Abigail's Guilt In The Crucible

“Frightened people try to defend themselves by accusing others of their own motives” (Vera Caspary). People try to blame others for things that they did not do while also being mindful that there are consequences involved. Blaming other people can help them escape the guilt and build a sense of superiority. Likewise, in The Crucible, by Arthur Miller, Abigail Williams and the other girls of Salem were caught dancing in the woods naked by Reverend Parris, the town’s minister. The citizens of Salem are Puritans, and according to Puritan law, it is illegal to dance naked in the woods as it is a sign of witchcraft. Abigail, knowing that she had done something wrong, started pointing fingers at people who had nothing to do with witchcraft. In addition

After word spreads about the devil being among the citizens of Salem, Reverend Hale, an exorcist of witchcraft, is called upon by Parris. Hale starts to get information by interrogating the girls to see if they are associated with the devil. During the interrogation, Abigail feels the heat of the conversation as Hale asks her questions. Knowing her faults, she lies by putting blame on Tituba. Hale turns back to Tituba and asks her if she loves God. Tituba, knowing that she cannot defend herself anymore, admits to doing witchcraft. In light of Tituba confessing herself to witchcraft, Abigail cries for God’s glory and says that she saw “Goody Sibber with the Devil,” “Good Bibber with the Devil,” and “Goody Booth with the Devil” (Miller 1. 48). It is human nature for people to get nervous, which causes them to lie and place blame elsewhere. This is applicable to the predicament that Abigail is in. She fears that Hale will be able to see right through her lies of placing blame on others in order to retain her purity. Not only does Abigail put blame on others but she also has an affair with Proctor in

When Reverend Hale interrogates the girls, he also turns to Reverend Parris to ask him questions since he was the one who saw the girls dancing in the woods. As the narcissist, Parris is, he does not tell Hale what actually happened in the woods. In the conversation between Abigail and Hale about what kind of dancing she and the girls did in the woods, Parris states that “I—I saw a kettle in the grass where they were dancing” and when Hale asks Parris about what was inside the kettle that the girls were dancing around, Parris says, “I—do believe there were some movement—in the soup” (Miller 1. 42). The use of the dash when Parris is talking shows readers that Parris is nervous. Like Abigail, he lies in order to protect his reputation. That lie, however, turns into several other lies, causing more chaos and mass hysteria to erupt in Salem than what it already has. Though it may be true that Reverend Parris is the most culpable because he does not tell the whole truth, Abigail is one to blame for causing Salem to become violent since she had an affair with Proctor when no one else knew. Abigail used to work in the Proctor household. She fell in love with John Proctor and eventually had an affair with him while Proctor’s wife, Elizabeth, was sick. According to the Ten Commandments, adultery is considered to be a sin. Proctor committed adultery with a 17-year-old girl, which is ironic because he does