Abigail is a selfish and manipulative girl. Abigail Williams stirs up the entire town of Salem against many people, including Elizabeth and John Proctor, because of her selfish personal ambition to be John's next wife, as well as her treacherous lust for the power that she gains by accusing innocent people of witchcraft. When Abigail and John Proctor had their affair, Abigail told John “You loved me John Proctor, and whatever sin it is, you love me yet! , pity me, pity me!” Abigail hates that John
If people had used evidence instead of just accusations then they would have realized that Mr.Jacobs isn’t a witch, just a person accused for Thomas Putnam's own personal gain. Thomas Putnam's anger toward the town for not getting enough respect is what caused him to accuse an innocent man of witchcraft, demonstrating how emotions can lead to immoral
For one of the six merry murderesses, Ezekiel Young, her crime stemmed from the removal of a positively valued stimuli. Her boyfriend who she lived with for a while told her that he was single when they first started dating. He lied, he was married to six other women. She became very angry and hurt that this man betrayed her. Again, unable to cope with the negative emotions in the moment, she ended up poisoning him.
During Jazz Age people’s spiritual values, traditions and customs were decaying. Lust had took over them and they could easily betray their spouses, just like Myrtle, Daisy and Tom in Great Gatsby. As myrtle’s sister had mentioned to Nick “neither of them can stand the person they’re married to” (p. 23). She proposed that if no one is happy in their marriage they should get divorce and get into a relationship that would satisfy them, because “you can’t live forever, you can’t live forever” (p. 24). Myrtle also suggested that morality has been long dead inside men and they “will cheat you every time.
Her initial manipulation attempts are unsuccessful, but Marie continues: “She harassed and bedeviled him so, / that he had no choice but to tell her” (lines 87-88). The use of “harassed and bedeviled” instantly casts his wife’s insistence as suspicious and malicious. Marie confirms the suspicions when the wife schemes with a knight who loved her to get rid of Bisclavret. Even though “she’d never loved [the knight] at all,” the wife offers herself to him in return for stealing Bisclavret’s clothes (line 107). “So Bisclavret was betrayed, / ruined by his own wife” (line 125-126, emphasis added).
“But I will cut off my hand before I’ll ever reach for you again” (Miller 146). This highlights John's hate for Abigail and how he would hurt himself than touch her again. John loves his wife and even though he cheated on her before he never wants to hurt her again. Abigail feels that John’s wife, Elizabeth, is an evil woman and is trying to blacken her name in the village.
just like today, kids will follow along with their peers or parents. “And Lewis said it was all the fault of Martha Cory, the very same Gospel Woman that Ann had already accused. Like Ann, Lewis claimed that she saw Martha Cory’s spirit roasting a spectral man on a spit inside her fireplace”(Schanzer 45). If one person became afraid of another because they were seen doing strange things or wearing strange vestments, then they might convince others that the person is an imp or a witch/wizard. “Common history has painted Annand her young peers as selfish, vicious fakers who fueled the witchcraft trials out of boredom or spite.
Many believe that it’s Tom Buchannan to be blamed because he lies to Wilson who killed his wife Myrtle to get his revenge towards Gatsby by getting him killed for trying to take Daisy away from him. Gatsby could have prevented his own death if he didn’t lose to his own ego to claim Daisy, as his own to claim dominance over Tom would later seal his fate in a death bed. During chapter 7 things get heated when Tom and Gatsby started arguing “Your wife doesn’t love you …. she’s never loved you. She loves me”(131-7).
The affair he had led to Abigail telling lies about not doing witchcraft. All in all the characters who play the role as a witch, tell lies in order to not be put on trial. Abigail Williams was a very arrogant, and one of the main characters in the
Hale, defeated, weeps in prayer as Proctor is sent to hung. Reverend Hale's downfall in the novel was his quick assumption that there was witchcraft in Salem. Everyone's fear of the unknown and the chance of witches being present in Salem caused many deaths due to jumping to conclusions. Although he had the best intentions to bring justice to Salem, he made an improper call. He realizes his error and tries with all he has to make it right, but fails.
1. Which character developed or changed the most during The Crucible? How did he/she change? What caused this change? Give specific examples from all stages of development.
People have to go through a hard crucible situation when someone point finger at them such as jews. It is kind of like nature of human to think about themselves first and protect themselves, but it takes too much courage for a person to stay with what they believe or accept their fault. Arthur Miller’s story which was played in The Crucible had actually happened in a village when people had to go through a difficult life choice in Salem, Massachusetts in 1692. For a guilt/adultery, John Proctor faced a terrible persecution, Rebecca Nurse, a honorable woman in the society, who faced a horrible penalty of death; even though Reverend Parris (minister of the Salem) could have saved all the people if he hadn’t cared about his rising reputation so much. Arthur Miller expresses people’s reactions to turmoil in The Crucible: the title effectively captures the struggles the character have to face.
The controlling nature of John Proctor towards those who work for him also reinforces the statement made by Vowell. Although Proctor is considered to be a good man, he reveals a tendency to be controlling towards his servants. When Mary Warren comes running towards the Proctors’ home after attending the trial, John Proctor tries to force her to testify against Abigail Williams in court. He says, “You will tell the court how that poppet come here and who stuck the needle in” (Miller, Act 2). Proctor is very menacing as he delivers his dialogue.
There are many tragic heroes portrayed in the world around us. Cinderella, Wall-E, and Simba, whom all overcame obstacles, vindicated themselves and aided their world to eventually be a finer place. Naturally, all their difficulties in the end led to their success, But, one man who presented those exact qualities, was not as fortuitous. This man presented himself to the court and fought for what was moral acceptable, subjected himself to prison for his mistakes and justified himself and the good people of Salem. John Proctor shows the admirable qualities and weaknesses of a tragic hero in the play The Crucible by Arthur Miller.
Analyzing The Crucible’s Dramatic Structure Aristotle believed that drama and poetry should have an unmistakable beginning, middle, and end. Originally, it was a three-act structure, but in the following years this view of Aristotle’s was expanded to include more divisions in a five-act structure. This new format for drama, known as Freytag’s Pyramid, gives each act a purpose, helping the audience progress from exposition to resolution. Though The Crucible, written by Arthur Miller, is only a four act drama, the play can still fit into Freytag’s Pyramid by applying more than one element to an act.