Image And Reputation In The Crucible By Arthur Miller

Image and reputation are key elements that drive human behavior and they play a significant role in societies globally. During the Salem Witch Trials in the early 1690s, one’s reputation was extremely precarious and essentially the deciding factor in being accused of witchcraft. Ironically, the start of these witchcraft allegations emerged from a determined effort by Abigail Williams and a young group of girls to maintain their reputable status in society after violating the laws of the Puritan church. Arthur Miller utilizes The Crucible to demonstrate how reputation was a crucial factor that drove the girls’ hysterics and ultimately, resulted in a rare shift in power in the girls’ favor. His novel additionally reveals how gender roles defined

Getting caught by Reverend Parris was the start of the hysteria over witchcraft that overtook the entire town. Fear of being shunned by the church and society along with the need to maintain a reputable status are what drove the girls to accuse the innocent of witchcraft. The allegations from the afflicted girls of being associated with the devil distracted the village from the suspicious wrongdoings that the girls had done in the woods willingly the night before. This hysteria from the girls originated from their desperation of self-preservation. As young females in their community, their current reputation completely decides their future. If these girls were to scorn their image and status now, they would be defined by it throughout the rest of their lives and would most likely lose their chance in marriage. Having a good reputation was crucial to finding a husband and in the 1600s, having a husband was the only way for a woman to become successful. The girls claimed to be possessed by the devil in order to protect themselves from harm's way along with secure their futures. They were willing to destroy the lives of their neighbors in the

It was expected that women would follow a strict and religious role in society where they got married, had children, and spent their lives tending to their home along with all their husband’s needs. The Puritan church preached that females were more susceptible to the devil and that they were supposed instruments of satan which further spread and confirmed to Puritans this idea of inferiority. Mostly women were targeted due to the fact that a woman associated with the devil was more reasonable and believable to Puritans. Abigail Williams was a servant girl and did not rank remotely high within society. Her newfound ability to make decisions within Salem was rare and it was the first time that these girls had gained any sort of power within the town. This changes the course of the situation for the