The author, Arthur Miller, displays a theocracy to demonstrate a court's ignorance towards actual facts. A theocracy is a religion based government. Throughout the novel, The Crucible, the religion of the government corrupts decisions that are made in court. If someone was not a part of the church or did not attend every Sunday they were thought to be a witch, or at least dishonorable. Danforth, deputy governor, brought forth the main issue of the whole novel, "A person is either with this court or he must be counted against it, there be no road between" (Miller 94). The government puts many people in a crossroad because they are forced to choose between their true beliefs or what the government wants to hear. Throughout the novel, people …show more content…
Proctor actually preferred not to go to church because he disliked Reverend Parris; Proctor was not entirely sure of Parris's true intentions. When John expresses his frustration by stating, "when I look to heaven and see my money glaring at his elbows..." (Miller 65) it brings him great dissatisfaction, especially after working a long hard day on the farm. Some people in the town were afraid to express the same discontent Proctor has because they do not want to be accused of witchcraft. Although, others were bold enough to confront the court and converse with the judges about how they felt. Giles Correy, being one of the people who stands up, says, "and yet silent minister? It is fraud, you know it is fraud! What keeps you man?" (Miller 78). Those who were unhappy did not believe the court was protecting the innocent people the way they should. Some members of the community think that the court is not handling the prosecutions correctly and their decisions should be revised. Arthur Miller utilizes John Proctor to prove that one is either with or against the court. The court wants Proctor to confess of witchcraft in order for him to live, but he is reluctant to do so. He is hanged because he stood up for his moral rights, and he does not say what the court wants to hear from him, a confession. Proctor might have been right in denying the …show more content…
The novel displays many decisions made by the people, in which, they are aware that one must be with the court or they are against it. Members of the community know they cannot sneak by interrogations without fully believing in the court or else they will be hanged for witchcraft. Putnam states, "there is a murdering witch among us, bound to keep herself in the dark" (Miller 16), but perhaps the real murderers are right in front of the people the whole time, calling themselves a
Despite their deeply religious values, the members of the Puritan Society in Arthur Miller’s The Crucible are equally as sinful as the rest of the world. The Puritans, known for turning to God when given any matter at hand, lay blame on the Devil, regardless of their contradictory values. By blaming on him for their wrongdoings, the Devil earns power through the Puritans restoring to involve him whenever any one thing goes wrong. Power is defined by one’s reputation, status, wealth, gender, and age; although the natural deciding factor of one’s power in the Puritan society is land, the Devil himself holds ultimate power. Despite the fact that he does not appear as a human figure, he controls the thoughts and actions of the Puritan society, serving as the ultimate threat.
Either you confess to being a witch and soil your name and disgrace your family, or you plead not guilty and hang for your alleged crimes. So knowing which ever position he held they would both hold life altering affects from there on out, he chose what he thought was right and showed everyone to stay true to yourself in life. Proctor says he could not sign his name away because it would show a bad example for his children “I have three children--how may I teach them to walk like men in the world, and I sold my friends” (Miller 143)? Proctor was caught in a catch 22 scenario where either he lives with his kids knowing he was convicted of witchcraft and sold out his friends, or he dies and leaves his children without a father completely. But John Proctor does not take his whole family down with him and decides that just he should suffer the consequences of his own mess.
Knowing if he would’ve confessed, it would have ruined his children's lives. They would have been known as the sons of a witch who sold out his friends. John later rescinds his confession, and he feels great for the first time in a long time because he feels like him doing this good deed wiped away all the sins from the past. John Proctor is a selfless man because he is not only thinking about himself but about the future of his loved
Then, John was accused of witchcraft. He was given the choice to tell the truth and be prosecuted or confess to a crime he didn’t commit and be set free. He chose to tell the truth and got sent to jail. During this time, he said “... what is John Proctor? I think it is honest” (page 138).
Life or Death: Did John Proctor Make the Right Decision? Countless people have learned about the lies and horrors of witches in 1692 during the Salem Witch trials. In The Crucible, a tragedy written by Arthur Miller, it displays the tragedy and wrongful convictions of the townsfolk of Salem. One notable character being John Proctor a well respected upperclassman in Salem who was willing to confess his sins, sacrificing his life for the greater good of his family and friends. There are many reasons people choose to do things in life whether or not they will turn out well in the end.
In The Crucible, John Proctor the protagonist, becomes a victim of the witch trials when his wife Elizabeth, is accused of witchcraft. In order to free his wife, Proctor must convince Judge Danforth of his wife’s innocence. Judge Danforth does not sign condemnations lightly and takes meticulous inspection of his cases to determine the guilty party. He is also a highly religious man who takes matters between God and men seriously. It is because of Danforth’s dedication to the law and God that Proctor utilizes ethos, logos, and pathos to persuade him.
A Man's Honor Honor is something that can be earned, lost, and taken away. In the Novel “The Crucible” John Proctor has his honor taken away and attempts to earn it back. He had an affair and is now trying to earn respect from the person he cares about, his wife. John Proctor is an honorable man because he helps people in need, loves his wife and stays a truthful man before he dies. John Proctor Helped his friends be successful and cared for their safety.
Hypocrisy is the practice of claiming to have moral standards or beliefs to which one's own behavior does not conform; pretense. In the book the Crucible there are many hypocrites some dishonest some just following any one to be guilty, but one of the many character is Judge Danforth he mocks Marry when he ask "How were you instructed in your life? Do you not know that God damns all liars?"(3-84), since Danforth is in power for being the judge he thinks that everyone else is ignorant and not being equal as him.
Since the beginning of time people have gone through trials in court to either be proven innocent or guilty. In the Crucible by Arthur Miller a massive number of people were being convicted in Salem, Massachusetts because of the witch trials. The law of the land states that everyone is above suspicion until they are demonstrated to be guilty by legitimate evidence; in the play the Crucible if a person was accused of an unlawful act they were summons for being a witch and working for the devil without proper confirmation. Citizens in Salem were imposed to establish their innocent or be put to death, which caused conflicting issues in the village.
The accused cannot be sent to the gallows without their crime being proven with sufficient and concrete evidence. The court rejects the petition that says Elizabeth Proctor is of good character, signed by the people attesting to it. It was instead viewed as an attack against the court. There are also multiple instances where the court relies upon the girls ' visions and prosecuted people because of it. The court has absolutely no right to decide a man 's fate upon falsified claims without a logical and sensible way of examining the allegations.
Danforth explains his inability to free the accused people because, “twelve are already hanged for the same crime. It is not just,” (Miller 129). In saying this he admits that a person can only avoid a hanging by confessing to witchcraft even if their statement contains no truth. Combining this notion with the one he declared earlier displays the hypocritical nature of Danforth when put in this hysterical
It is against god and being look at as being possessed by the devil to possess and act upon others cruelly. During the time, The Crucible by Arthur Miller was published, the Red Scare was coming to an end. It was a case of communism within the government of the time that reflected upon Miller's book. The government of the town was ran by the judge, one person, who had everyone talking in his ear. However, only the people of his board he believed and took pride in their word.
But I will cut off my hand before I ever reach for you again” (1225). Proctor was unhappy with Paris’s sermons because he did not mention God so instead of confronting him, he just stopped attending church. John Proctor has both strengths and weaknesses, but mostly weaknesses because of his decision not to
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.
There is no such thing as the truth, people lie and others continue to believe them. Except one, John Proctor from the beginning of the play is on the side of justice, and finding the truth. From the beginning of the play he questions the idea of witchcraft, and believes that it is just another act from Abigail Williams. An example of how Proctor is always on the side of truth is when he is in court and he confesses to having an affair with Abigail Williams. "A man may think God sleeps, but God sees everything, I know it now.