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Theme Of Testing In The Crucible

586 Words3 Pages

“You shall not eat of the fruit of the tree that is in the midst of the garden, neither shall you touch it, lest you die.” Tests have been a part of humanity since its very start, with the originators of humanity being given the first test of the one apple that would doom them if they consumed it. Tests can involve many things, such as tests of physical strength, or in the case of Eve, a test of will and obedience. In the play The Crucible ( by Arthur Miller), the residents of Salem are tested on their ability to follow their beliefs and their strength of character. The residents of Salem were all devout Puritans, and followed God's word as law. The reverend of the town, Reverend Parris, was also the mayor and the final say on everything. As Puritans, they believed that God could test you on anything, over anything, for anything. These tests could be as mild as not plowing on Sunday, or as severe as executing people under the belief that they were witches. Sadly, these tests were involved in the unsuspecting town of Salem, under the guise of an attention seeking 17- year old by the name of Abigail Parris. This starts a series of tests involving will, faith, knowledge, and conviction in The Crucible. …show more content…

She spoke in tandem with Abigail and caused the Reverend to label her as a witch. This small act started a downward spiral in Salem, with their influence increasing rapidly with each conviction. Another test that happened was when John Proctor, a well known landowner, slept with Abigail earlier in the play causing her to gain an obsession with him. This started Abigail's hatred for Proctor's wife, Elizabeth, and it would not stop until she had John under her

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Reveren Reverend Parris In The Crucible By Arthur Miller

626 Words | 3 Pages

Reverend Parris is a man in his 40’s that is a minister of the town, and lives with his daughter, Betty, and his niece, Abigail, in Salem, Massachusetts. He finds Abigail and Betty in the woods dancing around a fire with Tituba, and practicing what he thinks is witchcraft. As he finds them dancing around the fire and practicing what he thinks is witchcraft, because of his reputation of being the minister of the town, he hopes that no one will find out about what he has seen and potentially ruin his reputation. Throughout The Crucible by Arthur Miller Parris goes through ups and downs with the town and the townspeople. “Abigail, I have fought here three long years to bend these stiff-necked people to me, and now, just now when some good respect is rising for me in the parish, you compromise my very character” (Miller 1263).

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The Severe Test In The Crucible

149 Words | 1 Pages

Macey Ravndalen Hour 6 In the play The Crucible, the severe test is whether the city overcomes this tragedy and ends the commotion about witches and to see who realizes what's wrong. Also if Salem stays with the believes of Puritanism. Many characters are tested throughout the play. John Procter is an example because he confesses falsely to witchcraft to avoid the loss of his children and wife.

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The Crucible Tituba Analysis

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Abigail worked for Elizabeth Proctor as a maid in the house. Later fired amidst an affair with John, Elizabeth's husband. The accusations didn't end there; as the orphan desired to end the conflict with Elizabeth. Abigail proceeded to spread rumors saying that Elizabeth was bewitched. Salem, being a very religious village, had very harsh consequences for those accused of witchcraft.

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Why Is John Proctor Wrong In The Crucible

1108 Words | 5 Pages

A wise woman named Eleanor Roosevelt once said, "Do what you feel in your heart to be right for you'll be criticized anyway. You'll be damned if you do, and damned if you don't”. In the play The Crucible by Arthur Miller, there is a number of characters whose true and honest actions eventually lead them to their unfortunate downfall. This play takes place in the 1600s during the Salem Witch Trials in Salem, Massachusetts. In the beginning of the play they introduce the protagonist John Proctor, a married farmer who in the past committed the heinous act of adultery with his former servant girl Abigail Williams, a moral less and manipulative seventeen year old girl.

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Why Is Myrtle Important In The Crucible

481 Words | 2 Pages

In The Crucible, John Proctor commits adultery with his former young servant Abigail Williams while his wife, Elizabeth, was ill. Proctor’s desire for Abigail stems from her willingness to disobey Puritan social restrictions. Whereas any other Puritan woman conceals her desire for a married man, Abigail does not suppress her desires and goes after what she wants, using any means, such as seduction, to achieve her goal. After Elizabeth finds out about the affair, she fires Abigail. Once Abigail is fired, John puts a stop to the affair, but Abigail continues to pursue it.

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Examples Of Integrity In The Crucible

1112 Words | 5 Pages

Based on the tragic events of the Salem Witch Trials of 1692, The Crucible is a hard-hitting tale that reflects upon the subjectivity of goodness and virtue, sparking the reflection of the importance of moral behavior during times of hardship and crisis. In an unyielding and restricted Puritan community like Salem village, a bad reputation could result in social exclusion and scorning from the community. As a result, many members of the community would go to extremes to avoid tarnishing their reputations. The Crucible asserts that those who are concerned only with protecting their standings are dangerous to a society, as they are willing to blame and hurt other people in order to protect themselves.

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Abigail's Pursuit Of Power In The Crucible By Arthur Miller

871 Words | 4 Pages

Prior to the play, Abigail has an affair with John Proctor, a well-respected man in Salem, who she used to work for. After Proctor ends the affair, Abigail turns to her family’s slave Tituba in hope of learning witchcraft from her. She intends to harm John Proctor’s wife Elizabeth and eventually take her place. Abigail is then caught dancing in the woods with Tituba and her cousin Betty. Due to Salem being a Puritan society, rumors and suspicions start to spread almost immediately.

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Who Is To Blame For The Hysteria In The Crucible

1608 Words | 7 Pages

(I.465-472). Seeing Abigail cry, it suggests that Abigail’s affair with John Proctor has influenced her behavior in jealousy and lust as she strives for nothing more than her love for John Proctor. By only being heartbroken, Abigail is not to be fully blamed for the hysteria within the town as her actions are only based on desperate attempts to win John Proctor over, and no intentional harm whatsoever. However, on the other hand, Abigail cannot be excused with outside forces making her the way she is due to the fact that she has clearly had a choice in most of her decisions and actions throughout the witchcraft crisis. When Mary Warren, another girl involved in the forest incident, enters the court, she explains to Danforth, the judge, that the girls are lying and are only pretending to see spirits.

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663 Words | 3 Pages

It is discovered earlier in the play that Abigail and John Proctor had an affair while she worked under him. She still remains to be in love with him although he has lost all feelings and decides to stay loyal to his wife. This leads to Abigail wanting to get rid of Elizabeth Proctor and she is willing to do anything to do so. In act two after Hale visits the Proctor home to question their relationship with God, Cheever walks in with a warrant for Elizabeth’s arrest. After John asks who charged his wife with witchcraft, Cheever responds with “Why, Abigail Williams charge her”(Miller).

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Personal Integrity In The Crucible By Arthur Miller

852 Words | 4 Pages

Jealous of Elizabeth Proctor, Abigail begins her witch frenzy. Proctor is so obsessed with his public reputation that he refuses to confess to adultery. With Abigail driving the train of havoc in Salem, Proctor realises at some point he must admit to lechery to bring her to a halt. When John finally releases his secret, it keeps his personal integrity intact but majorly damages his reputation. By the end, he becomes disinterested by the public opinion and concerned about his personal integrity.

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1002 Words | 5 Pages

Instead, The result was worse than he intended. John realizes that the love he has for Elizabeth are fundamental and can’t get rid of them because Elizabeth is perfect, and that is why he married her in the first place. John feels lost and torn because he knows at heart that he loves Elizabeth but lusts for Abigail. In spite of Proctors feelings, when his wife is accused of being a witch by Abigail, he defends her at every chance he

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The Power Of Power In Arthur Miller's The Crucible

704 Words | 3 Pages

Abigail Williams, the main antagonist of the play, uses her sharp wit and manipulative personality in order to gain power through causing hysteria and chaos in a restrictive 17th century Salem environment. The attention Abigail draws to herself through the accusations made in the witch trials generate a great source of power for her, when Abigail and John Proctor, of whom previously had an affair have a conversation regarding the witch trials she says, “I have a sense for heat, John, and yours has drawn me to my window, and I have seen you looking up, burning in your loneliness. Do you tell me you’ve never looked up at my window?”(Miller 21). Through her relationship with John Proctor, Abigail gains power due to the fact that they share a mutual liking for each other and John is married to

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1010 Words | 5 Pages

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677 Words | 3 Pages

In the small town of Salem, religion was a strict priority, and strange illnesses like these were often thought to be the devil’s work. Miller demonstrated the paradox in The Crucible from the beginning of the play by allowing Abigail Williams and the other girls to unjustly accuse whomever they wanted of witchcraft. The play presented us how too much power is dangerous, for the temptation was always there to abuse it. Under the justification of a theocratic government, the people in authority in Salem abused their almost absolute power, destroying many innocent people in the process. What theocracy illustrates is how the law is not always based on truth, and that if it is not we should stand up to it.

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