Judge Danforth And Abigail Williams In The Crucible By Arthur Miller

Ariel Medina C.L.I.M

Mr.Zeko

English 3

Period 4

6 December 2016

The Crucible “The Crucible” is based in real records taken during the Salem Witch Trials back during the late 17th century. Many people were unjustly hurt, imprisoned, and even killed during these times which show their rough moral structure. In the play “The Crucible” by Arthur Miller, Judge Danforth and Abigail Williams can be seen as the two characters most responsible for the death of fellow townsmen, John Proctor. Abigail could be seen as the cause of death of John Proctor because of her compulsive lying and her way of manipulating

Proctor by Judge Danforth because of his ignorance and fear of what others would say. For example, when Danforth is talking to Hale and John in the court about the trust they have for the girl and how it might not be so reliable, Danforth states, “Now we cannot hope the witch will accuse herself, granted? Therefore we must rely on her victims - and they do testify, the children certainly do testify” (Miller 100). Danforth is saying to the men that there is only one way to continue these accusations and that is to trust the children in the town no matter how ridiculous it may sound. The reader can see that Judge Danforth is blind to the fact that there is other evidence that prove his decisions wrong and he will not consider that. Also, Danforth is talking to Hale and Parris about the hangings that will happen the following morning, Parris asks Judge Danforth to forgive the rest of the people that will hang, which to Danforth concerningly replies, “You misunderstand sir, I cannot pardon these when twelve are already hanged for the same crime. It is not just” (Miller 129). This quote shows that Danforth feels like he is in power, but his fear of having misjudged and accused all these innocent people surpasses any thought that he might be wrong. Once again, Danforth's emotions get in the way of the his conscious thoughts and doing the do the right thing. The fact that Danforth is able to push away good judgement merely because