Corruption In The Crucible

Religion composes a large portion of culture, which can unite and bring order to chaos. Conversely, religion can be the cause of division within people groups or be the downfall of thriving societies. Salem is an excellent example in which the power of religion is revealed. Through the theocracy of Salem, one is able to see how religion affects the everyday life of “faithful” people. It also reveals how religion can be the basis of corruption and the justification for immoral acts. The people of Salem believed themselves to be the good Christians of Earth, however, their doctrine taught only a few humans were selected for salvation, known as the elect. The doctrine stated that the elect had their sins pardoned by Jesus Christ’s sacrifice on

As the girls begin to exploit the religion, those part of the elect had become more interested in keeping their reputation instead of justice. Deputy Governor Danforth is at the head of the court and is determined to rid Salem of the Devil. Ironically, his pride is the real evil in Salem. When asked to have mercy on those accused, Danforth refuses because twelve people have already been executed. Danforth evidently attempts to protect his name when he reasons that “postponement now speaks a floundering on my part; reprieve or pardon must cast doubt upon the guilt of them that died till now” (129). To Danforth, keeping his known probity is far more important than justice, which is evidence of stage four of Kohlberg's moral stages. Judge Danforth desires to fortify the position of the court in Salem, but he has been duped by a group of young girls. Therefore, Danforth has two options: admit his fault or proceed with unjust executions, of which he chooses the latter. Some redeemable characters such as Reverend Hale realizes this and joins the failing attempt to achieve true justice. Once Hale acknowledges the madness and corruption within the court, he denounces the proceedings which is evidence of stage three of the moral stages. Reverend Hale exemplifies stage three when he goes from house to house interrogating the accused or those mentioned in order to find justification for the accusations.

For that reason, the people were happy about the hangings and pitied the girls. As blind sheep, the people believed the court to be infallible because it was run by the elect. Before the madness of the witch trials, the people of Salem got along fairly well and did their best to keep the Ten Commandments. Everyone was to memorize these commandments and keep the Sabbath Day as evidence of their loyalty to God. Once the trials started, the people of Salem used failure to reserve these practices as evidence of compacting with the Devil. Even those who were once deemed respectable Christians, such as Rebecca Nurse could not be saved. John Proctor, who was highly respected as well, failed to practice the religion to its full extent which played a major role in his failure to stop the trial. Hale tried to defend Proctor, yet the court was in favor of the girls who were supposedly working on God’s behalf. Believing that he had no other option, Proctor decides to discard his Christian name by confessing to lechery with Abigail. Judge Danforth doubts this claim and demands Proctor to prove it. Proctor proceeds to tell the judge, “A man will not cast away his good name. You surely know that” (110). The statement given by Proctor provides evidence that religion distinguishes the honest from the deceitful. During the trials, religion divided the people of Salem into those who wanted to save