Abigail Williams In The Crucible
The Crucible
The playwright, Arthur Miller, uses the character construction in the play to position the audience to accept the dominant reading of the play, which is the concern and dangers of religious fanaticism. The play, The Crucible, is set in Salem, Massachusetts in 1692. It is based upon the actual events which led to the ‘Salem witch trials’, a series of hearings to determine which individuals were in fact practicing witchcraft. The play also conveys parallels to the McCarthyist era, during which the playwright was questioned as he had attended Communist meetings, and modern day anti-terror laws, which prevent people of certain backgrounds and cultures to enter countries, as they are immediately sent to prisons, based on appearance …show more content…
She believes that the previous sexual encounter between her and Proctor means he still and always will, love her. Williams is portrayed as the enemy in the play, no doubt that she is more conniving than any other character, as shown in Act I, when she threatens the other girls involved in the so called ‘witchcraft’, she states, “And mark this. Let either of you breathe a word, or the edge of a word, about the other things, and I will come to you in the black of some terrible night and I will bring a pointy reckoning that will shudder you. And you know I can do it…” (p26) This quote clearly shows what Williams is capable of, and that she wants the other girls to know that she will do what is necessary for her to achieve her goal of retaining Proctor. Williams also conveys how deceptive she truly is when talking to her uncle, Parris, about why she was fired by Elizabeth Proctor, from the Proctors’ service in this quote, “She hates me, uncle, she must, for I would not be her slave. It’s a bitter woman, a lying, cold, snivelling woman, and I will not work for such a woman!” (p20) This clearly shows that she does not care who she hurts or whose reputation she blackens, as long as her name is good it does not matter. Miller uses Williams to show that religious fanaticism does not always ensure a civilised
The playwright, Arthur Miller, uses the character construction in the play to position the audience to accept the dominant reading of the play, which is the concern and dangers of religious fanaticism. The play, The Crucible, is set in Salem, Massachusetts in 1692. It is based upon the actual events which led to the ‘Salem witch trials’, a series of hearings to determine which individuals were in fact practicing witchcraft. The play also conveys parallels to the McCarthyist era, during which the playwright was questioned as he had attended Communist meetings, and modern day anti-terror laws, which prevent people of certain backgrounds and cultures to enter countries, as they are immediately sent to prisons, based on appearance …show more content…
She believes that the previous sexual encounter between her and Proctor means he still and always will, love her. Williams is portrayed as the enemy in the play, no doubt that she is more conniving than any other character, as shown in Act I, when she threatens the other girls involved in the so called ‘witchcraft’, she states, “And mark this. Let either of you breathe a word, or the edge of a word, about the other things, and I will come to you in the black of some terrible night and I will bring a pointy reckoning that will shudder you. And you know I can do it…” (p26) This quote clearly shows what Williams is capable of, and that she wants the other girls to know that she will do what is necessary for her to achieve her goal of retaining Proctor. Williams also conveys how deceptive she truly is when talking to her uncle, Parris, about why she was fired by Elizabeth Proctor, from the Proctors’ service in this quote, “She hates me, uncle, she must, for I would not be her slave. It’s a bitter woman, a lying, cold, snivelling woman, and I will not work for such a woman!” (p20) This clearly shows that she does not care who she hurts or whose reputation she blackens, as long as her name is good it does not matter. Miller uses Williams to show that religious fanaticism does not always ensure a civilised