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Betty Parris's Power In The Crucible

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Betty Parris’s great power throughout Act I can be seen by her ability to single handedly create chaos and hysteria within the town for her own personal gain. Her power can first be viewed after Susanna Walcott explains the possibility of a supernatural cause to Betty’s illness, leading Abigail to advise her Uncle about “the rumor of witchcraft [that] is all about: [She] thinks [he 'd] best go down and deny it [himself]. The parlor’s packed with people,sir” (10). This is the first hint that others in the town believe in the presence and of the beginnings of the hysteria that follows. Betty started this rumor in the town by pretending to act sick so that she would not get punished for dancing in the woods. She found a way to deflect the blame …show more content…

Reverend Parris, worried for his own job, explains to Abigail that her “punishment will come in its time. But if you trafficked with spirits in the forest I must know it now, for surely my enemies will, and they will ruin me with it.” Even the idea of witchcraft in Reverend Parris’s house could ruin his reputation in the town and therefore risk his job. By Betty being ‘afflicted’, she is holding power over her own father and his position in the town. She knows that the longer she is asleep, the more desperate her father is going to be blame someone for the witchcraft who is not her. Putnam claims that “There is a murdering witch among us, bound to keep herself in the dark. Let your enemies make of it what they will, you cannot blink it more” (16). Putnam is yet another powerful male figure in Salem Betty has taken a grip over in the town. He, in this quote, truly believes that the devil is among the town of Salem based on Betty’s current condition. Reverend Hale, encouraging Tituba to give more names of witches, tells her to look at Betty’s “god- given innocence; her soul is so tender; we must protect her; Tituba; the Devil is out and preying on her like a beast upon the flesh of a pure lamb. God will bless you for your help”. (47) Betty has convinced Reverend Hale and the others that she is the victim and has done nothing wrong. This innocence is used as guilt for Tituba to make up names, even though Reverend Hale, who came into Salem with such an abundance of power, now is completely lead astray with the fake witchcraft present in the town due to Betty’s control of the situation at hand. Betty, throughout the first act, displayed her manipulative and dominant nature by taking power from certain powerful figures in the

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372 Words | 2 Pages

The first character that could have stopped the hysteria is Abigail Williams. If she would have stuck to the real story and had been truthful, and if she didn’t accuse Tituba, it could have stopped. Abigail says, “She made me do it! She made Betty do it!” (p. 592).

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319 Words | 2 Pages

Abigail Williams is the source of the witchcraft hysteria in Salem. Abigail is first accused of bewitching Betty Parris in the woods one night. She quickly disputes the accusation by saying they: Ruth Putnam, Tituba, Betty Parris, Mary Warren, and Abigail herself, were only dancing despite it also being highly looked down upon. By starting out with this single lie, her story snowballs and eventually leads to the downfall of Salem. By associating herself with Betty Parris and Ruth Putnam, both of which are sick while Abigail is well, Abigail is submitting herself to a fight she can’t win unless she lies.

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690 Words | 3 Pages

Reverend Parris begins to question Abigail about what they were doing in the woods. Betty still could not wake so Reverend Parris sent for Hale. Hale specializes witchcraft things. Hale believe that there is something supernaturally wrong with Betty. When Reverend Parris questions Abigail it he brings up that Abigail was let go by the Proctors and has been re-hired in months.

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203 Words | 1 Pages

In the Crucible, there were accusations made of Betty being accumulated with witchcraft. All of a sudden Betty comes up with this sudden illness, and is pretty out of the ordinary at the time. Betty’s first sign of sickness was when she witnessed the girls dancing in the forest and conjuring spirits, Abigail, and the other girls quickly left the scene. Soon Betty is accused of witchcraft for seeing the girl dancing in the forest, and there are seven dead babies. Some of Betty’s symptoms included throwing fits, running small fevers, screaming out in pain, and she would often bark like a dog.

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568 Words | 3 Pages

Rumors of witchcrafter flows throughout the town. Blame is being put on Abigail, saying she is a reason why Betty is unconscious. To get all of the towns people off Abigail's back she tells the girls to admit nothing and blame it on random people. Abigail still wants Proctor after their affair , but he warns her off and tells her to stop. As soon as Betty awakes she begins to scream.

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581 Words | 3 Pages

“Why, it is a lie, it is a lie; how may I damn myself? I cannot I cannot.” Rebecca Nurse, a character from The Crucible, is on the verge of being condemned to hand for witchcraft and is being pressured into admitting her identity. Rebecca is a married women to Francis Nurse. She is a kind, religious woman who has raised eleven wonderful children.

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530 Words | 3 Pages

Reverend Parris does not believe this, and the audience knows that the real reason Betty is not waking up is that she is in shock after Parris scared her while she and the other girls were dancing in the woods. Also, the Act One FYI states, “Although the Puritans were forbidden to indulge in supernatural practices, there is ample evidence that suggests that they had an almost obsessive interest in the occult. The public record is full of incidents in which members of the Salem community are reprimanded for practicing palm reading and other methods of fortune telling, even though such activities were considered to be trafficking with the devil.” The context of this passage is that the Puritans went to witchcraft to explain something out of their vague beliefs. Even though all the Puritans believed in witchcraft, their false claim came from the very little, nonsense, and bias evidence they had.

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470 Words | 2 Pages

Reverend Parris used religion in order to protect his family and his own reputation. When Abigail was accused of witchcraft, she blamed Tituba for what happened to Betty. Reverend Parris would believe Abigail, troubled and insane, of being under Tituba’s command.

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906 Words | 4 Pages

(Page 104). Hale begins to fear the justice of God as he realizes his position, he may have signed seventy-two death warrants to innocent people. Without hard evidence, no one can make the call if Betty is at fault of witchcraft. Hale is just doing his job and it may not show a factor of hysteria. But, Hale is holding up the call that announces if the girls are guilty which, makes the city on the edge of their seat to see if the girls are innocent or guilty.

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537 Words | 3 Pages

Susanna goes, leaving Abigail and Parris alone with Betty. Abigail says that the witchcraft rumors have already spread around town, and many people are already beginning to gather around his house worried. Parris fears the rumors may be true. The night before, he saw Abigail and Betty dancing in the forest around a fire with Tituba. He also saw a dress on the ground and a girl running naked through the woods.

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538 Words | 3 Pages

He tells Abigail “It must come out—my enemies will bring it out… Abigail do you understand that I have many enemies?” Reverend Parris is more concerned about his own reputation being hurt then Betty not dying. He tells Abigail that his ministry is at stake before he says that he cares about if Betty will be okay.

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879 Words | 4 Pages

The Devil influences the villagers of Salem, Massachusetts by using their ongoing fear of him to manipulate their thoughts and actions in a manner to set himself in the highest position by the end of the Act 1. As the Puritans lean toward blaming the Devil for their misgivings and suspicions, he gains control of their thoughts. Ruth and Betty pretend to fall ill after Reverend Parris catches them in the forest with Tituba and other girls, partaking in what is considered to be witchcraft: an act that defies the laws of femininity in the Puritan society. Mrs. Putnam does not buy her daughter Ruth’s act; rather, she sees it as “‘the Devil’s touch”’ which “‘is heavier than sick”’ (13). Believing that the Devil

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609 Words | 3 Pages

The witches are on the hunt for the innocent souls of Salem with Hale stating, “The Devil is alive in Salem, and we dare not quail to follow wherever the accusing finger points” (Miller 1251). Hale is determined to use God’s mighty hand against the “evil witches”. This shows that Hale is faithful to Abigail’s accusations against the common people of Salem. At first, Reverend Hale is eager to prosecute, but as more innocent people are condemned, his compliance turns into distaste. His dissatisfaction eventually turns into rage when Hale shouts, “I denounce these proceedings!”

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825 Words | 4 Pages

Abigail Williams: The First True Witch of Salem, Massachusetts “Controlled hysteria is what’s required. To exist constantly in a state of controlled hysteria. It’s agony. But everyone has agony. The difference is that I try to take my agony home and teach it to sing” (Arthur Miller, AZ Quotes).

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1021 Words | 5 Pages

When Abigail gets caught by Reverend Parris she decides to lie and tell him that they were just dancing and Betty Putman fainted when she was frightened by Parris when jumped out of nowhere. When Mrs. Putnam comes in to talk Parris about the incident that happened before, she says “i’d not call it sick; the devil’s touch is heavier than sick. It’s death, drivin’ into them, forked and hoofed.” she is responding to her daughter Betty not waking up after she fainted and is suggesting that they have Reverend Hale in to inspect her. When Hale comes and talks to Abigail and the other girls that were dancing in the forest she blames it on Tituba by saying that she forced her to do these bad things.

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