Abby's Motives In The Crucible

Have you ever done something out of pure emotion? Have you ever tried to get the blame off of you in a difficult situations? Abigail has done these very things to her full extent in The Crucible by Arthur Miller. In Salem, a small village located in Massachusetts, the daily life consists only of work and prayer. When Betty, the daughter of Reverend Parris becomes ill, word quickly spreads of witchcraft, and the town goes into mass hysteria. The niece of Parris, Abigail, soon becomes the center of attention when evidence comes forth of her and a group of girls danced in the woods. To take the attention off herself she begins to blame other people of the village that they are one with the devil. Then, Abigail blames Elizabeth Proctor, in hopes

Abby has a concrete motive, her love for John Proctor and fear of punishment. Although religion may have be factored into the belief of satan, Abby is the one that fuels the fire of the frenzy brought on in Salem. Abby does use religion on her side, but religion is not the key player. After Tituba's confession offers a way out, Abigail decides to also do a confession of her own. “I want the light of God, I want the sweet love of Jesus! I danced for the Devil; I saw him, I wrote in his book…”(Miller 48). Abby uses the strict beliefs of Puritanism to sway the town towards her side, but religion is not solely to blame. Some may say: Well the court is based off religious laws to, and any relevance to the devil is a crime. Abby knows this, and uses it to her advantage with the outbreak following Mary Warren's confession. If Abby had not said anything and had nothing to do with the trials, then the trials would not have be as crazy as they are. She takes advantage of the religious court when she sights the bird, the spirit of Mary Warren and says to Marr that “this is a black art to change your shape”(Miller 115). So although religion is involved in the witch trials of salem, Abigail is the one who originally uses it to get her