How is the arrest of Rebecca Nurse a sign that the hysteria in Salem has gotten out of control? Great, character-driven stories often have deeply flawed characters at their heart. The first is that she is looking to escape . In a way,John welcomes the loss of his reputation because he feels so guilty about the disconnect between howhe is perceived by others and the sins he has committed. MPP friends writing about life, love, and everything else in between together. Danforth, Hathorne, and Parris become even more rigid in their views when they feel they are under attack. The Devil is really a superstition hiding the townspeople, who are ''precise'' in their accusations because they want land from others. An error occurred trying to load this video. These hypocritical actions take away from the authority of the person or people committing them. Get the latest articles and test prep tips! You can also read my full summary of The Crucible here for a review of exactly what happens in the plot in each act. copyright 2003-2023 Study.com. AbracaDENIAL! The second major theme in The Crucible (and one that teachers often ask about) is fear and hysteria. He is weak and vulnerable after Abigail's theft of his life's savings, and hes even facing death threats from the townspeople as a result of John and Rebecca's imminent executions. What Are The Human Flaws In The Crucible 1560 Words | 7 Pages. It helped me pass my exam and the test questions are very similar to the practice quizzes on Study.com. There are many characters in the Crucible who are guilty of taking innocent lives, but there are three major characters who, without a doubt, are the most at blame. He is appalled by Elizabeths lack of emotion when he asks her to help the court get a confession out of her husband (pg. The most substantial female character is Abigail, who is portrayed as a devious and highly sexualized young woman. Examples Of Character Flaws In The Crucible - StudyMode Miller's portrayal of women in The Crucible is a much-discussed topic. He shows the hypocrisy of the Puritans by showing their belief system and how they have not acted in accordance with those beliefs. Hypocrisy: A Human Flaw 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. In Salem the reason why so many women were killed was because of Mass Hysteria. How to use hypocrisy in a sentence. Shes not a traditionally accepted target like the others (except in her susceptibility as a woman to the misogyny that runs rampant in the play). The Puritans believed that children were to be seen and not heard. If Tituba was permitted to explain what really happened, the ensuing tragedy might have been prevented. Though Rebecca Nurse's involvement has already been corroborated by other confessors, Danforth demands to hear it from John to confirm that John is fully committed to renouncing his supposed ties to Satan. The Bible that the Puritans swore to live by is not being honored when they used the trials to condemn their neighbors to death. Hales involvement is taken to mean that there must be a supernatural element to Bettys illness. John feels incredibly ashamed of his affair with Abigail, so he tries to bury it and pretend it never happened. 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. The seeds are planted in Act 1, when Abigail is questioned about her activities in the woods and ends up accusing Tituba of witchcraft to avoid punishment. Miller explains this further: ''long-held hatreds of neighbors could now be openly expressed, and vengeance taken, despite the Bible's charitable injunctions.'' Arthur Miller used this notion of hypocrisy when he wrote The Crucible to show us the theme, or underlying message, that a hypocritical society can be dangerous. Hale pg. Abigail insists that she did nothing to deserve it and tries to put all the blame on Elizabeth Proctor. People who were accused of witchcraft are wrongfully indicted, and those transgressions must be justified. Greed is a sin in the Puritan religion, so the people who supported the accusations were indeed hypocrites. In The Crucible, there are many characters that feed into or contribute to the rapid spread of witch hysteria in the small village of Salem. 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. By Act 2, there have been notable changes in the power structure in Salem as a result of the ongoing trials. Miller himself was blacklisted for refusing to testify in front of the HUAC, a committee that was created to investigate any person who might be a communist. It can be hard for the deaf and hard of hearing to become engaged in theater. Along with the final say in the putting to death of people during the Salem witch trials. 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. How do outside forces contribute to the character's flaws and eventual downfall?". I highly recommend you use this site! However, this runs up against Danforths desire to preserve his reputation as a strong judge. No one will listen to Tituba until she agrees to confirm the version of events that the people in traditional positions of authority have already decided is true, a pattern which continues throughout the play. Abigail accuses Tituba first because Tituba is the one person below her on the ladder of power, so she makes an easy scapegoat. Armed with the false proof of these coerced confessions, the court officials aggressively persecute anyone who is accused. Hypocrisy in The Crucible - Essays - Notmichaelsellers - Brainia Plus, get practice tests, quizzes, and personalized coaching to help you The girls are essentially given permission by authority figures to continue their act because they are made to feel special and important for their participation. Abigail accuses Tituba first because Tituba is the one person below her on the ladder of power, so she makes an easy scapegoat. Danforth, who has the most authority, is also the most sold on her act, and it only takes a few screams to persuade him that hes in the presence of witchcraft. If you hope to write an awesome essay onThe Crucible, you should have extensive knowledge of its themes. Though hysteria overpowered the reputations of the accused in the past two acts, in act 4 the sticking power of their original reputations becomes apparent. 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. Themes can be expressed in many different ways. Miller writes: ''As for Rebecca herself, the general opinion of her character was so high that to explain how anyone dared cry her out for a witchwe must look to the fields and boundaries of that time.'' An example of hypocrisy is when Mary defends Elizabeth in court, but then gives her a poppet which lands Elizabeth in jail for owning a tool of witchcraft. Elizabeth notes that Mary's demeanor is now like that of the daughter of a prince (pg. The thematic significance of hysteria builds quickly as accusations of witchcraft proliferate throughout Salem. The Crucible by Arthur Miller is a dramatic play that expresses a very important message and that is how far people would go to save themselves from the hands of death. We've written a guide for each test about the top 5 strategies you must be using to have a shot at improving your score. Enrolling in a course lets you earn progress by passing quizzes and exams. What Is The Hypocrisy In The Crucible | ipl.org Parris is extremely dismayed by this revelation because of the damage it will do to his reputation. Being in contact with someone else means mediating between ourselves and the other. There's a message here about the choices we have in dealing with guilt. 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. Hales involvement is taken to mean that there must be a supernatural element to Bettys illness. Envy, Selfishness, and lust for money/power demonstrate the flaws of humanity through the actions of Abigail Williams, Reverend Parris, and Thomas Putnam. To Danforth, anything that doesnt confirm that he was right all along is a lie. 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. 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. Courage, Weakness, And Truth In Arthur Miller's The Crucible Thomas Putnam tells him to Wait for no one to charge you - declare it yourself.Parris must rush to be the first accuser so he can place himself beyond reproach. 129)He is still convinced that all the prisoners are guilty and is determined to force them to admit their guilt. These two institutions fuse together in The Crucible to actively encourage accusers and discourage rational explanations of events. In another section, Miller explains the teachings of the Puritans and how it related to the mess that the trials became: ''These people had no ritual for the washing away of sins. John And Elizabeth Proctor's Flaws In The Crucible | Studymode How does reputation influence who is first accused of witchcraft? By Act 4, many of the power structures that were firmly in place earlier in the play have disintegrated. Danforth, Hathorne, and Parris become even more rigid in their views when they feel they are under attack. How does this philosophy perpetuate hysteria? Arthur Miller's "The Crucible" is a fictional account of the real life Salem witch trials, but the play has far deeper meanings than just a dramatic interpretation of the event. Do you not know that God damns all liars? (Miller 101). The town, already primed with rumors of black magic, is quickly willing to accept that the first few women who are accused are involved in black magic because theyre beggars and slaves. The girls are essentially given permission by authority figures to continue their act because they are made to feel special and important for their participation. Now that you've read about the most important themes in The Crucible, check out ourlist of every single character in the play, including brief analyses of their relationships and motivations. The theme of guilt is one that is deeply relevant to John Proctor's character development throughout the play. Revered Parris claims to be a godly minister, yet he is always clamoring for more: golden candlesticks, property rights, more money. A constant theme through out the play is your personal reputation, maintaining a good name. Deception is a major driving force inThe Crucible. Reverend Parris' concerns about his reputation are immediately evident in Act 1. The attitudes towards women in the 1950s, when the play was written, are evident in the roles they're given. The two characters that could have ended the mass hysteria are Abigail Williams and Deputy Governor Danforth. Even before Abigail makes accusations, rumors of witchcraft have morphed into accepted truths in the minds of the more superstitious members of the community. Concern for reputation is a theme that looms large over most of the events in The Crucible. . This act also sees the irony of Hale discussing the powers of the dark that are attacking Salem (pg. They could either confess to being guilty and is punished and put into jail or deny any relationship with the devil and be hanged and killed. The prisoners have lost all faith in earthly authority figures and look towards the judgment of God. John Proctor sabotages his own reputation in Act 3 after realizing it's the only way he can discredit Abigail. One path to higher standing and greater control would be in becoming John Proctors wife. Abigails presence is always rife with irony in. These are themes that could be considered subsets of the topics detailed in the previous sections, but there's also room to discuss them as topics in their own right. Revenge in The Crucible by Arthur Miller | Theme, Examples & Analysis, Allusion in the Crucible by Arthur Miller | Examples & Overview, Thomas Putnam in The Crucible | Character Traits, Quotes & Personality, Irony in The Crucible by Arthur Miller | Overview & Examples, Abigail Williams in The Crucible | Quotes, Traits & Descriptions, The Crucible by Arthur Miller: Act 1 | Quotes, Overview & Analysis, Judge John Hathorne in The Crucible by Arthur Miller | Analysis & Quotes, John Proctor in The Crucible by Arthur Miller | Quotes, Analysis & Development, Reverend John Hale in the Crucible by Arthur Miller | Traits, Quotes & Analysis, Reverend Parris in The Crucible | Character Traits & Quotes, Hysteria in The Crucible by Arthur Miller | Theme, Quotes & Examples, Fear in The Crucible by Arthur Miller | Quotes, Examples & Analysis, Judge Danforth in The Crucible by Arthur Miller | Character & Quotes, Giles Corey Character Analysis & Quotes | The Crucible by Arthur Miller, Ruth Putnam in The Crucible by Arthur Miller | Character & Analysis, Symbols in The Crucible by Arthur Miller | Examples & Analysis, NYSTCE English Language Arts (003): Practice and Study Guide, One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest Study Guide, English 103: Analyzing and Interpreting Literature, EPT: CSU English Language Arts Placement Exam, ILTS English Language Arts (207): Test Practice and Study Guide, Common Core ELA Grade 8 - Language: Standards, College English Composition: Help and Review, Create an account to start this course today. Is Hypocrisy Part of Human Nature? | by Ryan Fan - Medium The play loosely follows the tale of Salem and how the trials came to pass. Here are some discussion questions to consider after reading about the thematic role of the concepts of power and authority in the events of the play: Mary Warren when she comes back from Salem in Act 2. (pg. People were put to death because their neighbors suspected them of committing a crime, but murder is a sin in the Puritan religion. Elizabeth's side of the story is disregarded because Abigails testimony is far more dramatic. In the play The Crucible, Arthur Miller repeatedly portrays that duplicity and deceit are a natural part of human lives. The Crucible Themes Flashcards | Quizlet Then, on the other end of the spectrum, we have Rebecca Nurse. 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. 12) The first act of The Crucibleclearly establishes the fact that a bad reputation can damage a persons position in this society severely and irreparably. Danforth also becomes frustrated with Proctor when he wont name names in his confession: Mr. In steadfastly refusing to confess, Rebecca Nurse holds onto a great deal of power. They're also revealed though events in the plot. Elizabeth is a victim of cruel irony in this Act when she is summoned to testify on the reasons why she dismissed Abigail from her household. Ask below and we'll reply! Tituba attempts to tell the truth about Abigail when she says, You beg me to conjure! Miller wrote it as an allegory to the Red Scare, the promotion of fear of a potential rise of communism.