John Proctor from Arthur Miller’s The Crucible is a tragic hero among tragic heroes. John is a noble man; however, he does have his flaws. His imperfections are visible to the audience throughout the play. Many people may see themselves in Proctor, for aside from all his grandeur, he is still a sinner in the eyes of an angry God. John Proctor’s role in The Crucible rouses three emotions: fear, shock, and empathy; the same three emotions found in a tragic hero. Near the end of the play John is due to be set free. However, this is in vain as the only thing that stops him from achieving freedom and instead being sentenced to death is his own pride. This is all mutual between Aristotle's depiction of a tragic hero and Arthur Miller’s brilliant and prideful character, John Proctor.
A very noble man, John puts his commitment to the truth above all else, including his own life. He should be seen as an imperfect person who has sinned by taking a lover outside of his marriage, but also as a person with enough of a conscience to be unable to go on living a deceitful life.
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“Because it is my name! Because I cannot have another in my life! Because I lie and sign myself to lies! Because I am not worth the dust on the feet of them that hang! How can I live without my name? I have given you my soul; leave me my name!”. (Act four page 143). Overwhelming pride is a common characteristic between John Proctor and a tragic hero. John Proctor would rather be sentenced to death by hanging than dirty his name with a false confession to witchcraft. This is a great example of how he is a tragic hero. He died because of his pride.
His faults, the pathos the reader feels, and his death brought upon by pride are all pieces of evidence that backup the claim that John Proctor from Arthur Miller’s play The Crucible aligns tone for tone with Aristotle's definition of a tragic