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The Character Of John Proctor In The Salem Witch Trials

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Throughout the Salem Witch Trials John Proctor never accepts the lies of the people, he sees through the fear and tries to convince the people that they are making an error. Proctor maintains a rock-solid belief during the entire story, and his beliefs do not change, however his attitude toward the people in Salem does change as the trials grow in size. It’s the fact that Proctors perpendicular beliefs leading to his death that make him a tragic hero and a martyr, since his final refusal to accept the lies send him to the rope. Proctors changes throughout the story also cause the people of the village to look down on him after outbursts of rage. It is Proctor’s beliefs and qualities that stop him from going along with the trials. Throughout the story there are events that show Proctors qualities, the first of these is when Mary comes home from the trials(page ). Proctor is shocked that people are being hanged because of the lies, he never believes the charges that so many were faced with . The second event is when Hale comes to his house, the Proctors tell him that they do not believe that there are witches in Salem and that the charges of witchcraft on them are false. The third event is when procter comes to the court with evidence from Mary stating that the girls …show more content…

The first of these stages is when Proctor tries to stay on the laws side when Hale comes to his house. At this point Proctor does not want trouble so he does not try to get involved with any of the lies. Proctor changes course halfway through the story when his wife is charged with witchcraft be he believes Abigail is trying to kill her off. It is at this point where Proctor starts fighting the law of the town in order to save his own. By the end of the story Proctor has waged a war against the main powers of the town. He does not concern himself with what he people will think, instead he shouts out loud and declares his

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Either you confess to being a witch and soil your name and disgrace your family, or you plead not guilty and hang for your alleged crimes. So knowing which ever position he held they would both hold life altering affects from there on out, he chose what he thought was right and showed everyone to stay true to yourself in life. Proctor says he could not sign his name away because it would show a bad example for his children “I have three children--how may I teach them to walk like men in the world, and I sold my friends” (Miller 143)? Proctor was caught in a catch 22 scenario where either he lives with his kids knowing he was convicted of witchcraft and sold out his friends, or he dies and leaves his children without a father completely. But John Proctor does not take his whole family down with him and decides that just he should suffer the consequences of his own mess.

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Life or Death: Did John Proctor Make the Right Decision? Countless people have learned about the lies and horrors of witches in 1692 during the Salem Witch trials. In The Crucible, a tragedy written by Arthur Miller, it displays the tragedy and wrongful convictions of the townsfolk of Salem. One notable character being John Proctor a well respected upperclassman in Salem who was willing to confess his sins, sacrificing his life for the greater good of his family and friends. There are many reasons people choose to do things in life whether or not they will turn out well in the end.

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However, in the Salem witch trials, Proctor became what he hated most: a hypocrite. This causes him to lose his self-respect and confidence that led to his downspiral and made his evidence less believable. Even though Proctor was armed with evidence, the jury would not believe him as he was "either with the court or against it"(Miller, the crucible pg 213).However

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“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?

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Proctor motivates to learn how the truth can still not matter if it is not what the court wants to hear causing people to be killed and put in jail. John Proctor chooses to try to hide the affair between him and Abigail Williams , which causes half of the town of Salem going to jail for witchcraft. John is talking to Mary Warren when she is talking to him about the Devil being in Salem and they must find where he is:"I

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747 Words | 3 Pages

In the play The Crucible by Arthur Miller, the town of Salem is afflicted with hysteria, intolerance, and accusations that lead to death. According to philosopher Aristotle, a tragic hero possesses a tragic flaw, excessive pride, and an inevitable downfall. Protagonist John Proctor illustrates a tragic hero because he is presented as happy, powerful, and privileged, which later leads him to suffer because of his own actions. First of all, John Proctor possesses a fatal flaw, pride, which is a characteristic of a tragic hero. Proctor’s fatal flaws includes honesty and pride.

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John Proctor: Tragic Hero or not? By definition a Tragic Hero is a literary character who makes a judgment error or come in contact with a fatal flaw that inevitably leads to his or her own destruction. John Proctor, a farmer in the play The Crucible, is debated as a tragic hero. John Proctor suffers from a tragic flaw that leads to his demise, that fatal flaw is his excessive pride.

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Proctor is widely respected in the Salem community. However, he has a secret that threatens his reputation. He cheated on his wife Elizebeth Proctor with Abigail Williams. As a result, he has a strong internal conflict regarding his integrity. Proctor is a benevolent man at heart, however he has sinned according to puritan law.

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“I have given you my soul; leave me my name!” (Miller 1357). This quote is said by John Proctor, a character in “The Crucible,” who is pleading to keep his name reputable when accused of witchcraft. Arthur Miller writes “The Crucible” to portray the Salem witch trials of 1692. The people of Salem have grievances in which they need a scapegoat.

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John Proctor, the protagonist of The Crucible, qualifies as a tragic hero because he has a tragic flaw, is ethically superior to the other characters in the play, and struggles to find peace with himself in midst of the lies and chaos during this play. John Proctor possesses a tragic flaw that forces him to hide his prideful mistake, which eventually brings about his downfall. I guess the old saying is true, “Pride comes before the fall”. John Proctor’s tragic flaw is his excessive pride, and he expresses it abundantly throughout the play. In Act I, it states, “ Proctor: Abby, I may think of you softly from time to time.

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The first impressive characteristic of John Proctor is his bravery. Speaking out against the “afflicted” girls in the way he did could cause serious question of him as a person. From the court’s standpoint John could be seen as directly opposing the court, which would have him jailed, or could even have him be accused of witchcraft. Also, he would have had to have known that Abigail Williams would have immediately accused him of being a witch once he spoke out against them. However, that did not stop him from delivering the truth to the court.

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Proctor says “ You are the high court, your word is good enough! tell them i confessed myself; say proctor broke his knees and wept like a woman, but my name cannot!”. In the quote John Proctor does not want written proof that he was a witch because he wants to protect his friends and not throw them under the bus. This means he cares for his friends and is truly a good man. Proctor says; “ let them that near dead now take their souls, it is pretence to me.”

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705 Words | 3 Pages

He defends his wife and tells the court that his wife fired Abigail because of their affair. When the court brought Elizabeth Proctor into the court and asked her about the affair she denied it. Even though she knew the affair was true she denied it because she didn’t know Proctor had confessed and wanted to take her husband’s name

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In the play The Crucible by Arthur Miller, John Proctor was accused of witchcraft. John Proctor was a man of great integrity and knew he did nothing wrong. He was given the choice to confess and lie or be hung. Being the honest and stubborn man that he was, he decided his name was more important than his life. John struggled both internally and with others while trying to fight for what he thought was right.

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The author, Arthur Miller, displays a theocracy to demonstrate a court's ignorance towards actual facts. A theocracy is a religion based government. Throughout the novel, The Crucible, the religion of the government corrupts decisions that are made in court. If someone was not a part of the church or did not attend every Sunday they were thought to be a witch, or at least dishonorable. Danforth, deputy governor, brought forth the main issue of the whole novel, "A person is either with this court or he must be counted against it, there be no road between" (Miller 94).

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