The Crucible - Name

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'The Crucible' is a play written by the American playwright Arthur Miller in 1953. It is based in Salem, Massachusetts in the spring of the year 1692. One of the main themes of this play is one's name. A persons 'name' was what they counted as their reputation. If a person had a 'white name', it meant they were pure, innocent and hadn't committed any sins, but if a person had a 'blush upon their name' or their 'name' was blackened, it meant they had committed a sin, done something shameful or had done something against the church. The play looks at people naming names because if you were accused of witchcraft or even mentioned during one of the trials, you were sentenced to death. If the accusations were false, there was no proof to say that it is a lie. The court could only rely on the witnesses who they had seen 'signing their name in the devil’s book'. A person could lose their life if a witness mentioned their name in court. Almost all of the characters in the play would risk a lot to keep their name pure and innocent. For the married women in Salem, to represent that they are good wives and have a good name, their last name would have 'goody' in front of it; for example, Elizabeth Proctor is called Goody Proctor. Some of the main characters that are determined to keep their name pure are Abigail Williams and John Proctor. I will also briefly talk about Reverend John Hale. I will start my essay by writing about Abigail
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