Opposition 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.

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 didn’t want his name to be the ruined because he felt that was all he had left. John Proctor was tragically killed for a sin he had not committed but was found a hero because people followed in his footsteps by not confessing to something they didn’t do.

In the play The Crucible by Arthur Miller, John Proctor was accused of witchcraft. John Proctor was a man of great integrity and knew he did nothing wrong. He was given the choice to confess and lie or be hung. Being the honest and stubborn man that he was, he decided his name was more important than his life. John struggled both internally and with others while trying to fight for what he thought was right.

Arthur Miller wrote play The Crucible, which is based on a real story; play begins in a very interesting moment and ends in a very dramatic scene. At the time, when the play was written, witchcraft was a big thing for people. People used witchcraft to accuse other people and take their property, or because they just don’t like them. The story shows us, how do characters have changed from the beginning of the play and until the very end. The Proctor is one of the main characters in The Crucible. During the whole play, we can see how Proctor changes. One of the main themes in The Crucible is no matter what changes people if they get into the situation where they have to make a decision about what has more meaning to them.

What others think about you is all people seem to care about. So when your reputation is good and is on the line, you will do almost anything to protect that. Reputation is the main value that the characters in The Crucible are trying to protect.

The play The Crucible by Arthur Miller is based on true events of the Salem Witchcraft Trials but is changed in some parts to make it a better story. One exaggerated part of the play is a character named John Proctor, who has an affair with a girl named Abigale and is trying to stop the Salem Witchcraft Trials because he knows that the afflicted girls are false. While he is trying to stop the trials he ends up being accused and is hanged because he would not “confess” to being a witch. Some people think John Proctor is a flawed person because he made a lot of poor decisions, but he is actually an honorable person because he tried to make up for his mistakes.

In The Crucible, John Proctor the protagonist, becomes a victim of the witch trials when his wife Elizabeth, is accused of witchcraft. In order to free his wife, Proctor must convince Judge Danforth of his wife’s innocence. Judge Danforth does not sign condemnations lightly and takes meticulous inspection of his cases to determine the guilty party. He is also a highly religious man who takes matters between God and men seriously. It is because of Danforth’s dedication to the law and God that Proctor utilizes ethos, logos, and pathos to persuade him. Ultimately, Proctor uses ethos, logos, and pathos to convince Danforth to free his wife, but is unsuccessful.

By looking at The Crucible by Arthur Miller one can see that the characterization of John Proctor reveals the theme of reputation and integrity, which is important because refusing to tell lies to protect his reputation and stop delirium from spreading throughout Salem.John Proctor states that the woman of Salem who have been locked up for witchcraft:”Excellency, does it not strike upon you that so many of these women have lived so long with such upright reputation”(3.1.305-309). Proctor represents reputation because he would rather die than have his reputation downed to a victimizer. Protecting his reputation motivates John Proctor to deny that witchcraft exists in the village. All he hears is crying out of screams and wailing which is a cause of the Devil 's work: “What 's she doing? Girl what ails you? Girl what ails you? Stop that wailing!” (1.1 620-621). John Proctor is saying that Abigail is crying out in nonsense to protect her by making people think she was cast over by witches rather people finding out about the adultery that she committed . Proctor motivates to learn how the truth can still not matter if it is not what the court wants to hear causing people to be killed and put in jail.

John Proctor denied to forget his sincerity in acknowledging his denial to deliver his life. Although he is sentenced to death and dies, he still sticks up for a trial of character, and succeeds.

Do people change? Well in the Crucible John Proctor seems to have changed his ways before he dies. John Proctor, the protagonist in Arthur Miller’s drama The Crucible, struggles with his internal conflicts. All of these conflicts cause him tremendous suffering which cause him to change his actions, the way he thinks and how others think of him. John Proctor is one of the main characters in Arthur Miller’s drama because of his immense struggle with his wife and himself which ultimately leads others to change the way they think of him.

John Proctor’s most eminent internal conflict is over the sin he has committed, adultery. Proctor cheated on his wife with Abigail Williams, and this makes Proctor feel incredibly guilty because in the town, he is “respected and even feared” (19). He tried very hard, and succeeded, with keeping this moral crime to himself. He still walked about Salem as if he was “an untroubled soul,” (21) however, avoiding the sin again would be a difficult task. Abigail flirts with him, in attempt to have him for one last night, and it’s obvious Proctor has an arduous time pushing her away. He overcomes this struggle, trying to stay committed to his already upset wife, but he had already committed a treacherous sin. John Proctor had to live the rest of his days with the loathsome guilt towards himself.

A wise man once told me "Taylor, once your values become clear, making decisions will become much easier." The wise man was my father, who to this day is a man of great integrity and morals, and continues to teach me daily about the values of Christianity and of everyday life. As I go through life, I see that my father's words are true not just in my own endeavors, but in the endeavors of others as well. It is true in fact, that once ones values become clear, making decisions will become much easier.

John Proctor’s dilemma in this novel is a very heavy one. His affair with Abigail has a huge psychological effect on him. The town of Salem’s heavy catholic influence plays a huge part in everybody in the town’s judgement. This makes Proctor think his sin is really bad and that god hates him. this makes him feel like he can’t forgive himself. Proctor changes a lot throughout the novel. Some of the things that cause him to go through these changes are his religion, His relationship with his wife, and desperateness.

The definition of crucible according to Webster’s dictionary is a place or occasion of severe test or trial. In 1692, the Salem witch trials took place in Massachusetts where several residents were accused of witchcraft. The reputation of many of these individuals and their families were ruined because of these trials. In Arthur Miller’s play, The Crucible, the author conveys the theme of reputation through the character’s speech, actions, and relationships.

In the short story The Crucible by Arthur Miller, John proctor acts as a good christian man, but when you get deeper into the book his true identity comes out. John Proctor tries to blame everyone else until things turn around and start to impact his daily life. John Proctor gets to know that he has no one to blame about the whole mishappening, but himself since he is the sinful one.