To preach forgiveness is to preach the “good news” and lead the lost into the glory of God. However, in these times many Evangelicals have turned to a more dark interpretation of the “good news”. There are vivid descriptions of hell that cause fear into many. There are many laws created by churches that use fear to control their followers. With this going on, it is no wonder why others believe that Evangelicals are motivated by hate.
A radical religion called Puritanism was vitally important to the people of Salem, and they were extraordinarily paranoid of the Devil. Two characters in the book The Crucible demonstrate how Puritanism affected the society. Judge Danforth is an example of religious ignorance and ends up being the person who condemns everyone, suspecting they are all witches. On the other hand, John Proctor is a level headed farmer who watches as his friends and their wives are accused of witchcraft and sentenced to death, that is, until his own wife is accused. Using these foil characters, Arthur Miller exemplifies the difference between people who are weak minded and cowardly versus people who are strong-minded and brave.
Why is Reverend Parris so distraught? Describe his character. Find evidence to suggest that Rev Parris feels persecuted. Reverend Parris fears the worst for his reputation, if rumors/beliefs were to be going around than Rev Parris would almost defiantly be fired. Rev Parris is not so much worried for the children as he is for himself.
Two passages highlight tremendous fault in judgment pertaining to witch hunting, both of which I will explain and reflect upon throughout this essay. During the first act, upon Mr. Hale’s entry, Miller exposes the connections between communism vs. capitalism and good vs. evil. As Mr. Hale holds that “the devil is a wily one” (Miller, 35) and must be stopped, there were many in both the United States and communist Russia who condemned the opposite party of espionage in an effort to undermine what they believed to be “good” in the battle of “good” vs. “evil”. Russia, for example, during the years of Stalin’s reign, held military tribunals for those accused of conspiring with the capitalists. The average duration of these trials was three minutes (class notes, POL 334) and, most always, the tribunal
When Proctor had to go to the court to get his wife out of being accused of upholding witchcraft he eventually confess to his sins he committed. Talking to Danforth, Proctors says “I lusted, and there is a promise in such sweet. But it is a whore’s vengeance, and you must see it; I set myself entirely in your hands” (page 49 act three) confessing to the crime he did. He realizes what he did was wrong which was why he tried to hide it for so long. But the only way for
Puritan by nature, he followed a moral code of life well intertwined within the Ten Commandments. Though he was religious, proctor was not without his faults, one being his expressed distaste toward those who did not follow his own law, such as reverend Parris. His distrust and hate toward reverend parris stems from his own idea that such a man could simply not be a holy one. His mood toward Parris came from such actions like the preaching toward golden candles, and how Parris was a self absorbed minister, and the third minister in the town in 7 years. “There is either obedience or the church will burn like Hell is burning!” (pg 30) Parris tried to defend himself with such passionate and heartfelt comments but Proctor would have none of it.
This story is about committing a sin against the Puritan culture that is all about holiness and living right before God. Their culture really took ‘living by the Bible” seriously and condemned those who didn’t obey God’s laws. It became a widely-known scandal all around the town and many people condemned and had hateful feeling for Hester. But the real effects of the hurtful sin actually affected the minister. The first character who
The task Abigail has to complete is to continue to pretend to see the devil. John’s crucible is to prove that he’s not a man of the devil, and Hale’s crucible is to defend his beliefs and defend those who are accused. All three of these characters face a test of their morals and find a way to overcome their issues. Abigail Williams faces the task of keeping up her act of pretending to see the devil. She begins accusing people of witchcraft to cover up her own lies and the accusations lead to 19 deaths by hanging.
A crucible represents the events in the town because it suggests how the town is boiling due to all the incidences going on within the society and how the court is trying to purify Salem of witchcraft and evil. The poppet represents the witchcraft within the play, because these types of dolls are connected to voodoo and other superstitious deeds that the Puritans considered evil. As it was found in the hands of the accused Elizabeth Proctor, they immediately concluded she was associated with witchcraft, this is obvious when Ezekiel Cheever says “’Tis hard proof! I find here a poppet Goody Proctor keeps.” When Abigail accuses Mary Warren of sending her spirit out to harm her in the church, Abigail uses the symbol of a bird and relates it to evil when she says “Why do you come, yellow bird?” Throughout history, bird
Author Millers, The Crucible, is a play about the fear, of witchcraft in the sixteenth century, and what fear does to people in the small town of Salem, Massachusetts. During the colonial time period, witchcraft was punishable by death. In Salem the idea of witchcraft not only feared the people, but also the community as a whole. The community of Salem was split into two demographics by poor farmers, and wealthy merchants, becomes a scared fearful town during the accusations, not knowing if your neighbor was or was not a witch. The church of Salem plays an important role in the outcome of the town; the church has immense power and control of the town.