Moreover, when Reverend Parris confronts Abigail about being fired by Elizabeth Proctor, Abigail denies any wrongdoings. She accuses Elizabeth as “a lying, cold, sniveling women” who spreads rumor about to degrade her social status. Abigail’s motivation in the witchcraft is thus revealed, which is jealousy towards Elizabeth. As Abigail successfully frames other people for being responsible about the witchcraft, she further imposes her domination over the other girls. Her domination is demonstrated physically and verbally.
They deemed The Crucible was an allegory to McCarthyism. The book follows the events that occurred in Salem, Massachusetts. It portrays from the view point of the girl who started the witch hunt to townsfolk being victimized by the horrible acts of fearful people. The person most responsible for the epidemic of fear is Abigail Williams, a manipulative teenager trying to connect with her lover. Abigail Williams
Abigail show herself to be an even more mischievous character by accusing Tituba of Witchcraft, and wrong doing. Tituba in turn is held in suspicion of being a witch and is threatened with the taking of her life if she refuses to talk about her supposed involvement with the devil. She blames others about witchcraft even though she is the one believing it. She is the "leader" of the girls; she tells them what to do and when to do it. For example when they were in the court room and she was brought in to testify against Mary Warren the girls kept repeating what Abigail said and they did everything she
Abigail and the girls pretend Mary is bewitching them again which make Mary breakdown and accuse john of being a witch. After being tried as a witch and told he was going to get hanged he has a chance to confess and live but he chooses to die and keep his name. As a result of the lies and the affair between john and Abigail there were a lot of innocent people killed and hurt even those who they claimed they loved. Abigail and Elizabeth are two very different characters but have some similarities. Both Abigail and Elizabeth show determination in order to get what they want, and they are both strong
This event brought the thought of hysteria among the townspeople as many believed the illness suffered by Betty Parris and Ruth Putnam was of supernatural causes. Abigail, fearing the townsfolk of accusing her as being the cause, then accuses Tituba. “She made me do it” (p. 45) corresponding to the dancing and drinking of chicken blood. Fearing being hung, Tituba confesses and accuses other members of the town of witchcraft in order to protect herself. “And I look - and there was Goody Good... Aye sir, and Goody Osburn” (p. 49).
In “The Crucible”, the girls accused people of being witches just to make themselves look better to others to gain respect. “We are what we always were in Salem, but now the little crazy children are jangling the keys of the kingdom, and common vengeance writes the law!” (Miller 196). The direct quote from “The Crucible” means children who are overtaken by social fears have the power to control the life or death of a single individual, by accusing them of witchcraft. Many women were killed in the town of Salem during the trials and the ones who weren't killed had their reputations forever lowered. Everyone who was charged by McCarthy had his or her own reputation diminished also.
She was arrested and tried for practicing witchcraft because of her American Indian decent. Seen as “Devil worshipers” American Indians were perceived as being familiar with occult practices (536). This stereotype left Tituba with no control of her situation and fearful for her life. Tituba’s ethnic background left her victim to stereotypes that previous to her confession, would have most likely only sealed her dooming fate. Luckily, Tituba was able to use her knowledge of African, American Indian and English folklore to her advantage, diverting the attention away from her socially and geographically.
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
Haley Houston October 3, 2013 Honors English 11, Per. 3A Analysis Essay The Evil of Jealousy and Lust Much of the evil in today’s world is driven by jealousy and lust. Affairs occur often, students betray each other in order to get something they desire, and many young girls like Elizabeth Smart have been kidnapped and raped because of that unreasonable lust. In The Crucible, Arthur Miller describes a young group of girls as they wrongly accuse many of witchcraft in the small town of Salem, Massachusetts. One of the girls, Abigail Williams, is the cause of all wrong accusations and innocent deaths in Salem, thus making her the antagonist of the play.
The lack of power that women have in Salem sets the stage for hysteria. The female characters long for a voice in the community, and attempt to gain one by using their court powers to blame those around them and lying to gain attention from the community. Due to the very little power women have in Salem, the women find the need to blame others in order to be heard. While Abigail is being accused of performing witchcraft, she tries to blame Tituba. Abigail states, “Sometimes I wake and find myself standing in the open doorway and not a sitch on my body!