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How Does Arthur Miller Present Elizabeth Proctor In The Crucible

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When you least expect it, evil will be at your doorstep. In The Crucible, Arthur Miller, portrays the time period of the Salem Witch trials which are taking over the daily lives of the people in Salem, Massachusetts. Fear is consuming the Puritans as most of the people began to be accused of witchcraft, and fell into the bias of the court and judges. Revenge takes place within a teenager, Abigail Williams, who committed adultery with John Proctor and tries to convict his faithful wife, Elizabeth Proctor, of witchcraft so she can finally be with him. In The Crucible, by Arthur Miller, the characters of Elizabeth Proctor and Abigail can be compared and contrasted through their actions, honesty, and their priorities. Moreover, Elizabeth Proctor …show more content…

Abigail’s only interest is being with John, and Elizabeth’s priority is to reestablish her family. Abigail’s only concern and motive towards her actions is the thought of being with John. For example, she accuses Elizabeth Proctor of witchcraft, and even Mrs. Proctor is conscious of Abigail’s true intentions when stating, “ Spoke or silent, a promise is surely made. And she may dote on it now - I am sure she does - and thinks to kill me, then to take my place” ( Miller 197). Elizabeth is certain that while her husband and Abigail had an affair, Abigail sensed that John Proctor wanted to be with her. Now, she is after Elizabeth to fulfill that promise. She wishes to get rid of Elizabeth by accusing her of witchcraft, since the court will eradicate Elizabeth for her. All Abigail wants is to be with John, even if it meant the execution of Elizabeth Proctor. On the contrary, Elizabeth’s priorities are much more magnanimous. Elizabeth aspires on what is optimum for her children and family. Hence, why she is so merciful of her husband’s infidelity. For example, when she is escorted out of her home to be sent to jail, she tells Mary, “... there is bread enough for the morning; you will bake, in the afternoon. Help Mr. Proctor as you were his daughter - you owe me that, and much more. When the children wake, speak nothing of witchcraft - it will frighten them” ( Miller 204). Even …show more content…

They both lie within the story, but they do so with dissimilar reasons. Abigail is a deceitful child who lies and accuses others of witchcraft to salvage herself. She wanted people to forget about the incident in the woods and commenced to charge others such as Tituba and Elizabeth Proctor of witchcraft. When people began to distrust Abigail and speculated her involvement in witchcraft, she indicted Tituba. To demonstrate, when Hale began to question Tituba, Abigail said, “ She sends her spirit to me in church; she makes me laugh at prayer” ( Miller 187)! Abigail lied to install the liability on someone if she was perceived a witch. Tituba would be an effortless victim since she comes from a different cultural background and is deemed inferior. Whereas, Elizabeth was virtuous, and as stated by John Proctor, "In her life, sir, she have never lied" (Miller 221). However, Elizabeth Proctor lied once, for the sake of saving her husband. To illustrate, Judge Danforth had asked Elizabeth if her husband was a lecher and she replied, “ No, sir” ( Miller 223). The first lie that Elizabeth had said was, ironically, to save her husband, however it caused his death. Elizabeth was unaware that the truth was divulged and was willing to lie, which was a crime, in order to save her husband and his good name. In brief, both Elizabeth Proctor and

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