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Hysteria In The Crucible

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Recommended: Identify the characters and characterisation in the play crucible by arthur miller

The hysteria that occurs in Arthur Miller’s play about the 1692 Salem witch trials, The Crucible is used the explore the rawest form of human cognisance. Characters contained within the play exemplifies the many layers a human can have. Underneath the Puritan facade, the characters hold complex, layered personifications of emotion. Many involved within the Salem witch trials undergo stressful situations whether short term of long term. The plays name, The Crucible, seems to derive from the stressful, heated situations that occur. A crucible is given three different definitions by the Merriam Webster dictionary. One, ‘a vessel used for melting other items within’, two, “a severe test”, and three, “a place or situation in which concentrated …show more content…

Warren soon regrets her decision and looks to reconcile. The power she holds scares her and she wished to appease her past deeds od accusing anyone and everyone in the town of witchcraft. Mary works for the Proctors, and her ties seem to cause her guilt when she ultimately accuses Elizabeth of witchcraft and attempting to kill her. To rescind her actions Mary states “ Why, I-I think it is mine.[the poppet]” (Miller 75). Soon after, Mary agrees to Proctors demands that she come clean about all of the false accusations made by her and the rest of the girls. However, she cracks again when interrogated about the pretense and the girls show up again and claim to see a spirit. Mary fears that she will be condemned by the girls and reverts her statement about Elizabeth and in the midst of it all, John Proctor reveals his affair with Abigail Williams. Mary went back and forth between the pretense and the truth, breaking free for in a moment into the right, but the heat of the lies burned her and caused her to repeal the truth she once …show more content…

An observer of ll the events, Reverend John Hale is seen to begin as an upright, religious man with positive look on life and the jib to find and condemn witches in Salem. However, as the events unfold, Hale soon descends to a cynical, pessimistic state. Hale’s confidence slowly fades away as more accusation are thrown as a mask for personal gain. Beginning his journey as a strong believer in witches and a leader/neutral party in Salem, he has the unique position of being able to observe all that happens fairly with only the purpose of doing good in the world and getting rid of witches. However, all does not go according to plan. Hale begins to harbor suspicions surrounding the accusations from the people of the town. Are they truly being affected by witches or finally have the means to condemn others for personal gain. Hale acts as a crucible in slow motion. HIs cracks appear little by little. First, he, of his own accord, travels to the Proctors to determine for himself what truly is happening in the midst of the hysteria. He doubts his own decisions on those accused of witchcraft and we eventually find him quitting the court. Hale is in a state of anger and disbelief towards the people of Salem with all of the unjust proceedings in the court and the personal vendettas everyone seems to have against each other. Hale’s denouncements of the court proceedings and quitting the job he

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Reverend Hale does not exhibit corresponding behavior throughout the play. Hale starts out with an attitude against witches, and ends up a broken, cynical man. He starts off with really good intentions—even if it seems to be ridiculous. In Act I, Miller describes Hale as: "His goal is light, goodness, and its preservation."

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At the end of the book Hale finds himself feeling guilty for the seventy-two death warrants he signed. While John hale tries to find if witches are true, ultimately he finds himself questioning Mary Warren and John proctor if they have anything to do with the devil; therefore he starts to realize that John Proctor is as innocent as anyone else and tries to end the salem witch trials. Although John Hale was for believing witches he changes his beliefs.

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When Reverend Hale first enters the story he is depicted as someone with great knowledge and authority. Proctor tells Hale on page 185, “I’ve heard you were a sensible man, Mister Hale - I hope you’ll leave some of it in Salem.” Hale is well known to people around Salem and he is known for possessing great knowledge. The people will listen to what Hale has to say, but know that his presence means that there is suspicion of witchcraft.

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273 Words | 2 Pages

Reverend Hale is the character that changes the most in Arthur Miller’s play The Crucible because his feelings on witchcraft turns from full belief to unbelievable doubt, his thoughts on Proctor changes from thinking that he is evil to thinking that he is a good and honest man, and he switches from doing God’s work to doing the Devil’s. Reverend Hale makes a huge change on his claim of witchcraft. In the beginning of the play when Reverend is called to the town of Salem to see if the reason why Betty and Ruth are unconscious is due to witchcraft he brings with him many books. When Reverend Parris sees this he makes a comment that Hale responds to him explaining his expectations. This shows that Reverend Hale is focused on one thing, finding

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(35) This shows that Hale is so involved in his work that he could possibly end up accusing someone who was not guilty of witchcraft. Hale seems overly conscious about his own life and his duty to serve the people to find the devil in Salem; he doesn’t seem to like the idea that he himself could be wicked. This shows that Hale too, did not show himself to be truthful and courteous when it came to the

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865 Words | 4 Pages

Throughout The Crucible, during the Salem Witch Trials, Reverend Hale slowly changes from a ‘confident man with a plan’, to a haggard preacher who seems to be losing himself amongst the chaos of these colonial trials based off of lies. After a life-altering experience, Hale is never again the same person he started out as. In the beginning of

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618 Words | 3 Pages

The nature of many characters in Arthur Miller’s play The Crucible are changed none more than of Reverend Hale. Hale was a young minister from the nearby town of Beverly seen as a spiritual leader and an expert in the field of witchcraft. Who was called to the town of Salem after the local minister caught girls dancing leaving suspicions of witchcraft. Due to Hales higher education, he was slow to assumption and sought indisputable evidence before advocating for one idea or another. By observing the actions of Hale and those around him, one is able to observe many thematic lessons.

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In act 1 and 2 in the play ,The Crucible by Arthur Miller, the character Reverend Hale was introduced and learned what his role was. Reverend Hale was a man nearing his forties and was a high-status intellectual who was an expert in witchcraft (Miller 155). In this act Hale said that he believes there always will be someone with the devil(Miller 155). Hale was siding with the court in this act and signing death warrants along with believing in these accusations fully as shown in his visit to the Proctors when he said there is too much evidence to deny the Devil is in Salem (Miller 171). Also, Hale almost played as an interrogator when he was giving rapid fire questions to John about his Christian character and if he goes to church in his visit to the Proctor house (Miller 171).

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Reverend Hale - Grandiose to Guilt When Reverend John Hale of Beverly arrived in the secretly psychotic town of Salem, he was carrying books “weighted with authority” (Miller 844). In the progressing scenes, the Reverend quickly made icy contact with the citizens of Salem, starting with the revered Rebecca Nurse and then the general public of Salem (Miller 844). Thankfully, Arthur Miller (the author of The Crucible) wrote Hale as a dynamic character. In this essay, I explain how Reverend Hale changed drastically over the course of the play; how he turned from a pompous exorcist to a guilt-ridden condemner. Hale, at the beginning of the play, has a pompous air about him.

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245 Words | 1 Pages

Reverend Hale is an interesting character in Act I of The Crucible. He is presented as an educated man who is well-versed in the scriptures and the ways of the devil. His appearance is that of a typical Puritan minister, strict and serious. Hale's actions and words are those of a man on a mission to root out all evil in the community, but he also displays moments of doubt and self-examination. Hale's role in the play is to investigate the claims of witchcraft in Salem and to determine if those accused are innocent or guilty.

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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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674 Words | 3 Pages

When he arrive in Salem, Hale enters with the confidence of a man who does not think he can do any wrong and has supreme wisdom over everyone else, “Have no fear now– we shall find him [the Devil] out if he has come among us, and I mean to crush him utterly if he has shown his face!” (37). In addition to this, the true nature of Hale’s failure to understand the complex climate of Salem at the time is made explicitly clear in the passage. He arrives with the notion that, with the help of the locals, he would eradicate any form of witchcraft quickly and with no difficulties. In this fervent desire to hunt witches, he becomes blinded by the bloodlust, so much so that he cannot fathom using critical and rational thinking in approaching the cases.

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481 Words | 2 Pages

The Crucible Essay The theme of hysteria is evident throughout Arthur Miller’s The Crucible and in everyday life and society. Driven by self-preservation, hysteria influences many characters’ actions and leads to the devastating witch trials in Salem. For instance, many characters in The Crucible are driven to execute drastic actions to sustain their reputation and protect themselves.

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650 Words | 3 Pages

Many people today are eager for the truth even if it can’t be found. Reality and a sense of truth are searched for decades by the people, much as Hale travels far and wide to find the truth behind what is happening in Salem. As said before Hale’s entrance, ”he spent a good deal of time pondering the invisible world, especially since he had himself encountered a witch in his parish not long before” (1.306). This introduction of Hale expresses how he came to Salem to investigate the cause of everything he spent his life doing. He later states, “We shall need hard study” (1.318).

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525 Words | 3 Pages

To begin, When reverend hale went to salem he was very confident. Reverend Hale, knew a lot about witches and spirits. Hale took witchcraft very seriously, he believed there was actually something going on in salem. Next, Hale is determined to get to the bottom of what is going on. When hale gets to salem, he is very tired and has very little motivation.

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