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John Proctor's Reputation In The Crucible By Arthur Miller

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Having a good reputation in town can change in a snap of a finger with things such as the sins of someone that you would least expect it from. All the sins of someone wouldn’t matter because what matters is the bigger picture which is the confession! The worst sin in the judge's eyes is a lie because it leads those surrounding them to be harmed, which would be selfish of someone that denied it all until it overthrew him and his name didn’t matter anymore in town! In a novel called, “The Crucible,” by Arthur Miller, a guy named John Proctor in a small town called Salem, had a good reputation in town but truthfully was a sinner all along. John Proctor is a sinner because of his affair with Abigail Williams who is a minor, his standards in the …show more content…

Proctor was always seen as a holy guy in the public’s eyes, but he wasn’t a holy guy deep down inside. Since the affair with Abigail occurred, Proctor’s standered in the church just started to go downhill. Both Proctor and Parris have different eyes in the church, Proctor’s eyes are good and Parris’s are deficient in the eyes of the church. This leads to why Proctor has resentment toward Parris as to why he states, “ I like it not that Mr.Parris should lay his hand upon my baby. I see no light in that man. I’ll not conceal it (Miller. Act II. 613).” Proctor uses this excuse as to why he hasn’t been committed to the church but his other actions lead both Hale and Parris to believe that this isn’t the full reason. All these reasons that Proctor was stating didn’t convince Hale that he was committed to the church, so he asked Proctor to name all ten commandments which he did but forgot one! Proctor forgot to state adultery which led both Elizabeth and Hale to call him out on it but he was just zoned out since he committed adultery. Marry Warren was in court when Abigail stabbed herself claiming it was the spirit of Elizabeth, so Warren saw this whole action happen and stated it to Proctor but once she was questioned in court about it she decided to stay quiet. Proctor continuously kept on pressuring Mary so she can confess the truth but she decided to confess that Proctor wasn’t a saint and that he doesn’t stand with God which led Proctor to go along with it and state, “ I say — I say —- God is dead (Miller. Act III. 634)” So then because of this statement, Danforth starts to ask Proctor if he had interacted with the devil before in any type of way and Proctor states, “I di” Danforth then sends Proctor to Jail with eagerness because he had asked this Proctor before and Proctor said that he didn’t but once Mary Warren threw him under the bus, he couldn’t resist

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A reputation is the beliefs or opinions that are generally held about someone or something. In fear of tarnishing one's reputation, individuals tends to go to extreme lengths in order to protect it. In Arthur Miller’s The Crucible, the actions and choices of John Proctor, Reverend Samuel Parris and Abigail Williams serve to prove this to the audience. First of all, John Proctor will protect his reputation at all costs, even if it ultimately ends his life. Second, Reverend Parris will stop at nothing to keep his authority, even if he has to sacrifice his faith.

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There has come a time in everyone’s life when their character was called into question, or someone accused them wrongly of something they did not do. This puts a person’s morality on the line and tests whether they will do what’s best for them or the masses. The Crucible by Arthur Miller shows the characters John Proctor, Deputy Governor Danforth, and Abigail Williams going through this same test. The play provides a narrative on how people choose to value their own reputation and honor over protecting the lives of themselves and others.

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Even if Proctor did not want anything to do with Abigail, he still made Abigail obsess over him which caused her to believe she was destined for him, and Elizabeth was stopping them from being together. Proctor should have spoken about the accusations about falsely admitting to being

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[Proctor, his eyes full of tears:] I can… for now I do think I see some shred of goodness in John Proctor. Not enough to weave a banner with, but white enough to keep it from such dogs” (1164). Proctor faces an internal struggle throughout The Crucible in that he believes himself to be irredeemably sinful. He and Elizabeth both know of his affair with Abigail. Meanwhile, Proctor also chooses not to go to church on Sundays because he dislikes Parris and his ways.

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In the book The Crucible by Arthur Miller preserving one’s reputation was important to many of the story’s characters. Three of the characters that found preserving their reputation important were John Proctor, Abigail Williams, and Mary Warren. John Proctor was a well respected man in Salem. The town’s people thought highly of him. When he was accused of witchery he denied it.

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In "The Crucible," maintaining one's reputation is a widespread theme that influences the actions of several characters. The pursuit of a positive reputation becomes a motivating factor, allowing characters to make choices that may at times contradict their morals or the truth. A quote that shows how the characters in this play are worried about their reputation is "I have fought here three long years to bend these stiff-necked people to me, and now, just now when some good respect is rising for me in the parish, you compromise my very character." Reverend Parris. Parris expressed concern about how his reputation will be affected by the accusations of witchcraft in his household.

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In The Crucible, a book written by Arthur Miller, the story follows the lives of the community and multiple accusations during the Salem witch trials of Massachusetts. The Crucible demonstrates all aspects of a tragedy story through the liked farmer John Proctor not being able to resist committing adultery, his wife Elizabeth and him suffering from Abigail because of his act, and his acceptance towards his crimes and the resulting events. To begin, John Proctor’s reputation in Salem is nobler and higher than usual people, which is an element of a protagonist in a tragedy. On the first introduction of John Proctor in the first act, the author describes him as, “...powerful of body, even tempered, and not easily led” (Miller 1. 19). Because

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One of the many rules of the puritan religion is that you must have all your children baptised and you have to attend church. In act two the Reverend Hale comes to Salem inspecting all the accused and when he arrives at the Proctor's household and asks why his youngest son hasn’t been baptised yet, John replies “I like it not that Mr. Parris should lay his hand upon my baby. I see no light of God in that man. I’ll not conceal it” (Miller). It’s clear to see that John Proctor is a believer in God but he doesn’t agree with the ideas Parris has and puts across in the church.

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Danforth brought Rebecca Nurse in when proctor made his decision and Rebecca had this to say ”let you fear nothing” (Miller 144). Rebbecca nurse is surprised that proctor chooses life by telling danforth he's committed witchcraft. Proctor is in a conflict with the town because he's committed to using witchcraft where the end result is life or death. He makes the decision to sign his name to the devil so he can live but seeing Rebecca nurse changes his mind that he'd rather die a hero than live a lie. All these quotes tie back to the main theme of this essay which is redemption which in a way is proctor choosing his good faith over living a lie of being labeled a witch.

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To prove to the court that Abigail Williams is not innocent, to make sure his wife did not suffer, and to keep his integrity John Proctor fessed up about his affair. “I have rung the doom of my good name--you will believe me, Mr. Danforth! My wife is innocent, except she knew a whore when she saw one!” page 111. Proctor's decision to confess to this stirs up a lot.

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(90). All of the proof Judge Danforth listed can be easily faked, like the choking, or is something that someone could do to themselves, like slashing themselves with daggers and sticking pins in themselves if they wanted to. Judge Danforth is so convinced that Abigail is telling the truth, that not even testimony from an ex-accuser stating the falsehood of the accusations would satisfy him. Mary Warren, who works at the Proctor home, was one of the girls found dancing in the woods and was one of the girls who was on Abigail’s side, was forced to testify against Abigail in court when she returned to the Proctor house one night, informing John Proctor that his wife, Elizabeth Proctor had been accused of witchcraft. Mary Warren said to Danforth that she and the other girls were faking everything and

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This common lying ruined relationships and only caused further damage and confusion in their community. One example of a character speaking out against this and pointing out these effects is when John Proctor says, "I speak my own sins; I cannot judge another. I have no tongue for it." (Miller 131) In the quote, John Proctor accepts his own faults and lies so he does not judge others for theirs.

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In the play The Crucible, the character John Proctor has a conflict with himself of maintaining his reputation and not ruining his own name. To begin, in act 1 John Proctor had a conversation with Abigail where she remembered him the affair but Proctor tried to maintain a position saying “I will cut off my hand before I’ll ever reach you again”(Miller 23) and when she kept talking about Proctor’s wife, he got upset and end with a “do you looking for whippin?”(Miller 24). This shows us that Proctor doesn’t want to remember this event that could ruin his reputation or relationship with his wife. Second, in Act 2 Elizabeth told Proctor to go testify against Abigail and prove that they were lying ,Proctor just answered with a “I’ll think on it”(Miller 53) and admitting

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John Proctor never settles for keeping his opinion or what he thinks is right to himself. He knows telling Danforth that he is guilty for adultery won’t help his cause but it shows his desperation to win the case in order protect his wife, Elizabeth. John Proctor was sick and tired of watching Abigail win with a lie, in this case he spoke the truth knowing his consequences. John states, “Excellency, forgive me, forgive me. She thinks to dance with me on my wife’s grave!

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John Proctor’s character is one based on reputation, and guilt. The guilt comes from his affair with Abigail Williams. The reputation aspect comes from when he is accused by Mary Warren of trying to turn her to the Devil. I believe that John Proctor grows tired of the accusations, as to why he speaks of his false involvement with Satan in front of the town. Specifically, Deputy Danforth uses John Proctor as an example for conviction as he is certain he will be able to turn others

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