Tatiana Perez American Lit. 11 November 2012 John Proctor: Tragic Hero As human beings, we each display specific traits and qualities that define our character and shape our personalities. The way in which we carry ourselves establishes our reputations, as well as how others identify us. We are each prone to making mistakes, and unfortunately, the mistakes we make can affect the way people see us as well. The struggle to regain a good name can be difficult and uncertain once someone’s reputation is tarnished. In Arthur Miller’s timeless play, The Crucible, a well-respected man named John Proctor betrays his wife and struggles to gain her forgiveness and his good name in the village of Salem. Although John Proctor betrays his wife, he …show more content…
John Proctor sought his wife’s forgiveness to regain her trust and to entitle him to die an honest man. He recognized his actions; he simply wanted his wife to recognize them too. “Let you look sometimes for the goodness in me, and judge me not.” (Miller 55) Proctor’s appeal to his wife reveals his hope for her forgiveness and for her to see the goodness in him. He wants his wife to recognize him as an honest man, because to him that is the only substance that made him feel like a good person. Later in the course of the play, Elizabeth forgives Proctor for his mistakes. She states, “John, it come to naught that I should forgive you… Whatever you will do, it is a good man does it… it needs a cold wife to prompt lechery.” (Miller 136-137) Elizabeth’s statement to her husband exhibits an understanding of his mistakes and acknowledgement of the good man Proctor truly is. Elizabeth’s forgiveness allows Proctor to forgive himself as well. After being forgiven, John Proctor can now die an honest man, a tragic hero - a man with integrity and goodness. In Arthur Miller’s play, The Crucible, it is evident that John Proctor is the tragic hero. Concluding through evidence in the play, it is fairly simple to connect him with separate parts of the definition. He makes his share of mistakes, just as many human beings do. John Proctor is fundamentally a good man, with respectable
Prompt: Write a brief essay (5-6 paragraphs) discussing whether or not John Proctor is a tragic hero.
I think John Proctor does because he has a past event that he is still very ashamed about
A tragic hero is a character whose flaw or mistakes leads to their downfall. In 1692, 19 villagers form Salem Village, Massachusetts were executed by hanging for not confessing to witchcraft. Of those 19 was John Proctor, a farmer and respected villager. John Proctor was arrested for witchcraft while trying to save his wife by accusing Abigail Williams of fraud to witchcraft. John Proctor is a tragic hero because of his downfalls, his pride and mostly his affair with Abigail Williams.
The Crucible is a great tale that shows us not to believe others just from the words they say, but by the actions and evidence for the claim. John Proctor was a huge supporter of this. Though John had done some bad deeds in his past, his actions during the end of his life prove that he is good man. John Proctor is the ultimate example of a man can still be a hero in spite of his flaws. John Proctor was the hero in Arthur Miller’s Crucible, because he overcame his shame from being adulterer, he was the only one to see the corruption in his society, and was adamant about keeping his good name.
John Proctor- Tragic Hero John Proctor: a man of hypocrisy, lechery, and adultery. So how is he considered a tragic hero in The Crucible? The Crucible is a play based off the Salem witch trials in the late 1600’s. John Proctor played a good, highly regarded man, with a fatal flaw which end up dooming himself and several others.
Is John Proctor really a tragic hero? This is a play by Author Miller set in Salem Massachusetts during the time of Salem Witch Trials. Since John Proctor is motivated by being a tragic hero, his decision to be honest creates conflict between him and his wife, and also the court by the end of the play.
In Arthur Miller’s play, The Crucible, one of the most dynamic and influential characters is John Proctor. This man is a well looked-upon leader of Salem, who gets caught up in the witch trials of 1692. John plays a key role in the witch trials, who inadvertently affect its outcome throughout the story. Unlike other characters in the story, John gradually changes throughout the course of the play. He transitions from an unfaithful adulterer to a man of integrity who wants redemption for the sins he committed.
Arthur Miller introduces a dynamic character, John Proctor, in his play The Crucible. John, known for his loyalty and detest of hypocrisy, is involved in the adulterous action of cheating on his wife Elizabeth with their housekeeper, Abigail. The question of if John Proctor is a tragic hero surfaces as his downfall is followed by the very truth of his hidden affair. In Miller’s essay, Tragedy and the Common Man, he challenges the basic definition of a tragic hero and explains how the common man could be in the category of a hero. Based on Miller’s arguments, it is apparent that John Proctor encounters the situations that makes someone a tragic hero, and therefore can be considered one.
In Arthur Miller’s play The Crucible, John Proctor’s character seems to change dramatically. His actions and impressions towards Abigail begin to alternate, and his guilt and shame of his affair begin to uncover remarkably. As he goes through the journey of this self-condemnation, he overcomes his selfishness, and reveals the honesty within himself for the sake of his family.
People’s true character is revealed through their actions. Their morals and ethics can be told from how they choose to act in a situation. In Arthur Miller’s The Crucible; the character of John Proctor is an honorable man despite having committed wrongful acts. He was able to redeem himself through acts that is considered courageous, such as when he refuses to contribute to the lie of witchcraft in Salem, when he fights for the people who were convicted of witchcraft and when he regrets being a dishonest man.
A Tragedy as a literary Work is described in which there is a hero that is basically moral individual destroyed by some character flaw and by force beyond his or her control. That hero is a tragic hero who experiences an inner struggle because of this flaw. Because of his charter flaw and his struggle to do what is right, John Proctor is a tragic hero.
Many people cherish their reputation, what other people think and believe about someone is crucial in today’s society. Arthur Miller’s The Crucible is centered around the theme of reputation. One’s name is tremendously important in Salem, where someone’s social standing reflects their ability to follow religious rules and obligations. In Salem, reputation far surpasses the truth. Majority of the characters in The Crucible would rather die than risk damaging their “good” name. When witchcraft accusations start spreading through the town, one’s fate is determined by their reputation. John Proctor and Abigail Williams are both perfect examples of this, both risking everything in attempt to protect their tarnishing reputations.
According to Aristotle, a tragic hero is a literary character of magnitude that “makes a judgment error that inevitably leads to his or her destruction”. Unlike the Greek philosopher’s description, Arthur Miller, the author of the essay “Tragedy and the Common Man”, considers a tragic hero to be a character of ordinary status that “is ready to lay down their life to secure his or her personal dignity”. Miller illustrates this belief in his Puritanical play The Crucible, featuring the honest and wholesome protagonist, John Proctor as the tragic hero. Proctor, a farmer who despises hypocrites, finds himself in a string of conflict when he commits adultery with his former house servant and becomes what he hates most, resulting in his death. Proctor’s role as a true classical tragic hero is demonstrated by his relentless fight to expose Abigail and the “witch trials” as lies, and save his wife and secure “good name”.
Since the times of the ancient Greeks, tragic heroes have been used to enhance the meaning of a play or literary work. Any character cannot be described as tragic hero. Several key characteristics are necessary for the tragic hero to possess in order to be characterized as such. He must be high-ranked or have a high standing in the community. He must have a weakness or a tragic flaw and be involved in a struggle. In the end, that struggle will lead to his downfall. Arthur Miller purposely incorporates these characteristics into John Proctor, one of the main figures in The Crucible. He masterfully portrays Proctor as a tragic hero even though he is a common man.
In the play by Arthur Miller The Crucible, the town of Salem is in pandemonium under the non-existent threat of witchcraft. Every character is either lying to save their lives or to end others, or dying for not admitting to a lie. One character who stands out among the chaotic conflagration is the tragic hero John Proctor. In Greek drama, a tragic hero is defined as “a great or virtuous character in a dramatic tragedy that is destined for downfall, suffering, or defeat.” No character in The Crucible fits this description better than John Proctor. John Proctor is the tragic hero in The Crucible because of his strengths and notable traits,