Reverend John Hale In The Crucible By Arthur Miller

(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

Hale stated, “I come to do the Devil’s work. I come to counsel Christians they should belie themselves. There is blood on my head! Can you not see the blood on my head”(Miller 131 ). Hale also said, “I would save your husbands life, for if he is taken I count myself his murderer” (Miller 131).

Just arriving in Salem, Rev. Hale is already the center of everyone’s attention; he was going to be the hero who finds the witch and brings back the holiness of the town. Hale was determined to find the truth and felt that he had to know everything about a person before they were convicted. When talking to John and Elizabeth Proctor, he mentions,” … I find it hard to draw a clear opinion of them that come accused before the court.” (Miller 63).

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.

Throughout the play The Crucible by Arthur Miller, the character of Reverend Hale transforms considerably from Act I to Act IV. From his initial beliefs of practicing justice and preventing witchcraft to ultimately his loss of faith and his culpability and apprehension towards the events that will eventually occur in regards to the Salem hangings. Hale's transformation changes the play by sprouting distrust in the Judicial system within Salem and surrounding areas. Hales transition from a slightly smug, starry eyed, deeply devoted christian, to an untrusting, unfaithful, pessimistic man affected the play by giving us the readers a sense of empathy for Hale who had been mislead to persecute innocents instead of convicting real evil doers for the benefit of unjust, untrustworthy people such Reverend Parris and Ezekial Cheever for their own personal incentives.

When Reverend Hale first enters the story he is depicted as someone with great knowledge and authority. Proctor tells Hale on page 185, “I’ve heard you were a sensible man, Mister Hale - I hope you’ll leave some of it in Salem.” Hale is well known to people around Salem and he is known for possessing great knowledge. The people will listen to what Hale has to say, but know that his presence means that there is suspicion of witchcraft.

Hale no longer believes in the witch trials. Everything Reverend Hale came to Salem for now no longer means anything to him. By this point Reverend Hale, among others, has become fed up with the pretense and falseness of ‘The Salem Witch Trials’ and wants nothing more than for it to be over. (page 84, act four, Miller, Arthur The Crucible: A Play in Four Acts, Viking Press 1953) “ HALE, quickly to Danforth: Excellency, it is enough he confess himself. Let him sign it, let him sign it.”

The character John Hale develops more than any other character throughout the play, The Crucible. Arthur Miller, the author of The Crucible, uses many different tactics to show the personality of John Hale and how he changes throughout the story. John Hale’s personality is mainly shown by the author’s use of his Hale’s own words, what people say and think about Hale, and how

Society has always perpetuated a firm distinction between that perceived as “good” and that of “evil.” Human nature, however, does not function in terms of absolutes such as these. As a way to attempt reconciliation between these seemingly paradoxical statements, art and literature have developed into mediums which have made the study of morality accessible. Because of this direct connection, Arthur Miller’s play The Crucible can be seen as an exploration into the human psyche. Within the drama, Miller succeeds in juxtaposing the role of the “saint” with that of the “sinner,” thus returning to the basic, human debate between righteousness and corruption. While many, if not all, of the characters display some level of this conflict, the

When trying to save John Proctor, Hale tells Elizabeth, "You know, do you not, that I come of my own Goody Proctor" (Miller 206). Hale did not associate with the courts, he wanted to do what he viewed as

To begin, When reverend hale went to salem he was very confident. Reverend Hale, knew a lot about witches and spirits. Hale took witchcraft very seriously, he believed there was actually something going on in salem. Next, Hale is determined to get to the bottom of what is going on. When hale gets to salem, he is very tired and has very little motivation.

Reverend Hale looks at his job much differently. He no longer takes pride in his line of work, but now is more ashamed and it is clear that he is. He even tells Goody Proctor to “Cleave to no faith when faith brings blood” (Miller 234). He recognizes that he came with a wrong reason, but now he believes that his duty is to make right what has gone wrong in Salem. He realizes that survival is most important above all else and that it is human nature for people to do whatever it takes to survive, and that he was blinded by the literal meaning of the bible.

In the beginning acts, Hale was trusting the court more than John and was a big part of handling warrants of the accused individuals along with having much confidence in himself, his knowledge of witchcraft, and knowledge of witches in Salem. In Act 2 and 3 in the play, The Crucible by Arthur Miller, the character Reverend Hale was changing a lot. Throughout the first act of this play Reverend Hale had much of his trust in the court and fully believed the devil is in Salem but as the trial begins and goes on things start to change when Hale starts to question the court shown when he pleads

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!”

He begins to try to convince Proctor and others to sign documents saying they are witches so that they can go free. Hale has returned to Salem because he feels guilty for signing the death warrants of many innocent people as he says, "There is blood on my head!"(Miller 131). He pleads with the judges again to give him more time or to pardon them as there are orphans walking around Salem, and the judges seem to know they are wrong also. Reverend Hale's last attempt to save Proctor is to try to have Elizabeth convince Proctor to confess. Proctor strongly considers it but tears the confession paper up as he does not want to ruin his family name.