Preview

Reverend Hale In The Crucible

Good Essays
Open Document
Open Document
540 Words
Grammar
Grammar
Plagiarism
Plagiarism
Writing
Writing
Score
Score
Reverend Hale In The Crucible
In Arthur Miller’s play, The Crucible, Reverend Hale evolves from a pompous man to a more cynical mad being. He enters Salem with extreme confidence in his belief that witches are present in Salem. As the trials go on, Reverend HAle begins to notice just how ridiculous and false the girl’s accusations were. In a short period of time, Reverend Hale loses faith in witchcraft and evolves into a more cynical man. In the beginning of the play, Reverend Hale is a pompous and knowledgeable man who seeks to end any type of witchcraft in Salem. In Act 1, “His goal is light, goodness, and it’s preservation” (Miller 30). This gives the reader the impression that Hale has trained to be the best witch hunter ever, and his trip to Salem is his opportunity to test his new skills. His belief in witches is soo powerful he tells the people of Salem, “No man may longer doubt the powers of the dark gathered in monstrous attack upon this village”(Miller 64). He even goes as far as to falsely accuse Tituba of witchcraft. Violence is the first action used on Tituba, rather than looking for evidence against her, Hale decides to listen to Abigail’s claim with no regrard for Tituba’s side of the story. Hale is so blinded by the idea of witches that he does not consider the possibility that it may not be a supernatural force that is causing havoc in Salem. …show more content…
He is becoming more cynical and reasonable that he begins to interview the people of Salem to discover the truth. Reverend Hale goes to question the Proctors without the knowledge of the court because Goody Proctor is the ideal christian woman, but is still being prosecuted by the court on accounts of witchcraft. He confronts John Proctor to ask him if he has “ no belief that there may even be witches in the world” (Miller 40 ). This shows that Hale is worried and curious about what truly is going on. When John Proctor gets convicted in Act III due to Abigail’s transparent schemes, Hale’s confidence in witches is completely shattered. He is completely fed up with the situation and tell Judge Danforth that he will not “dare not take a life without there be a proof so immaculate no slightest qualm of conscience may doubt it” (Miller 214). He quits the court and storms out of the scene in pure anger. Knowing the misjustice going on in Salem Reverend Hale begs John Proctor to sign the statement that is a lie, but will save his life. As the novel progressed, Reverend Hale began to be more reasonable and open to other’s opinions leading him to become a vague man who is fully against the

You May Also Find These Documents Helpful

  • Good Essays

    In Act 1 arrives Hale in Salem to investigate possible witchcraft with good intention and confidence to fight the devil. Hale is an expert on witchcraft. He has experiences and the required knowledge for the towns need therefore he feels self-important but on the other hand he is overconfident of fighting the devil. Reverend Hale initiates the proceedings in Salem by getting Tituba…

    • 517 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    Despite being an educated man, Hale is fully embracing the witch-hunt and keeps advocating it. The people of Salem are too afraid to question the validity of the witchcraft claims because even “God thought him beautiful in Heaven” -an hour before the Devil fell-. How can common men of Salem identify the Devil correctly? “Ancient friendships” are no longer relevant because anyone, even a close friend can be in the league with the Devil. Although it is not important whether the person is a Devil-worshipper or not because the people of Salem do not “dare not quail to follow wherever the accusing finger points”, Hale himself appears to believe that anyone accused has the potential of being a Devil-worshipper and worth to be interrogated. Since the way of the Devil is “so subtle” that the people of Salem “should be criminal” even to trust their friends now. The small bits of evidence seem to be forced or plotted, but according to Hale, all such proofs were real, “frightful”, and more than enough to be used to convict the accused. There appears to be a very thin line between being a devote Christian and a devil-worshipper, even to sensible Mr. Hale.…

    • 1306 Words
    • 4 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    The Crucible, a play written to criticize the Red Scare, involves a theme which focuses on how the characters change as an effect of the intensity and hysteria of the town’s witch trials. Elizabeth Proctor and Reverend Hale, two major characters in the play, experience internal changes as the play progresses due to the individual pressures of the witch trials. Elizabeth Proctor faces the test of having been accused as a witch, having her husband be accused and condemned as a witch, and trying to move past her husband’s affair with a local girl. Reverend Hale was challenged by the corruption of the ministry in Salem and encountered much adversity while doing his job, seeking out witchcraft. Both of these characters come to realize the witch trials only result in death and lies, which causes these characters to evolve.…

    • 849 Words
    • 4 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    Dynamic characters are changed by the characters and events that occur in the play or book. In The Crucible, two characters that change for the better are Reverend Hale and John Proctor. They both go on a journey of self due to the hysteria of The Salem Witch Trials. The community had fallen into mass panic over a group of girls who convicted dozens of innocent people of witchcraft. Throughout the book, they become more suspicious of the girls and take a more active role in trying to convince people that they’re lying about seeing people with the Devil. The Crucible, written by Arthur Miller, tells the story of Salem’s spiral into chaos in 1692 during The Salem Witch Trials, but instead of spiraling with the rest of the town, two characters,…

    • 313 Words
    • 2 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    Hale changes the way he feels towards the court and justice system. In the beginning Hale is a strong believer that if you are a good person the court will do you justice. When first finding out who is being accused, Hale goes house to house to feel out the accused because he is new in town. His actions him an opened minded person and does not believe everything right off the back. When Hale sees Elizabeth charged he says, “(Quote Hale says)” ().he feels this way because………………………. Later, Hale faces a turning point when he separates himself from the court: “I denounce these proceeding” (). He does this because he feels like Elizabeth being taken away for hiding John’s secret of lechery is “ridiculous” and the trials are “not about witchcraft but…

    • 445 Words
    • 2 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    All of the madness in The Crucible began when a few young girls from town went into the woods with a slave from town. When they got in the woods, they began to reform rituals while dancing around a bonfire. After a minister in town found out about the rituals, which closely resembled that of witch craft, the chaos began. Arthur Miller chose to use a brilliant array of major and minor characters and situations to depict the horrors and betrayals that exist within witch hunts. One of the main characters of this story is the Reverend John Hale, whose role thickens as the plot does.…

    • 622 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    A scholar from Beverly, Reverend Hale comes to Salem on Reverend Parris ' request to investigate supernatural causes for Betty Parris ' suspicious illness and thus instigates the rumors of witchcraft. Hale approaches the situation precisely and intellectually, believing that he can define the supernatural in definitive terms. Despite his early enthusiasm for discerning the presence of witchcraft in Salem, Hale soon grows disillusioned with the witchcraft accusations that abound and defends Proctor when he challenges Abigail. Hale does this out of guilt, for he fears that he may have caused the execution of innocent persons.…

    • 800 Words
    • 4 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Satisfactory Essays

    John Hale was one of the most influential ministers associated with the witch trials. His goal is light, goodness, and its preservation, and ultimately defeat the devil. He shared his goals with all of Salem, traveling from town to town to locate and end any suspected evil of the town. Later on though, he began to doubt the validity of his own conclusions. Coming to realization that the town is acting hysterical. He turns up hoping to save some lives. He councils convicted witches to confess to bring about the truth of all the trials so that they won't be hanged, or be brought upon a lesser sentence. Hale was now counseling people to lie. He has ultimately lost all faith in the law, and there's a good chance his faith in God is becoming questionable as well. Being noted as having initially supported the trials and then changing his mind and publishing a critique of them.…

    • 236 Words
    • 1 Page
    Satisfactory Essays
  • Satisfactory Essays

    god can bless them and rid them of the devil. An example of this is when he…

    • 449 Words
    • 2 Pages
    Satisfactory Essays
  • Good Essays

    The effects that occur within a society when pressure is placed on different aspects can cause a person to conform into what the society is trying to force them into anyway. Throughout The Crucible the proof that a society can truly change who people are in a situation and make it to where the people are going against their original beliefs and morals. The importance of conforming isn’t just one that plays a role on the outside of a character but how they are changed on the inside as well that truly shows the change played on the character. Included in The Crucible are many characters that go through a struggle that leads them to changing to the expectations set for them, leading to questioning themselves, one of the main characters that this is found in would be Reverend Hale with the role he played on the executions as well as the attempt to prevent, what he once believed was fair from happening, the executions of others.…

    • 654 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Satisfactory Essays

    When Reverend Hale first arrives to Salem, he is confident in what he's doing. He truly only has the intention of fighting the devil and removing him from the town of Salem. Being a specialist in witch removal, he really knows what he is doing or so he thinks. In his first major scene, he is examining Paris’s daughter. He quickly confirms that her ailment was caused by witchcraft; amazing everyone in the room.”Have no fear now—we shall find this devil out if he has come among us, and I mean to crush him utterly if he has shown his face!” (miller act 1) Hales confidence can be seen as him being full of himself but at this point it is not completely a negative trait. Hale has only one intention and that is to live out his dream of being a witch…

    • 156 Words
    • 1 Page
    Satisfactory Essays
  • Good Essays

    Reverend Hale The Crucible

    • 1384 Words
    • 6 Pages

    Usually, when someone is accused of a crime, those found guilty are disciplined accordingly, and those found innocent are let free, but the polar opposite occurred during the Salem Witch Trials in 1692. People suspected of witchery were determined innocent if they admitted guilt, and those who did not surrender were punished as witches. “The Crucible” is a play based on the true events of the Salem Witch Trials, with some discrepancies. When witches were thought to be present in Salem, Massachusetts, Reverend John Hale was summoned from a nearby town to determine whether a group of teenage girls were truly conjuring witches or just having fun. As Hale tried to unveil all of the lies and resolve the truth, he completely changed as a character.…

    • 1384 Words
    • 6 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    A crucible is a severe test as of patience or belief, a trial. Arthur Miller’s play The Crucible is a journey through the trials of many townspeople caused by suspicions of witchcraft. As the story progresses, people’s words and actions cause Reverend John Hale to change his views on whether the people prosecuted were guilty or innocent of witchcraft. As numerous events and their consequences unfold, they cause Hale to rethink his initial views on witchcraft and to be persuaded of the innocence of those convicted in Salem.…

    • 994 Words
    • 4 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    John Hale Essay

    • 785 Words
    • 4 Pages

    Hale owns up to his closed-minded reputation by listening to the opinions written in the books he studies and carries around with him. His intolerance of the opinions around him make him stubbornly unreceptive to any ideas other than his own. On page 842 in act one of the play, Miller describes Hale as a "tight-skinned, eager-eyed intellectual." This quote helps the readers perceive a realistic vision of Hale's character. The day Hale arrives in Salem, his investigation immediately begins. Parris informs Hale of a group of girls accusing others of witch-craft. Hale lets no time go to waste by willingly inserting himself into the middle of the action.…

    • 785 Words
    • 4 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Better Essays

    The Crucible

    • 890 Words
    • 4 Pages

    Reverend Hale is an intellectual man who prides himself in his ability to detect witchcraft, which was why he was called to Salem. This quote is seen as an example of Hale’s excessive pride on Act One, page 39 of The Crucible, “Have no fear now – we shall find him out if he has come among us, and I mean to crush him…

    • 890 Words
    • 4 Pages
    Better Essays