many of his weaknesses and strengths. Sadly, this results in

The Crucible was written by Arthur Miller, in the 1950. The story setting begins in a small town called Salem, Massachusetts in 1692. Two of the characters that played important roles in this story were John Proctor and Elizabeth Proctor. These two characters were a married couple who lived on the outskirts of Salem, Massachusetts. John Proctor displayed himself as an honest hard working man, who had only one secret. This secret was his affair with Abigail Williams. Abigail Williams was trying to get rid of Elizabeth, because she wanted to take over her spot as John Proctors wife. Due to Abigail's jealousy and revenge for Elizabeth she mentions Elizabeth's name during the Salem witch trials which causes nothing but chaos. During this chaos, John Proctor displayed traits of being short tempered and aggressive. The characteristics of anger, aggression, innocence and compassion where portrayed by John and Elizabeth Proctor in the story The Crucible by Arthur Miller.

In my opinion John Proctor is the protagonist of the crucible, because there are some reasons. One reason for me is that John Proctor is starting the Salem witch trials indirectly. It is Abigail who starts the trials, but she only does it to kill John’s wife to be the only one John love and they finally can get married. Because of that the relationship between John, his wife and Abigail is in the foreground. Another reason why John is very important in the Crucible is that he has a strong voice in the community. Furthermore he is one of the leader who fight against the trials, he never stops criticize and saying his opinion out loud, so he gets some people to think about, if the trials are right and witches really exist.

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.