At the end of the Salem witch trials, there were a number of accused still waiting to either confess to witchcraft or be hanged. John Proctor was among those accused along with his pregnant wife, Elizabeth Proctor. Danforth, the judge, allowed Elizabeth to speak with John before the next hangings in order to plead with him for his life. Danforth allowed Elizabeth to speak to John because he thought that since she was his wife, she could convince him to confess to witchcraft.
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.
The Crucible People that are challenged by fear usually go into a fight or flight method. Some will either stay in the situation to fight or will either flee from being apart of the whole situation. The Salem Witch Trials began in February 1692 and went until May 1693. More than two hundred people were accused of practicing witchcraft. At least twenty people were executed for not pleading guilty to being a witch.
Arthur Miller’s The Crucible (1953), portrays the Salem witch trials and conveys how the actions of a single person can hold a high impact on its surrounding community when faced with troublesome times. When accusations of witchcraft start spreading throughout the town, mass hysteria breaks out and infects the mindset of a large quantity of Salem’s inhabitants. The problems are further accentuated by poorly run trials led on by the corrupt leaders of the community. Throughout the play, drastic decisions are made by many that further the development of the plot. John Proctor is a highly respected citizen of Salem, though he does not view himself in that same light, and is one who is faced with an array of arduous decisions time and time again.
John Proctor was an Innocent,Good, and Hard-Working man. INNOCENT John Proctor wanted to keep his good name clear to everyone in Salem, Massachusetts so no one won’t treat him so badly. He wanted to talk to the court about if he confesses that he was a witch he will be set free, but the people will be mean to him or he will have to be executed by being hanged by the neck until dead. He chose to be executed so his name can be still good and he also did the right thing by being executed. John says”There will be no love for Satan in this house” and it means that he doesn’t want the devil to enter his home and cause trouble to everyone he knows.
The Crucible, a play written by Arthur Miller, has given us a proposal about a man named, John Proctor. John Proctor was a good man, until his wife Goody Proctor was falsely accused of witchcraft, and things for dear old John went downhill. When John was summoned to court to try and defend his wife, a girl named Abigail Williams, stepped in and stopped him from completing his goal, but screaming and saying another girl named Mary Warren, was sending out her spirit, which she denied in doing so. All of the girls ran and tried to hide from the “spirits”. Even though there were none, after it was all done Mary turned the blame onto John Proctor, and he said, “God is Dead”, which shocked the town and the court, which landed him in jail, with charges
"Never let pride ruin everything. Its better to lose your pride than to lose the love of your life because of your pride. "-Unknown. John Proctor was a man wo honored his pride more than anything else. He tried his best not to let anything or anyone get in the way of that either, but soon enough it catches up to him and he chooses to only think about himself.
Also, the wife of John Proctor, Elizabeth Proctor also shows signs of a tragic hero. Elizabeth stands up for the truth to remain innocent. Elizabeth lies to the court by arguing “[she] came to think [John] fancied [Abigail].And so one night [she] lost [her] wits, [she] thought, and [Elizabeth] put [Abigail] out on the high road” (Miller 113). By lying about Johns affair caused her not to be let out of jail and John getting accused by Mary Waren as a scapegoat.
Does your word mean anything to you? Does what you stand for as a person mean anything even when someone tries to take it away from you? A word John Proctor lived by, integrity, which stands for honest and moral. The religious background adds to more for their moral compass so they will go to heaven and not be sinful. The author of this play Therefore, to die for the truth is better than to live a lie.
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.
Nothing that John Proctor does is enough to erase the sin that he has committed against his wife. His guilt causes him to fake affection for Elizabeth. He is trying to relieve his guilt with words but they are nothing when Elizabeth suggests that he goes to Salem to tell the court that the girls were faking, he cannot. “If the girl’s a saint now, I think it is not the way to prove she’s a fraud” (Miller 51). John knows he will have to accuse Abigail the girl that he slept with, he knows the power that she has over him.
In the play The Crucible by Arthur Miller, John Proctor is accused of performing witchcraft and contracting with the Devil. He is faced with the decision to either confess to or deny the accusations. Ultimately, Proctor chooses to deny the accusations and dies a martyr. Proctor’s decision to sacrifice himself is justified because he protected the reputation of those who died and risked being arrested to save his wife, Elizabeth Proctor. John Proctor’s death is justified because he was willing to sacrifice his life to protect the reputation of others.
In the Crucible John Proctor changes his mind and tears up his confession because, he tells the Judge he won’t sign “Because is is my name. Because I can not have another life! I have given you my soul, leave me my name!” He means by this he has already confessed to the judge and they know how he sined. He doesn’t want the town to know that he had committed adultry with Abbigail he wants to save his wife and family’s good name.
Abigail Williams accused John Proctor of participating in witchcraft. Seven months earlier Proctor had an affair with Abigail who worked as his maid. When John’s wife Elizabeth Proctor found out, she fired Abigail immediately. This left Elizabeth feeling doubtful of John.
The end of the Crucible is very suspenseful when the protagonist, John Proctor, is faced with choosing between confessing to a lie or dying for the truth. At first, Proctor is hesitant and signs the papers, confessing himself to evil, but before the signed paper is collected by the court, he tears it apart and is sentenced to death. This was his best option, for it stopped him from living a remorseful life. His decision to tear apart the signed confession was the most correct not only for himself but for his family and the community as well.
