The Crucible John Proctor's Confession

A Tragic hero is a character who experiences a major downfall as the results of a personal mistake or the workings of fate. There are many tragic heroes in the play The Crucible, But the one that comes to mind is John Proctor for several reasons. It all starts out with the affair with Abigail, when that affair happens John Proctor breaks his wedding vows and violate the moral convictions of the community by engaging in an adultery affair with Abigail. John Proctor is a classic example of a tragic hero in the play, The Crucible for several reasons…

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.

The primary dramatic focus in the play The Crucible is the moral struggle of its protagonist, John Proctor. Certain characteristics of John Proctor's character and also the environment of the Puritanical Salem alleviated this problem for him. The main issues running through out the play are a series of dilemmas that John Proctor faces. The first and foremost of these is his guilt over his adulterous affair with Abigail Williams, the second his hesitation to testify against Abigail to bring out the truth and the third, his final decision to make the ultimate sacrifice.

Another inner quality that defines John Proctor is the value he holds to his good name. Proctor is a firm believer in the fact that one’s name is the only thing that remains after death, and what is done with it while living can affect one’s posterity for generations. This is the driving force behind his actions in the final act of the play. At first, he felt no shame in lying to the court about his accusation of witchcraft because he felt there was no more damage he could do to his reputation and that one more sin would not make any difference. His attitude changed when he realized his confession would mean blackening the name of those who already had died, and his sons would have to live with that mark on their names. He knew he could not teach his sons “. . . to walk like

Throughout history, the most credible source of information has been documented on paper.  From treaties resulting in international peace to The Declaration of Independence, paper has provided a concrete, timeless resource for recording ideas, events and decisions.  What makes these documents valid, are the signatures of those supporting the writings.  By signing something, one shows that he recognizes what is written and wishes to show support for what it represents.  A signature is as unique as the person signing it.  One can be held accountable for all which he marks with his signature.  The significance of signed paper is well displayed in Arthur

Purist Salem, Massachusetts in 1692 suffered from a rapidly increasing phenomenon: witchcraft accusations and trials. The Crucible is a play that recounts the times of this incident. For the most part, it follows a man known as John Proctor. He is a sensible, honest, and hardworking man who made the mistake of succumbing to lust which sets off a chain of events that leads to the witch trials, and to his own demise. Arthur Miller’s The Crucible’s protagonist John Proctor proves to be a flawed human being who struggles to make sense of his past relationship with Abigail, his love for his wife, and his pride.

John Proctor chooses to die by telling the truth and dying an honest man. Even though he loses his life for his decision, he is able to forgive

John Proctor is one of the main characters in the Crucible. He was indicted of witchcraft because of he violated the law several times. Examples that helped the church assume he was a witch was him stating that the girls who were “possessed” were liars & frauds, setting everything up to accuse other villagers of witchcraft. He also couldn’t remember the 10 commandments, didn’t attend church regularly, & apparently plowed on Sundays which was considered a high offense back then. John’s trial was extremely unequitable.

In 1692, witchcraft was known as an evil sin to be commited on Earth, if accused of witchcraft, trial and execution was likely to happen and proceeded to happen to many innocent people. One well-known accussal was that of John Proctor. Proctor had committed adultery with Abigail Williams, a previous maid of the Proctor house, and once coming clean for his sin, in turn of events backfires and is accused of witchcraft. John Proctor is seen as a protagonist of the story full of courage and boldness when fighting for his life and good name in court. At the time, all possible outcomes were not at the top of his head but then he had to go through twists and turns to save his wife, Elizabeth, as well as himself. In The Crucible, by Arthur Miller, John Proctor's character traits is shown to be a cheater, fearless, and courageous. Therefore, John Proctor's character can be portrayed through the song "Womanizer" by

John Proctor tried his hardest and went through hell and gave his life to try to save the people of his town in Salem. “ I am only wondering how i may prove what she told me Elizabeth. If the girl's a saint now; I think it not easy to prove she's a fraud the town gone silly., she told me in a room alone, I have no proof for it” (2.127-131). My explanation is by him saying that he means its going to be hard to prove Elizabeth Proctor is guilty and they are going to find out it's a lie. I connected to this because John and his wife are innocent and she never tells a lie, also they can't even prove that they are lying even if they were. Joth talked to Hale about the situation when Hale came to John's home in the middle of the night to ask questions.

We find out how Proctor first confesses when he has a conversation with his wife Elizabeth. Proctor is angry because he thinks that Elizabeth is accusing him of dishonesty and is suspicious of him still having an affair with Abigail, even after he confessed to her that he stopped seeing her. Proctor yells at his wife because she isn’t forgiving him of his crime of lechery and she keeps judging him. Proctor is furious and says “...like a Christian, I confessed. Confessed! Some dream I had must have mistaken you for God that day. But you’re not, you’re not, and let you remember it!” (Miller 163). Proctor’s confession affects Proctor’s life because him confessing to Elizabeth about his sin of lechery, led to Abigail being kicked out of the house.

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.

John needs to leave her to run away with me, but I fear that will never happen unless I go to drastic measures. I would be a great wife unlike her. If she really could satisfy a man like John Proctor, John would have never gone and been with me instead of her. Then again, I guess I should thank her then for not being enough for him. Because if Elizabeth had been enough, I would have never known real love. For that is what John and I share. Surely this woman he calls his wife must have threatened him. There is no other reason that John would refuse my bed now. That woman has cursed him. Oh how I hate her for keeping my love and I apart from each other.

Despite outspoken personality and qualities as a critical thinker, John Proctor is far from being a perfect human being. In his notes, Arthur Miller describes him as a sinner, "a sinner not only against the moral fashion of the time, but against his own vision of decent conduct." (P.20) Similar to Jesus who was tempted in the desert and taunted by the pharisees, Proctor's journey is riddled with hardships. He strives to overcome them and to follow his moral compass over the course of the novel. When Abigail Morris seeks him out after being fired, he has the courage to overcome his lust and to end their relationship. He boldly claims: "I will cut off my hand before I'll ever reach for you again" (P.22) Moreover, he spends months trying to regain

He is faced with extreme conflict due to the fact that he committed one of the biggest sins there is: adultery. Proctor then has to decide whether he wants to confess his sin in order to save his wife or to be selfish and live a slandered reputation. Just as John Proctor makes the decision to save his wife’s life and his family's reputation, so too will any person that believes it is more important to put their family above