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What Is John Proctor's Role In The Crucible

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In The Crucible (1953), Arthur Miller shows how the power of fear can work in a society and how powerful it can be. The crucible is a play based on the Salem witch trials in Massachusetts. During this rough age 19 people were imprisoned and hanged for accusations of being “witches”. These people were killed out of fear and out of selfishness. The girls responsible for the witch hunt fear punishment for their sinful actions in the woods. After the girls were caught the girls lied to keep themselves alive and free from punishment. The fear led to accusations towards people in Salem. Abigale Williams, one of the girls involved and guiltiest, encourages the accusations in hopes that she will be with John Proctor. It begins to get out of hand and …show more content…

And through it all they are all justified. John Proctor played a very important role in the play. As the past lover of the love crazed demon seeker, and as a good man he is subdued to many trials of his goodness and commitment to god. John proctor had a lot to think about during this hard time, he had his wife, his children, his own life and the lives of the innocent people being imprisoned. In order to try to expose the girls he had to expose himself. He didn’t have to expose himself to the court about his affair and soil his good name but to save lives this choice had to be made. He had to tell the court of the affair and his past sinful actions and even though he was putting himself at risk he still told the truth in hopes that this truth would explain why these accusations are being made. It would expose Abigail and her true motive and break the whole hunt down. But the court was too naive and blind to see the truth and the plot against the whole thing and Johns efforts to help the ridiculous situation went unnoticed and he was accused of witch craft. This choice led him down a bad path but it is justified because it was for the good of the town and his life and his …show more content…

Ms. Marry Warren was his wife’s help in the household and she eventually confessed and told the proctors “I never saw no spirits” (Miller act 3), and that the whole thing was a shame set up by Abigail when his wife was accused of using her spirit to stab Abigale Williams. John proctor loves his wife and wasn’t going to let false accusations take her away from him or their children. He wasn’t going to let a young girl determine the fate of his wife for self-interest. He brought miss Marry Warren to court and forced her to tell the court the truth despite her warnings. In the end Marry warren was accused of pouring out her spirit into the room to hurt the girls and out of fear for her life Merry Warren lies once more and screams out “You are the Devil ‘s man! I ‘ll not hang with you! I love God, I love God” (Miller act 5). With that all attention is turned to John and her is taken away for 3 months. All for trying to save the life of his wife and the others being held in

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In the short play, The Crucible, by Arthur Miller The character John Proctor also known as Goody Proctor is both a husband and father and a mild aged farmer in his thirties. He is the protagonist of Arthur Miller 's play. The play is set in the puritanical town of Salem and expectations of their cultural background which is Christianity. Proctor’s main motivation is to protect his wife and family after committing adultery to Abigail and to prove his wife not guilty of witchcraft. He isn’t overly religious but he is a stubborn outspoken man.

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555 Words | 3 Pages

1. John Proctor is a tall man. He has long brown hair and a short beard and mustache. He has a bold personality and cares about his family. He stands up for what he believes in no matter what the cost.

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Why point a finger at someone, when four are pointing right back at you; history continues to repeat itself over and over again. The Salem Witch Trials were a time when Puritans turned on their own kind, accusing them of witchcraft. This continuous accusation turned the Puritan’s well-being upside down. Over hundred years ago, the Red Scare occurred and people with higher states were getting accused of being named Communist. These allegations have been just as ruinous as being called a witch throughout the 1800’s.

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There are different ways of seeing each behavior however, when it comes down to it, John Proctor is a selfish man. He had an affair with his servant whom he considers a child (Act one, Scene two) and admitted he only had the affair because he was a lustful man. Furthermore, he withheld critical information from the village which resulted in the village believing in the illusion of witchcraft and leading to the deaths of many. Last but not least, Proctor had been given an ultimatum of choosing his family or his reputation and he selfishly choose to protect his name. These are merely three demonstrations of Proctor's choice in

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882 Words | 4 Pages

A dynamic character is a literary or dramatic character who undergoes an important inner change, as a change in personality or attitude. In the play The Crucible by Arthur Miller there are many dynamic characters involved. Some of these dynamic characters include Abigail Williams whom was one of the initial accusers in the witch trails who had an affair with John Proctor, Reverend Hale whose job was to diagnose witchcraft in Salem, and John Proctor who had an affair with Abigail Williams. In my opinion, John Proctor underwent the most dramatic change in this play for the better. He changes a lot as the play progresses.

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Repenting sins is mostly believed to reset fate and open the golden gates to Heaven. John Proctor, one of the main characters in The Crucible, is a primary example of this. People could view John as a sinner attributed to him cheating on his wife Elizabeth, but he is vindicated through remorse. Proctor, in Arthur Miller’s, The Crucible, is portrayed as a Christian man even though in the beginning he is not, due to the face of him seeking redemption for his sins and sacrificing himself for others.

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906 Words | 4 Pages

When people are placed under an intense feeling of fear, they begin to commit actions they never thought they were capable over. In The Crucible by Arthur Miller, a young group of girls commit witchcraft which eventually leads to the arrest of over 100 women. This is similar to a time in the 1950s when Joseph McCarthy accuses government officials of communism and that ultimately leads to hundreds of citizens losing their jobs. The Crucible reveals the similarities between The Salem Witch Trials of the 1690s and McCarthyism of the 1950s because it demonstrates how a society can be tremendously impacted by the feeling the fear.

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Instead of accusing all of the innocent people of witchcraft, Proctor simply gives the explanation that the girls are lying to save their lives. After this, Proctor goes to court to testify his beliefs. In court, Proctor continues to argue with Hale and provides evidence that Abigail is guilty. “Is the accuser always holy now?… This warrant’s vengeance!”

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John Proctor demonstrates this sense selflessness during the entire course of Salem’s witch trials. From the beginning of the hearings and at his own expense, he strives to reveal the truth about the children’s stories and to expose the underlying motives behind their false accusations. When Mary Warren’s testimony fails to convince Judge Danforth, he goes as far as to publicly admit to his adultery: “God help me, I lusted... But it is a whore’s vengeance, and you must see it.” (P.110)

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594 Words | 3 Pages

In Act II, it states, “ Hale: why...why did you keep this? Proctor: I never knew until tonight that the world is gone daft with this nonsense.” This quote explains that Proctor knew the truth about the girls but didn’t go to the court to confront them. This is Proctor’s biggest mistake this decision results in tragic events that take place in the future of this play. These events include, the girls accusing some of the townspeople of witchcraft, and the hangings.

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1159 Words | 5 Pages

In The Crucible, a drama by Arthur Miller, John Proctor demonstrates courage by speaking out for what he believes in while knowing his consequences, admitting his wrong doings with Abigail to save Elizabeth’s life, and choosing to be hanged over having his name posted on the church door because the second his signed confession is posted, his and his loved ones reputations will be ruined. In the beginning of the play all John Proctor cared about was his reputation. However, ultimately he sacrificed his reputation by telling the court he committed adultery. John telling the court he was guilty ruined his reputation, which made all hell break loose.

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822 Words | 4 Pages

People in the Crucible thought he was an honorable man and that no honorable man will ever sin. So when John and Abigail meet each other, Abigail flirts with John, and John say, “No, no, Abby. That’s done with.” So we know he has committed adultery against his wife, Elizabeth Proctor, with Abigail Williams and that gives us a bad image of John sinning and commiting adultery with Abigail and doesn’t really respect his wife.

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705 Words | 3 Pages

John Proctor was a man of honor and had a well respected name in the town of Salem. Sadly he died tragically but as a hero. He was hanged because he was accused of doing the devil’s work. He was given the chance to save his life if he admitted on a piece of paper that he was working with the devil but he refused to tell that lie. He wanted his sons to be able to walk the streets without being shunned from the world because they deserved better.

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561 Words | 3 Pages

The play, The Crucible, written by Arthur Miller demonstrates the implications of a society in complete chaos over an irrational fear of witchcraft in the town of Salem, Massachusetts. Fear plays an immense role in the way people make their decisions, such as when the characters of Danforth and Mary Warren resort to hypocrisy when no other options remain. Danforth and Mary Warren both embody hypocrisy, as seen when Mary says she cannot lie anymore and then lies when she becomes scared for her life, and Danforth when saying lying will send a person to Hell, but then forcing people to choose between lying and death. Mary Warren exemplifies hypocrisy extraordinarily well in the scene when she and Proctor travel to the courthouse so she can confess that the girls have pretended everything and they never actually saw spirits.

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566 Words | 3 Pages

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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