The Crucible
Ryan McKeithan
English III Prd. 1
10 – 17 – 12
“The Crucible” by Author Miller: Crucible [kroo-suh-buhl] noun: A severe, searching test or trial. Author Miller titled the play “The Crucible” because it has to do with witchcraft trails in Salem. Witchcraft [wich-kraft, krahft] noun: The art or practices of a witch; sorcery; magic. McCarthyism [muh-kahr-thee-iz-uhm] noun: The practice of making accusations of disloyalty; the practice of making unfair allegations or using unfair investigating techniques, especially in order to restrict dissent or political criticism. In the play “The Crucible” by Author Miller the characters or John Proctor, Abigail Williams, and Reverend Hale are motivated by these ideas of Witchcraft and McCarthyism and in turn effect the plot of the play. John Proctor is the Protagonist in the play, meaning he was the leading character or hero of the drama. He is Elizabeth Proctor’s husband. He is also an honest, upright, blunt, and a good man with a secret that he has committed adultery. John tries to find peace within himself throughout all the lies and chaos that occurs during the play. “Because it is my name! Because I cannot have another in my life! Because I lie and sign myself to lies! Because I am not worth the dust on the feet of them who hang! How may I live without my name? I have given you my soul; leave me my name!” (Proctor, pg. 62) This quote shows that John Proctor is a dynamic and round person because he evolves from being afraid of what the town would think of him committing adultery to refusing to give up his personal integrity. So he confessed for religious reasons to take him to heaven. One of John’s major actions is that he makes an attempt through Mary Warren’s testimony calling Abigail a fraud but it fails so he bursts out with a confession calling Abigail a whore and proclaiming his guilt landing him in jail for witchcraft. One of his motivations was to stop them from accusing his wife of witchcraft. His impact on
English III Prd. 1
10 – 17 – 12
“The Crucible” by Author Miller: Crucible [kroo-suh-buhl] noun: A severe, searching test or trial. Author Miller titled the play “The Crucible” because it has to do with witchcraft trails in Salem. Witchcraft [wich-kraft, krahft] noun: The art or practices of a witch; sorcery; magic. McCarthyism [muh-kahr-thee-iz-uhm] noun: The practice of making accusations of disloyalty; the practice of making unfair allegations or using unfair investigating techniques, especially in order to restrict dissent or political criticism. In the play “The Crucible” by Author Miller the characters or John Proctor, Abigail Williams, and Reverend Hale are motivated by these ideas of Witchcraft and McCarthyism and in turn effect the plot of the play. John Proctor is the Protagonist in the play, meaning he was the leading character or hero of the drama. He is Elizabeth Proctor’s husband. He is also an honest, upright, blunt, and a good man with a secret that he has committed adultery. John tries to find peace within himself throughout all the lies and chaos that occurs during the play. “Because it is my name! Because I cannot have another in my life! Because I lie and sign myself to lies! Because I am not worth the dust on the feet of them who hang! How may I live without my name? I have given you my soul; leave me my name!” (Proctor, pg. 62) This quote shows that John Proctor is a dynamic and round person because he evolves from being afraid of what the town would think of him committing adultery to refusing to give up his personal integrity. So he confessed for religious reasons to take him to heaven. One of John’s major actions is that he makes an attempt through Mary Warren’s testimony calling Abigail a fraud but it fails so he bursts out with a confession calling Abigail a whore and proclaiming his guilt landing him in jail for witchcraft. One of his motivations was to stop them from accusing his wife of witchcraft. His impact on