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The Salem Witch Trials In The Crucible By Arthur Miller

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Arthur Miller’s book, The Crucible, tells the story of the Salem witch trials that took place in Massachusetts in 1692. Many still consider this as one of the greatest tragedies in American history, as many innocent people lost their lives as a result of false accusations. In this novel, the characters Abigail Williams, Judge Danforth, and Reverend Parris all contribute a significant amount to the continuation of this disaster. Miller describes Abigail Williams as a teenage girl with an “endless capacity for dissembling.” As a result of her attachment to John Proctor, the protagonist, after their brief affair, Abigail tries her hardest to condemn Elizabeth Proctor as a witch. She does so using her wit and persuasiveness to convince the other girls in the town to cry wolf about seeing many women in Salem with the Devil. She frequently alters her story to fit her needs at the moment, proving that has more concern for saving face than she does for the truth. She goes so far as to place a needle into her own stomach so as to plant evidence that Goody Proctor uses witchcraft against her. In the end of the …show more content…

The irony in his character comes from the fact that he believes that he serves justice when in reality, he only encourages lies and deception. When presented with the signatures of townspeople who believe that Rebecca Nurse, Martha Corey, and Elizabeth Proctor have good character, he requests the questioning of every person who signed the petition. In a similar manner, when told by Giles Corey that Thomas Putnam condemned his neighbors in attempts to take their land, Danforth asks Corey for his source of this information so that the he can arrest the witness. In the final scene, the Judge gives Proctor the opportunity to lie to save his life. However, he refuses to accept Proctor’s confession unless he signs it. Danforth does so because he wants to make an example out of John

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He is convinced that the girls hysteria is true which leads him to condemn those who are falsely accused of being a witch. In Act IV in the final scene Danforth forces John Proctor for a false confession that he has seen the devil. Danforth knows that it is a lie and with doing so we are revealed to the true weakness of his character. Danforth solely wants a signed confession to the reinforce the crumbling townspeople of Salem. This only goes to show you that Danforth only worries about his authority and that he too has the same motives as Abigail, Reverend Parris, and

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Judge Danforth was told the truth by John Proctorbut rejected it. John Proctor says in act three, “They’re pretending!” This shows his honesty towards the judge and how the judge undermined his words. Along with Danforth, there are many others for whom the truth. Reverend Parris was also reluctant to the truth.

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Abigail Williams, Deputy Governor Danforth , and Thomas Putnam are responsible for the people, who were wrongly convicted and hanged. These three characters were either looking for vengeance, looking for land, or too dimwitted to realize they were being conned. Hatred was walking in salem and people took their chances accusing their witnesses of being witches to get what they wanted. Abigail Williams was a teenage girl, who reeked vengeance on Elizabeth Proctor.

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Deputy Governor Danforth’s ignorance of the truth tragically condemns Proctor and many others to

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In the story “The Crucible” by Arthur Miller, is a story that informs readers about the devastating salem witch trials that occurred in 1692 and 1693. One of the characters names is Abigail who is a seemingly nice girl until her true self comes out when she has an affair with a well known man named John Proctor. Abigail begins to accuse people of being witches and lies about having symptoms and seeing things due to people using “witchcraft”. Throughout the play people make sacrifices for what they think is right; and at the end, John Proctor made the biggest sacrifice of all. The Salem witch trials was a terrifying time for everybody involved and caused many deaths.

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979 Words | 4 Pages

In Salem, Massachusetts, the witch trials of 1692 revealed the town’s masquerade, leaving nothing but the truth. Arthur Miller utilized this event to confront the idea of conformity in American culture, as well as ideas of justice and principle. Each of the characters in The Crucible, through their personal struggles, further discloses the nature of humans and social structure. Miller has the ability to dissect the causes of such moral conflicts using their motives, actions, and individual pressures, which still remain relevant in modern-day constructs such as American politics. To begin, as one of the prominent characters throughout the story, Reverend Hale’s conflicts are initiated by his personal commitment to God.

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During the Salem Witch Trials, many people were accused of dealing with the devil and causing mischief among their neighbors and fellow citizens. These allegations caused rifts in the community and isolated nearly everyone from fear of being affected or accused themselves. Although it seems that they handled it as they saw fit, there are several ways that the community could’ve been a little more lenient. There are several courses of action that the Crucible should’ve taken that might have saved lives or more effectively condemned the accused: hold all court proceedings in private with an unbiased jury and judge, make sure all evidence was absolutely irrefutable in every aspect, also be sure to not to hold the accusers above the rest. Several people could’ve been spared and their personal standings upheld in Crucible, by Arthur Miller, if the trials would have been held in

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The stage is set, the French and Indian War has recently ended and tensions between the colonists and the British are only just beginning. However, despite all these influential happenings the people of Salem are focused on something totally different. In Arthur Miller’s The Crucible these colonists in Salem are focused on something never seen or thought of before, witchcraft. This word and thought throw this small town into a frenzy and even some of the surrounding towns are caught up in this. The suspected witchcraft tests the colonists spiritually, emotionally, and politically.

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In reading The Crucible by Arthur Miller, it seems unfathomable in today’s world of science and logical reasoning, that such mass hysteria could break out. While we don’t blame supernatural witches any longer for strange behaviors, there are still many cases in recent history that can be paralleled to the Salem witch trials. One example is a 2012 case of over a dozen high schoolers in Le Roy, New York who developed uncontrollable tics with no obvious cause. When I chose to read The New York Times article, “What Happened to the Girls in Le Roy,” by Susan Dominus, I thought the case would give a clear psychological explanation for the cause of the girls’ afflictions, and give insight into why girls in Salem acted the way they did. However, like

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“Long-held hatred of neighbors could now be openly expressed and vengeance taken, despite the Bible’s charitable injunctions” (Miller, pg 1129). This quote perfectly explains the Salem Witch Trials and what went through Abigail and the girls heads when they accused innocent people of bewitching them. The Crucible by Arthur Miller is about the small village of Salem and the mass hysteria that was caused by young girls. Innocent people were hung and thrown in jail because they accused these people of bewitching them. The judges, Abigail, Tituba, and the girls are to blame for the Salem Witch Trials because the girls lied and the judges only relied on what these girls said for their evidence but Hale, a minister, was obligated to believe the girls

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563 Words | 3 Pages

In Arthur Miller's play The Crucible, Abigail Williams and her friends, along with Tituba, the slave of Reverend Parris are caught in the woods dancing around a fire. This event and rumors associated with it sparked a Salem-wide witch hunt, which resulted in the death of hundreds of innocent people. The theme of The Crucible can be summed up in a quote from the eighteenth century politician Edmund Burke, who says,¨When good men do nothing, evil triumphs.¨ Which is shown through The Red Scare, and the actions of the townspeople in Salem. After reading The Crucible the connection between the Red Scare and the events of the Salem witch trials becomes very prevalent.

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1621 Words | 7 Pages

Many readers cannot infer if he believes in the witch trials or is using the trials to keep his power. He uses this power to control the people of Salem and to ensure his higher status over the Salem public. One instance would be when he states “But you must understand, sir, that a person is either with this court or he must be counted against it, there be no road between” (Miller 637). As Proctor, Giles Corey, and Francis Nurse try to testify against the court, Danforth issues that statement about the court. This is so that they think about what they’re doing because they would be going against the court's word.

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625 Words | 3 Pages

On page 133 the irony was when Danforth said that he would not accept another lie, by accepting Proctor’s signature he accepted a

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881 Words | 4 Pages

Arthur Miller portrays the Salem Witch Trials as a time of intense fear spreading across the town of Salem, Massachusetts. The witch trials were told in the story, as group of girls who were acting as if they were possessed by the Devil and his evil spirits. So they could have certain people in the town convicted and killed. Arthur Miller displays to the reader that power has the potential for unbalanced corruption. Miller shows the readers, people who were previously powerless, who then receive power, tend to do awful things for personal gain.

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In The Crucibles Danforth is continually harassing Proctor to give up his confession. Once Proctor finally gives up his dignity and confesses, Danforth doesn’t stop. He continues on to force Proctor to write it. This happens when Danforth says, “Do you sport with me? You will sign your name or it is no confession, Mister!

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