In The Crucible by Arthur Miller, the setting is Salem, Massachusetts, where witch trials are rampant. In Salem, almost anyone is seen as a target who could be accused of practicing witchcraft. One of the town-members during the witch trials, John Proctor, is constantly buried under the guilt he carries for committing adultery, and being dishonest towards his wife. His wife, Elizabeth, begins the play as a stereotypical Puritan, and she in known for her inability to lie. The relationship between John and his wife, Elizabeth, is minimal and astringent. Despite this, Elizabeth plays a crucial role in John Proctor's life, and is essential to the work as a whole.
In Acts I and II of The Crucible, Elizabeth Proctor shows minimal amounts of love and affection towards her husband. She is aware of the affair that her husband had with Abigail behind her back, and she
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She comes to the realization that her distance from John during Abigail's stay at their house may have caused the affair. When John must decide whether or not to falsely admit to practicing witchcraft, she is emotionally supportive. She apologizes for being rigid, and unaffectionate towards John. Elizabeth plays an important role, by giving John the choice to make the decision for himself. She tells John that she will support his decision in the end. Elizabeth's open-mindedness influenced the final decision that John Proctor made, which determined the ending to the play.
Elizabeth Proctor demonstrates that a character does not always have to be the protagonist or antagonist in order to impact the story. Elizabeth was a driving force in The Crucible, by encouraging John to confess, and supporting his decision in the end. Her character changed drastically throughout the play. This gave John the opportunity to make his own decision at the end of act IV, which impacted the final fate of every character in The