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Theme Of Reputation In The Crucible

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The Crucible, an engaging novel with many twists and turns that keep people on edge till the end, contains an alikeness of people’s daily lives compared to the play. The relapsing theme of reputation, thirst for justice, and hysteria in the writing reflects a resemblance also occurring in the 21st century. In The Crucible, many occurrences are similar to modern-day society. The theme of reputation occurs as a recurring theme from the beginning to the end of the play. After Betty fainted after her apparent “bewitching” Parris feared for his reputation in the church, later stating out of fear, “It must come out my enemies will bring it out. Let me know what you did there. Abigail, do you understand that I have many enemies?” (1.46). When publicizing …show more content…

Many people today are eager for the truth even if it can’t be found. Reality and a sense of truth are searched for decades by the people, much as Hale travels far and wide to find the truth behind what is happening in Salem. As said before Hale’s entrance, ”he spent a good deal of time pondering the invisible world, especially since he had himself encountered a witch in his parish not long before” (1.306). This introduction of Hale expresses how he came to Salem to investigate the cause of everything he spent his life doing. He later states, “We shall need hard study” (1.318). He devotes his time to studying the behavior of the accused witches. Much like in this century, people feel a need to investigate information they do not know much …show more content…

Throughout the daily accusations of witchcraft, many feared being the next tried in court. Many people fear speaking out against the court due to its high level of power, which is similar to today's daily life. Giles states “That bloody mongrel Walcott charged her. Y’see he bought a pig for my wife” (2.314). After his wife's accusation from someone in power, her name is ruined, and she has to go to court. This inflicts fear on Giles since his name is tied to his wife, which could put him in ruins. Later in the play, Proctor preaches “Now Hell and Heaven grapple on our backs, and all our old pretense is ripped away” (2.437). His reaction after his wife is taken away reminds him of how people fear being the next to feel the wrath of the cold grips of power. Much like today's society, many people try to go to force against the higher power. Proctor later pays for this by his life being taken away. The high levels of power create stress for people of lower power to lose their

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(35) This shows that Hale is so involved in his work that he could possibly end up accusing someone who was not guilty of witchcraft. Hale seems overly conscious about his own life and his duty to serve the people to find the devil in Salem; he doesn’t seem to like the idea that he himself could be wicked. This shows that Hale too, did not show himself to be truthful and courteous when it came to the

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Preserving Reputations in The Crucible Many characters in The Crucible are concerned about their reputation. The one that stands out the most is Abigail Williams. She does whatever is necessary to ensure her name is not associated with bad things. The first time this occurs is in Act I when she is talking with John Proctor about his wife, Elizabeth.

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“What made a minister who saw the dangers, who wanted to protect the innocent and convict the guilty, side with the court?” ( Overview) Hale was brought into the village of Salem on a mission to prove if there was witchcraft present. Hale comes into the village with good intentions, and a strong desire to help the village. (Overview) As the story unfolds, Hale begins to notice how the girls are throwing out the accusations as a way to gain attention, and causing innocent people to be murdered or taken to prison.

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The moment Hale enters the town of Salem, he brings about him an aura of sophistication and intelligence. He was called to the town to investigate the murmurs of witchery having previously encountered witches in his own town of Beverly. When the townspeople of Salem first see him “he appears loaded down with a dozen heavy books” (478). The presence of Hale and his books puts many town members at ease because of the implied intelligence that he must have.

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In his book, “A Modest Inquiry into the Nature of Witchcraft (1702),” clergyman John Hale comes forth to confront the recent events going on at the time. Initially, Hale alludes to the questionable actions and activities of the townspeople being accused of witchcrafts, and being imprisoned as punishment. In addition, he discloses how everyone suspicious will be accused, not even young children are safe from the hands of this fate. Hale’s purpose of publishing this book was to describe the incident of the Witch Trials, and to reveal his experience of the trials, since his own wife was accused. By employing a didactic tone, Hale relays the actions of the past that targeted the Puritans and those wrongly accused of witchcrafts, so this occurrence

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According to Biblical Proverbs 22:1, “A good name is more desirable than great riches; to be esteemed is better than silver or gold.” (Book of Proverbs, 22:1). The pursuit of a distinguished reputation is not reprehensible in itself, however, excessive ego in oneself makes the pursuit dangerous for oneself and the community. In Arthur Miller’s play, The Crucible the actions made to preserve one’s reputation are put into moral question. Arthur Miller uses Abigail and Dansforth to disclose the egotistical need for the preservation of reputation in these characters.

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This scene also highlights the power dynamics at play in the trials. The charged are pressured to admit to witchcraft and name others as witches to save themselves. This pressure comes from the court officials and the mob mentality of the other accusers. Mary Warren, who initially tries to tell the truth, is ultimately coerced into joining the accusations against John Proctor, indicating how the power of the mob can overpower even the most well-intentioned

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By looking at The Crucible by Arthur Miller one can see that the characterization of John Proctor reveals the theme of reputation and integrity, which is important because refusing to tell lies to protect his reputation and stop delirium from spreading throughout Salem. John Proctor states that the woman of Salem who have been locked up for witchcraft:”Excellency, does it not strike upon you that so many of these women have lived so long with such upright reputation”(3.1.305-309). Proctor represents reputation because he would rather die than have his reputation downed to a victimizer. Protecting his reputation motivates John Proctor to deny that witchcraft exists in the village. All he hears is crying out of screams and wailing which is a cause of the Devil 's work: “What 's she doing?

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The witches are on the hunt for the innocent souls of Salem with Hale stating, “The Devil is alive in Salem, and we dare not quail to follow wherever the accusing finger points” (Miller 1251). Hale is determined to use God’s mighty hand against the “evil witches”. This shows that Hale is faithful to Abigail’s accusations against the common people of Salem. At first, Reverend Hale is eager to prosecute, but as more innocent people are condemned, his compliance turns into distaste. His dissatisfaction eventually turns into rage when Hale shouts, “I denounce these proceedings!”

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Hale is an intellectual man who is proud of his extensive, scholarly knowledge of witchcraft. He is summoned to Salem to observe its situation. It is “a beloved errand for him” on “being called to ascertain

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In the times of the Salem Witch trials, reputation was a major aspect of the Puritan lifestyle. However while the town of Salem was in a craze, the reputation of a man could not save anyone. It was hard to tell who was lying to save themselves or a friend, and who was telling the truth to save themselves of a friend. Everyone valued their life, but no one wanted to live the rest of it in guilt over a lie they told, especially if it cost many people their lives. Throughout the play, The Crucible, by Arthur Miller, having a good reputation is worth more to many of the characters than their lives lived with a lie.

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In a setting of Salem, Massachusetts 1692, religion is the direct reflection of one's social standing. Reputation is extremely important for the town, as it is your only way to get a fair hearing and respect from the people. The protectiveness of reputation is necessary in The Crucible to justify yourself when presented with fallacious arguments. In this play the importance of reputation is revealed though the uses of ethos, logos and pathos. The protectiveness of reputation is uncovered through various characters such as Reverend Hale, Reverend Parris, and John Proctor.

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During the hysteria of 1692 in Salem, Massachusetts, many people were accused of practicing witchcraft. Therefore, their reputation, was ruined. Other people committed many sins in order to keep their reputation clean in town. For instance, some characters had to lie, fight, and accuse other people of witchcraft which could get the individual out of trouble and keep their hands clean. when a person got accused of being a witch, the person’s reputation would get ruined and the person would go to jail or be hanged.

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To begin, when hale arrives in salem his books show how much he knows about witchcraft. As the play progress he starts to notice that the events in salem are not witchcraft. He notices that it is just people accusing other people they do not like. Next, Hale goes into salem confident it is witchcraft. When hale arrives in salem, he believes the girls and what they are saying about witchcraft and the people they are accusing.

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