Self-Preservation In The Crucible By Arthur Miller

In most cases, protecting oneself has and always will be most people’s reasons for the decisions they make behind their false reasons. People would rather others suffer than themselves. In Arthur Miller’s tragic play, The Crucible, several young girls, led by another named Abigail, try to save themselves: the girl's selfish decisions ultimately affect the whole town in Salem and results in many innocent people killed. Most of the characters in Arthur’s play are only there to help themselves in one way or another. The primary motivation behind the tragic events in The Crucible is Self-Preservation; this is revealed by the characters' lust for power, their need to maintain a good reputation, and their willingness to set blame on others. One

Rev. Parris and John Proctor are the best two characters to exemplify what wanting a good reputation actually means. Rev. Parris is a selfish man who only cares about himself. In the beginning of the play, Parris says to Putnam, “We cannot leap to witchcraft. They will howl me out of Salem for such corruption in my house”(13). Parris is not even thinking about how the accusation of witchcraft might affect Abigail, only the side effects it will have on him and how the community will view him prior to the accusation. Another example, Proctor, although not a selfish man, still shows how much a good reputation and name means. When Proctor is being asked to sign his name, stating he is a witch, with all of his soul he cries, “Because it is my name! Because I cannot have another in my life! Because I lie and sign myself to lies! Because I am not worth the dust on the feet of them that hang! How may I live without my name? I have given you my soul; leave me my name”(133)! Proctor’s speech really shows what having a good reputation and name really means, especially when it’s all you have left. Both characters convey, in one way or another, that a good reputation is precious; that it is to be kept close to the heart and a key factor in

In The Crucible there are two characters who fully demonstrate this cruelty. In the beginning of the play, Abigail was being accused of witchery. To save herself, Abigail starts saying names of people who were actually doing witchcraft even though none of it was true. While listing names, Abigail states, “I saw Sarah Good with the Devil! I saw Goody Osburne with the Devil! I saw Bridget Bishop with the Devil”(45)! Abigail also goes on to blame Goody Sibber, Goody Hawkins, and Goody Booth. It is clear in this situation that Abigail is just saving herself. Another example would be Mary Warren. After Proctor brought her to court with the intention of freeing Elizabeth, Mary Warren turns on him and says, “ My name, he wants my name. ‘I’ll murder you,’ he says, ‘if my wife hangs! We must go and overthrow the court,’ he says”(110)! We know that this is a lie and Mary is only trying to save herself from the court. Looking at these character’s actions, all they did was hurt people in the community like Proctor. Since blaming others also affects the people around you, it is one of the harshest forms of