Reputation is placed at the forefront of The Crucible, as John Proctor struggles with whether the moral decision is to lie and confess to witchcraft or tell the truth and hang. After Elizabeth and John have a quick discussion about their children, and the death of Giles Corey, John finally opens himself up to Elizabeth: “(With great force of will, but not quite looking at her) I have been thinking I would confess to them, Elizabeth. What say you? If I give them that”(Miller 124)? John is embarrassed by his past adultery, and now has to maintain both his reputation with Elizabeth and himself. As he stands “with great force of will,” Miller illustrates the weight of his past decisions coming back to haunt him. His will has been crushed by watching …show more content…
Elizabeth responds to John that she wants him to live, but that it his decision to make. Afterwards John asks her about Martha Corey, and when she says that she will not confess, John realizes how cowardly he is: “I am not that man.(she is silent). My honesty is broke, Elizabeth; I am no good man. Nothing's spiked by giving them this lie that were not rotten long before”(Miller 126) Proctor mentions that only out of spite for his captures has he kept silent, but now facing death and seeing the face of his wife, he feels that he should confess. Though his confession would be for witchcraft, Proctor believes that either way he is not a good man and that punishment would be justified either way. Proctor now sees his decision as practical instead of moral, telling Elizabeth that “it is hard to give a lie to a dog.” Subsequently, Elizabeth responds to John by saying “yet you’ve not confessed till now. That speaks goodness in you (Miller 126). Elizabeth is the only character in the play who understands John’s moral dilemma. In this situation she has every right to be angered by her husband, whose adultery led to both of them being convicted of witchcraft.
In this quote, Proctor is saying that the accusations of people that are practicing witchcraft are false. He is saying this because the woman being accused has a good reputation. Hale argued back that even the Devil was good before he fell from heaven, and that he had a good reputation with God. Your nature could change with your actions.
In the "Crucible" by Arthur Miller, Proctor admits orally to witchcraft, however declines to ensnare any other person. Danforth advises him that the court needs evidence of his admission as a marked, composed declaration. Delegate admits verbally to witchcraft, and Rebecca Nurse hears the admission. She is stunned by Proctor's activities, regardless she declines to admit to witchcraft. Delegate signs his name to the admission, however demolishes the record when he takes in the court will post it on the congregation entryway.
Lie or Die: The Life of John Proctor “Decisions are the hardest thing to make, especially when it is a choice between where you should be and where you want to be.” (Rana Magdy) This quotes describes John Proctor battling to choose between dying and confessing to being a falsely accused witch. In the play, The Crucible, by Arthur Miller, confessing would lead John Proctor to a happy life with his family; if he tells the truth he will be hung , but he will keep honor to his name. Since John Proctor is motivated by his will to uphold his name, his decision to refuse to confess to witchcraft causes John to find strength to stand up for what is right, and accept the consequences that follow by the end of the play.
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.
Just like John Proctor did in the Crucible, Miller had refused to comply with the court's demands of committing to joining the party, and was then contempted into court. Because of what had happened in Arthur Miller's life ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------. “ what terrifies one generation is likely to bring only a puzzled smile to the next” said Miller. What he means to enunciate is that there is always going to be something out there that will startle us. That startle could end up being a great outcome later in life.
A crucible is defined as a severe trial. The title, The Crucible, refers to the many moral tests shown throughout the book. Many accused witches underwent tests of moral strength and truthfulness via the trials. Elizabeth was tested of her truthfulness in court, the girls being tested of their loyalty and truthfulness during the trials of the accused, and Proctor being tested by his lust for Abigail and his desire to live during the trials.
Everyday people go out to explore and wonder the community with different reputations, not knowing death could happen at any second. Whether you are walking around the block, to crossing the street. People worry about upholding positive reputations, because they have strong beliefs to be well known for their future generations. John Proctor did not want to raise his kids and live under a negative reputation, even though they already had a bad reputation, leading his to making the wrong decision in taking his life to protect his reputation. By doing this, John left behind his pregnant wife and kids, left behind an even worse reputation for his family, and wasn't able to prove Abigail guilty.
Elizabeth has never told a lie beforehand which tells she really does care for Proctor and doesn’t want anything bad to happen to him even after everything he's done. She doesn't realize Proctor has already confessed so she thinks she saving him from utter humiliation and embarrassment and she hopes to keep him out of trouble but her lie does just the opposite. This causes Proctor to be doubted so he is thrown in jail where he is sent to wait for his
After speaking with Elizabeth, John decides that he wants to live and signs a confession. However, his immense pride wants him to save his name. Proctor decides to tell the truth that he is not a witch and rips up the written confession. He preserves his pride and dignity and declares the truth at the same time, dying as a man with flaws yet a good man, allowing the readers the ability to categorize him as a tragic hero. Proctor 's downfall in the play is caused by human error, which qualifies him to be the tragic hero.
On the other hand, John Proctor gets an offer to save himself by providing false confession to public. He struggles between his religious integrity and his reputation. This struggling shows his imperfection, but, by the end of the play, he feels shame for his fellow prisoners, who are brave to die for their integrities. He says, “For now I do think I see some shred of goodness in John Proctor. Not enough to weave a banner with, but enough to keep it from such dogs.”
The best character (The crucible) John proctor was the most admirable character in the play because he sacrifices himself for his for his children, also he was a good husband and because he was much known in the town he had a lot of problems and also a lot of things to do like, takes care of his children and a ranch that he has. In act 4 the author wrote “Because I lie and sign myself to lie! Because I am not worth the dust on the feet of them that hang” (page1232) Act4. That John mean in this seen is that he was regretful about lying, and because, of him a lot of people was hang he apprehend that lying is not good and he needed to pay for his act .
John Proctor is a good man despite anything others may say about him. He displays three very noble qualities throughout the witch trials which are bravery, honesty, and an overall goal to save lives even to the point where he sacrificed his. While many argue John is a bad man because he committed adultery they are entirely mistaken. Just because he had one bad sin gives no right to anybody to call him a bad person when clearly the good side of him is shown more than the bad. John Proctor is a good man who displays the characteristics of a hero and could be seen as one for giving his life for his friends.
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.
Likewise, when Elizabeth is brought before Danforth to verify Proctor’s confession, she lies to protect her husband, whom she refers to as a “goodly man,” from suspicion (Miller, 113). The affair may have caused Elizabeth to doubt Proctor but both parties still care deeply for each other and try to protect each other from harm. Even in his last moments, Proctor’s last words- “Show honor now, show a stony heart and sink them with it!”- were directed toward Elizabeth and were full of love and care (Miller, 144). Proctor may have sinned but his regret over his affair with Abigail and the trouble he had brought upon his wife justifies his
Millions of people are in unhealthy relationships, which can be identified in certain ways. In the tragedy, The Crucible by Arthur Miller, John Proctor, and his wife, Elizabeth Proctor have issues in their marriage. John has an affair with a girl named Abigail Williams while Elizabeth is sick. As a result, this breaks her trust in him, making her come off as cold and reserved. The nature of John and Elizabeth’s relationship is unhealthy because their words and actions towards each other reveal a sense of hostility, mistrust, and lack of affection.