The crucible, based during the Salem, Massachusetts witch trials of 1692. A constant theme through out the play is your personal reputation, maintaining a good name. Judge Danforth a well respected man in the society that has the supreme rule over the court. He is known for making the right decisions and never going against them. Innocent and guilty people have been put to death underneath his Judgement, to him this demonstrates his superiority and power. Along with the final say in the putting to death of people during the Salem witch trials. Miller portray’s Danforth’s characterization as stubborn, highly religious, and arrogant in order to to provide a clearer understanding. Judge Danforth wants to keep the full respect of the people, and therefore is stubborn on any decision he makes in the court, so he …show more content…
These are reminders of his power and a certain amount of respect he thinks he deserves. “You surely do not doubt my justice?”(89). Danforth makes this remark is response to the doubt people are having towards him. This question is more to make a point of his high power. “Do you know who I am? Danforth is speaking towards Francis Nurse. And proceeds to say "And do you know that near to four hundred are in the jails from Marblehead to Lynn and upon my signature?” and lastly says “And seventy-two condemned to hang by that signature?”(103). Mr. Danforth uses another rhetorical question when people continue to question his authority. He then goes into death of what he has done and can do. This is where he comes into being arrogant. Judge possesses great power as the Judge in the Supreme Court, and he exercises them by sentencing people to prison or more largely to be hung. These actions and words are necessary to keep the people of Salem in the societies rules. Along with seen through Danforth eyes as part of his was of maintaining respect with a little
Judge Danforth is responsible for the outcomes in Salem because he is arrogant, superstitious, and unwilling to listen to reason. Danforth accuses countless girls of witchcraft with no proof to support
In this quote he is saying he would rather suffer through hell than swear his allegiance to King George III. He scares the colonists by making them think the British soldiers are being set lose on the
It was statement made to the public to “prove” the why and how the king of England was a cruel tyrant.
He believes strongly in his ability to judge the character of the informants. This comes into play when others question his judgement of Abigail and the girls from the woods. Danforth has a great deal of authority over the verdict of the accused, he has the power to judge them as not guilty. Danforth being the primary judge means he could have admitted to his foolishness and told the community that the accused people were not witches, and it would have made the townspeople believe that there was no witch problem in Salem at all. Danforth is too concerned with his reputation to admit that his judgement, at first, was clouded.
Danforth thinks he is being guided by God, so nobody will be punished unjustly. In Act Four, this was proven wrong. When it becomes evident the allegations are false, Governor Danforth refuses to accept the truth (1230). After failing to understand the truth, he hangs all of the innocent people to avoid destroying his own reputation (1232-12330. If, indeed, Governor Danforth would have been guided by God, the innocent would have been free, not wrongfully punished and hung.
Secondly, Judge Danforth’s irrationality and ignorance brings about poor decisions on his part. One of the instances where Danforth reveals his following attitude is when he denies to even look at a deposition presented by John Proctor as described by his words “ No, no, I accept no depositions” (Miller 88). John Proctor hands him a deposition signed by Mary warren, stating that the accusations made by Abigail and the girls are false. In this regard Judge Danforth replies to John Proctor by repetitively says “No” thereby emphasizing his adamant view on this subject.
“We are apt to shut our eyes to a painful truth” (264). He uses this because he knows that this will help them open their eyes and face the truth. Another example would be when said “ They are sent to bind and rivet upon us with those chains… " ( 265). He said this because if they do not do anything about their problem then they're basically chained by the British and if they do not face it they will be under the control their forever. He uses this to show that they are like slaves in imprisonment.
Power is something that allows the one with it to control and oppress others. In the play The Crucible by author Arthur Miller, use characters from the play to show power. However the character with the most power is Judge Danforth. The reason Judge Danforth is the most powerful out of all the characters in The Crucible is because, Judge Danforth has the power of speaking, the power of speaking is where Judge Danforth decides who is able to speak or who is able to be heard, where Judge Danforth says “Turn your back.
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.
When he says this, he is defending his reputation and the court in fear of being exposed because part of him knows this isn’t true. Later you would think after Abigail left he would have changed but no he is just scared for his life. Act 4 states, “Tonight, when I open my door to leave my house—a dagger clattered to the ground. Silence. Danforth absorbs this.
Do you understand my meaning?”. This is showing the the judge had complete trust in them and when John had pointed out that the things that the women were doing were kinda suspicious he questions it and realizes that the girls are faking all of it. Sadly he does nothing, still knowing what all the women are doing is suspicious he doesn 't stop the hangings and imprisonments. Judge Danforth may have not started the Hysteria started in the town but he fed into it by believing Abigail and not stopping her from lying when he found out she was lying to the court and the people in the town of Salem. You could say that Judge did not know that Abigail was lieing out of nativity and all his actions were lead by his dense nature because of his faith, blinding him from what was in front of him because he needed something to justify the reason for killing and imprisoning these women.
Danforth: Judge, Jury, and Executioner Judge Danforth’s position in the crucible is the Judge assigned to the proceedings of the Salem witch trials. Instead of treating this immense responsibility with the respect and restraint that is needed, Danforth abused his power by betraying the people of Salem and the Law. He did not listen to the people of Salem defending themselves before inevitably being sent to death; and he cared more about his reputation and the law than he did about peoples’ lives. Danforth was a ruthless power over the people of Salem he demanded respect for himself and the court; and nothing was more important than that.
The people who preside over the trials are corrupt. People who were accused of witchcraft are wrongfully indicted, and those transgressions must be justified. Danforth is the governor of Massachusetts who thinks of himself as a fair man. Thomas Putnam who has grudges against the people of Salem, and Abigail is a shameless liar who leads the accusations against the people of Salem. What the people of Salem have seen as demonic possessions of the girls is nothing more than an act of deception.
Judge Danforth’s unwavering egotism culminates in the unfortunate deaths of Salem townsfolk. Arthur Miller’s classic play The Crucible demonstrates how the actions of one person can affect many others. Judge Danforth cares more about his own reputation than what is right. Often times people try to think of what is right instead of saving their own face, Judge Danforth is an exception to this stereotype. The Salem Witch Trials were a horrible time where many people lost their lives due to an unjust court system.
“Character Analysis over The Crucible” Arthur Miller is a commonly-known playwright, most famous for his 1953 play, The Crucible. The basis for The Crucible came from the witch trials which occurred in Salem, Massachusetts during the puritan era. Miller even uses some of the same characters in his dramatized play that were a part of the original witch trials in Salem. However, Miller made a few alterations to the historical members of the Salem society in order to suit his dramatic purpose in The Crucible, particularly Abigail Williams, John Proctor, and Reverend Samuel Parris.