All accused witches would be hanged unless they confessed, so some people had to tell lies to save their lives. Lenin once said, “A lie told often enough becomes truth.” This statement means when a lie repeated thousands times, everyone will believe it is a truth. This statement is shown to be true in this play. The author develops this idea through setting, characterization and irony. Firstly, Miller set the play in Salem, Massachusetts, in 1692.
Indy Lau 11/29/11 Period 2 Crucible Essay The Girls of Salem Rises to Power Arthur Miller writes The Crucible to show how Abigail and the girls use the witch trials in their favor. In this society, men have all the political powers while the lower rungs of the social ladder are occupied by women. By accusing others, the women are able to gain more power for themselves. In act two for instance, Mary Warren defies her master, Proctor. In the beginning of the play, Mary and Proctor shows the relationship of a master and servant by speaking harshly to her.
Throughout the entire play, Abigail Williams uses her good name to control Salem by accusing people of witchcraft, which results in the deaths of many people in the town. After witnessing Tituba confess to Reverend Hale, Abigail confesses “I saw Sarah Good with the devil! I saw Goody Osburn with the devil! I saw Bridget Bishop with the devil!” (Miller 189). Abigail realizes that by giving the names of people she saw with the devil she can control Salem because she has a good name and people will listen to her.
When Abigail was talking to Proctor she says “She is telling lies to about me! She is a cold sniveling woman, and you bend to her!”(Page 15, act one) she is basically showing her jealousy towards his wife. This stirred up the witch trials because Abigail wanted to be with Proctor and she would do just about anything. The fact that John proctor realizes all of his flaws and confesses to all of his sins is another reason why he can be considered a tragic hero. 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.
In “The Crucible” Mary Warren is accused of witchery. Mary and Proctor agree to side with one another and defeat Abigail. While in court for Mary’s trial Abigail begins to scream and point, accusing Mary of sending out her spirit to attack her. When the other girls in court began to mock Mary’s words along with Abigail, Danforth horrifically yells “Mary Warren! Draw back your spirit out of them!” (Miller 191).
When the trials began, many accused others of witchcraft and this lead to them accusing even more. The new news of the entire witchcraft epidemic in Salem left many disturbed and trying to eliminate the bad of the town. The novel allows the reader to reflect on the life of the Salem people and understand the happenings. One example is the reflection of the lives of teenage girls in the puritan society, sent by God to marry and have a family, lacking the happiness of teen hood. Thus, explaining a
The main person behind the accusations is Abigail Williams, the head minister of the town’s niece, she watches cold heartedly innocent people being hung for her false indictment. Thus, Abigail’s lack of guilt is her despicable quality. Primarily, the girls promised each other to keep the secret of the night they danced
Within the trials featured in Lanval and Wife of Bath’s Tale, the queens use their power and position to influence the court’s decision both directly and indirectly. The common thread between the two trials is that a decision is rendered that offers a justice that is both authoritative and poetic. The Wife of Bath’s Tale, written by Chaucer, is about a lust-filled knight, who was sentenced to death as a direct consequence to his actions. In his case he had wronged a woman by raping her. This displays the knight’s hostility and disrespect for women.
All’s fair in love and witch-hunting In The Crucible by Arthur Miller the play takes place during the Salem witchcraft trials. Throughout the play, the love affair between Abigail Williams and John Proctor leads to cause a chain of events beginning with Reverend Parris’s daughter’s strange illness that also causes another chain of events ending in the death of John Proctor. Soon after Abigail and John Proctor’s love affair, it compels Abigail and her friends to begin acting strangely and seeing visions of Satan. To begin with, Reverend Parris claims, “My daughter and my niece I discovered dancing like heathen in the forest” (10). Dancing in the Puritan community is strongly frowned upon; Because in Puritan belief it is believed that
Abigail desires john, but he loves his wife. She confesses to have seen the devil and danced for him with all the other girls. Elizabeth gets accused of being a witch by Abigail. Mary Warren Elizabeth’s servant friends with Abigail, informs her that she has been accused of being a witch. When john takes Mary to the court so she can testify against the girls they think it’s a bit suspicious.