Then, on the other end of the spectrum, we have Rebecca Nurse. Though Danforth is the most powerful official figure in court, Abigail manipulates him easily with her performance as a victim of witchcraft. Goody Good, an old beggar woman, is one of the first to be named a witch. In reality, he is constantly judging himself, and this leads to outbursts of anger against others who remind him of what he did (he already feels guilty enough!). Interestingly, she was the first woman put to death in the trials. Act 4 is Danforths turn to shine in the irony department. She continues to act under the assumption that his reputation is of the utmost importance to him, and she does not reveal the affair. She openly threatens Danforth for even entertaining Mary and John's accusations of fraud against her. This hysteria-based evidence of witchcraft includes the discovery of the poppet in the Proctor household with a needle in it. He has sentenced people to death based on lies about their dealings in black magic, and he has accepted other false confessions from those who would rather lie than be executed. When the petition testifying to the good character of the accused women is presented, the reaction from Danforth, Hathorne, and Parris is to arrest the people who signed it rather than considering that this might indicate that the women are innocent. He is completely oblivious to the fact that the victims might be lying. He refers to Johns refusal to confess as a calamity, looking past his own involvement in the larger calamity of the conviction that led John to this point. His guilt leads to great tension in interactions with Elizabeth because he projects his feelings onto her, accusing her of being judgmental and dwelling on his mistakes. The Crucible remains a staple of high school English because it is rich in themes that are consistently relevant to human beings regardless of time period. Explore examples of hypocrisy in the play, including the hypocrisy in land disputes, sin, and the characters of Rebecca Nurse, Reverend Hale, and the children. Later in Act 4, Danforth becomes angry at the implication that Johns confession may not be the truth. They are extremely biased towards believing they have made the correct sentencing decisions in court thus far, so they are reluctant to accept new evidence that may prove them wrong. Parris initially insists that there are no unnatural causes for Bettys illness because he fears that he will lose favor with the townspeople if witchcraft is discovered under his roof. Miller wrote it as an allegory to the Red Scare, the promotion of fear of a potential rise of communism. Because, the people of Salem will find out about the affair, this would weaken his reputation. Ironically, though she is normally honest to a fault, in this situation Elizabeth decides to lie to preserve Johns reputation, not knowing he has already confessed. The whole purpose of a trial is to hear both sides of the story before a verdict is reached. Fear that spread among a group of people in Salem during the Salem Witch Trials, that event in history is a prime example of Mass Hysteria. Parris is hypocritical because he is not a . This new power is exciting and very dangerous because it encourages the girls to make additional accusations in order to preserve their value in the eyes of the court. The turmoil in Salem is propelled forward by desires for revenge and power that have been simmering beneath the town's placid exterior. The meaning of HYPOCRISY is a feigning to be what one is not or to believe what one does not : behavior that contradicts what one claims to believe or feel; especially : the false assumption of an appearance of virtue or religion. Here are a few questions related to this theme that you can use to test your grasp of irony and its significance as a theme in The Crucible: Hale wrongly assumes that his academic mindset will save him from jumping to the wrong conclusions in the witchcraft investigation. People were put to death because their neighbors suspected them of committing a crime, but murder is a sin in the Puritan religion. The authorities ignore any inconvenient logical objections to the proceedings because they, too, are swept up in the madness. "She sat to dinner in Reverend Parris's house tonight, and without word nor warnin' she falls to the floor. The two characters that could have ended the mass hysteria are Abigail Williams and Deputy Governor Danforth. It is a somewhat fictional play about the Salem Witch Trials. How is Parris fate in act 4 ironic when considering his role in the events of the play? This lie essentially condemns both of them. Why wont Danforth hear his evidence? Where before she was just an orphaned teenager, now, in the midst of the trials, she becomes the main witness to the inner workings of a Satanic plot. In a way. Furthermore, this is destructive influence because by telling Elizabeth to tell Proctor to lie, this adds upon his sins. The Crucible presents a view of women that essentially reduces them to caricatures of human beings that are defined by their roles as mothers, wives, and servants to men. As mentioned in the overview, religion holds significant power over the people of Salem. What motivates their attitudes and responses toward the witch trials? He says, I would to God it were not so, Excellency, but these people have great weight yet in the town (pg. Lying- Explain why the girls are more willing to lie . You can also read my full summary of The Crucible here for a review of exactly what happens in the plot in each act. Other essay questions may not ask you directly about the themes listed in this article, but that doesn't mean that the themes are irrelevant to your writing. This causes problems down the line as Parris allows his paranoia about losing his position to translate into enthusiasm for the witch hunt. He's already accepted her testimony as evidence, so he is happy for any excuse to believe her over John and Mary.John finally comes to the realization that Mary's truthful testimony cannot compete with the hysteria that has taken hold of the court. Danforth has extensive pride in his intelligence and perceptiveness. Other essay questions may not ask you directly about the themes listed in this article, but that doesn't mean that the themes are irrelevant to your writing. Abigails presence is always rife with irony in The Crucible, as she constantly chastises others for sins she herself has committed. Why is hypocrisy so common in repressive communities like Salem? Her jealousy of Elizabeth Proctors position as Johns wife has led her to attempted murder, first by the charm in the woods and now by accusing Elizabeth of witchcraft. 119). This makes him particularly averse to accepting that he's been fooled by a teenage girl. In Act 1 he jumped on board with the hysteria to preserve his power, but he ended up losing what little authority he had in the first place (and, according to Miller's afterward, was voted out of office soon after the end of the play). hbspt.cta.load(360031, '4efd5fbd-40d7-4b12-8674-6c4f312edd05', {}); Have any questions about this article or other topics? AbracaDENIAL! To illustrate, here are some examples of . Abigails many deceptions are sometimes laughably ironic as she chastises others for lying even as she is spinning falsehoods. The Puritans believed that children were to be seen and not heard. In today's society no one want to hear about something they fear, they would rather it be left alone than try to understand it. 129)He is still convinced that all the prisoners are guilty and is determined to force them to admit their guilt. Like a struck beast, he says, and screamed a scream that a bull would weep to hear. The importance placed on reputation helps perpetuate hysteria because it leads to inaction, inflexibility, and, in many cases, active sabotage of the reputations of others for selfish purposes. Throughout the play, Miller is introducing multiple characters that experience changes in their decisions and negatively influence more people eventually leading up to the witch trials. In her conversation with John, Abigail claims that he helped her realize all the lies she was told by two-faced people in Salem who only publicly adhere to the conventions of respectable society (pg. One path to higher standing and greater control would be in becoming John Proctors wife. John Proctor is the tragic hero because he is loving, loyal, authoritative, but his tragic flaw is his . The play is about human weakness, hypocrisy, and vindictiveness. Tituba is pressured to confess and name the names of other witches to avoid execution, which leads to Abigail and Bettys accusations, now validated by a coerced confession. Mary is a hypocrite, because she's supposed to be helping the church rid of conjurers of the devil but instead she is deceitful. This vicious cycle continues to claim the lives of more and more people as the play progresses. This is interesting because the children are the ones that the rest of the village relies upon to condemn people to death. 44) but realizes that her word against Abigail will not stand. What the people of Salem have seen as demonic possessions of the girls is nothing more than an act of deception. (Cheever pg. In Arthur Miller's play, The Crucible, the events that occurred during the Salem witch trials are dramatized, and the truth of judgement and vengeance is examined in a web of lies amongst the townspeople. 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Many people confess when threatened with execution, and this only heightens the paranoid atmosphere. In Act 3, Abigails power in the courthouse is on display. He chooses to die instead of providing a false confession because he doesnt think life will be worth living after he is so disgraced. While it does provide an entertaining experience at face value, the true literary genius behind the work is Miller's . In steadfastly refusing to confess, Rebecca Nurse holds onto a great deal of power. The town slips further and further into chaos and paranoia until it reaches a point of total devastation. A theme is a central topic that is addressed by a work of literature. Johns concern for his reputation is strong throughout the play, and his hesitation to reveal Abigails true nature is a product of his own fears of being labeled an adulterer. When Abigail accuses Elizabeth, a respected farmers wife, it shows that she is willing to take big risks to remove Elizabeth from the picture. It's one thing to understand the major themes in The Crucible, and it's another thing completely to write about them yourself. He believes that Postponement now speaks a floundering on my part; reprieve or pardon must cast doubt upon the guilt of them that died till now. 130). As we discussed in this lesson, we see hypocrisy everywhere, and its depiction in art is no exception. The judges cannot force her to commit herself to a lie, and her martyrdom severely damages their legitimacy and favor amongst the townspeople. The Crucible is not only a dramatization of . The depths of the hysteria that has gripped Salem are revealed in Act 3 when John finally confronts the court. By the end of class, you should be able to: Identify basic elements of McCarthyism, including the following terms: How are themes like hysteria, hunger for power, reputation, or any of a number of others functional in the drama? It's here that we see the hypocrisy of the situation. There are several ironies in Act 1 that center around Abigail Williams. How is the arrest of Rebecca Nurse a sign that the hysteria in Salem has gotten out of control? Get Free Guides to Boost Your SAT/ACT Score, list of every single character in the play, details on the history and thematic parallels behind this connection. Abigail, the one character who breaks from this mold slightly, is portrayed extremely unsympathetically despite the fact that the power dynamic between her and John makes him far more culpable in their illicit relationship. "(3-84), since Danforth is in power for being the judge he thinks that everyone else is ignorant and not being equal as him.