The Fall of Reverend Hale
People’s views are constantly changing. They can be so confident in the beginning and afterward, they can be uncertain about their beliefs. This is exactly what happened in the Salem Witch Trials with Reverend Hale. Between February 1692 and May 1693, people were accused and brought to court on allegations of witchcraft. Puritans were a harsh branch of the Church who believed that they are God’s chosen ones. They also believed that people weren’t born witches but they were approached by the Devil to come to be with him. In The Crucible, Reverend Hale serves as a conscience of Salem, first supporting, then being unsure of, and then finally opposing the Witch Trials at different times, depending on his view of their purpose and legitimacy.
At the beginning of the play, Reverend Hale first supports the Witch Trials. On page 33, the Author states about Hale, “On being called here to ascertain witchcraft he felt the pride of the specialist whose unique knowledge has at last been publicly called for.” This demonstrates that his pride in
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He says this because he realizes that some people will confess to anything to prevent them from getting hanged. Shortly after, on page 79, Hale told Proctor, “For there’s your way, believe it, there is your only way, when such confusion strikes upon the world.” Since everyone was in a panic, everyone was making irrational decisions, so after Proctor talked some sense to Hale, he realized that Proctor was right and that some people who were accused were innocent. Finally, on page 98, Hale states, “But it does not follow that everyone accused is part of it.” This shows that he still believes that some of the accused may be a witch but he knows that not all of them are, which weakens the integrity of the Witch Trials. After all the evidence Reverend Hale questions if the accusations are legitimate or if the whole thing is a