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Essay On Tituba In The Crucible

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In Arthur Miller's The Crucible, Reverend Parris, a solipsistic and impatient minister of Salem, Massachusetts, possesses a 40-year-old Barbadian slave named Tituba. Tituba is misunderstood and genuine; she was neglected by the Parris' due to her perceived lack of intelligence, which clarifies when the girls were caught dancing in the woods and accused Tituba of being "with the devil" because she had been seen dancing with Betty, one of Reverend Parris's daughters and Abigail, Reverend Parris's niece. Abigail also claimed that Tituba reached out to her with "the Devil’s book" in dreams. Miller portrays Tituba as a gullible slave who fibs to shield herself from being tormented by her master, to show her devotion to the Parris family, and to …show more content…

When the girls were adressed after Betty wasn’t waking up, because she was frightened of getting in trouble for being in the woods, Reverend Parris makes Tituba “confess [herself] or [he’ll] take [her] out and whip [her] to death” (Miller 44). To protect herself after realizing she has no other choice since nobody would believe what she says either way, Tituba lies to the Parris’ and Mr. Hale and says that she saw Sarah Good and Sarah Osburn associating with the devil, as these were the two of the names Mrs. Putnam had suggested after her seven children died in their care consequently after she says this the rest of the girls all start naming random individuals whom they claimed to have “seen with the …show more content…

During her incarceration with Sarah Good, Herrick, a Marshal for the court in Salem, enters their cell and informs them that they need to leave for another location, where they will be awaiting execution while this occurs, she speaks to them about the good that will come from death. Tituba reassures the two that she is not afraid of death because once she dies, she'll finally be freed from all her troubles on earth, and she’ll finally be back with god, because she will “[go] back to Barbados [as soon as] the devil [comes] with feathers [and] wings.” Tituba assures Herrick that if he wants to accompany her and Sarah to Barbados, then she'll speak with the Devil. She believes that since there is no hell in barbados, the devil must be benevolent and enjoy activities such as dancing and

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