Larkhall Academy's English Blog



The Crucible Quotes & AnalysisAct 1"...A small upper bedroom in the home of Reverend Samuel Parris. There is a narrow window at the left. Through its panes the morning sunlight streams..."Miller's effective presentation of enclosed space works powerfully here to suggest claustrophobia thereby immediately defining the oppressive situation that characters will find themselves in. The reference to morning sunlight symbolically suggests the characters' efforts to enlighten themselves – make sense of what is happening."...Abigail Williams enters – a strikingly beautiful girl, an orphan with an endless capacity for dissembling..."Miller's stage directions immediately alert us to Abigail's ccapacity for lies and her tendency towards deception."...Parris: No-no. There be no unnatural cause here...Let him look to medicine and put all thought of unnatural causes here. There be none..."Parris rejects allegations of witchcraft in relation to his daughter's "illness" since he is fearful of being associated with scandal and how that could undermine his reputation."Parris: But if you trafficked with spirits in the forest. I must know it now, for surely my enemies will and they will ruin me with it...""…There is a faction sworn to drive me from my pulpit..."Miller shows that Parris' interrogation of Abigail is based on fear. He does not enjoy the full support if his church and lacks authority. He is therefore fearful of scandal attaching itself to his ministry. "...Parris: Your name in town – it is entirely white, is it not?Abigail (with an edge of resentment): Why, I am sure it is sir. There be no blush about my name..."Parris here questions his niece's purity, revealing its centrality to Puritan morality. Miller effectively employs "dirt imagery" to represent the Puritian preoccupation with sin. This exchange between uncle and niece reveals how one's reputation in Salem society is inextricably associated with sin. ( Consider how Proctor views his reputation and his sin!)"...Mrs Putnam: I have laid seven babies unbaptised in the earth. Each would wither in my arms the very night of their birth.Parris: Goody Ann! It is a formidable sin to conjure up the dead!Mrs Putnam: I take it in my soul but who else may tell us what person murdered my babies?..."Miller uses Mrs Putnam to illustrate the excessive level of superstition evident in Salem. She needs a scapegoat – someone to blame following the tragic deaths of her children. Her response is to look to witchcraft – external, supernatural agency."...Betty: You did, you did! You drank a charm to kill John Proctor's wife! You drank a charm to kill Goody Proctor!Abigail (smashes her across the face) Shut it! Now shut it! Now look all of you. All of you. We danced. And Tituba conjured Ruth Putnam's dead sisters. And that is all. And mark this. Let either og you breathe a word about the other things and I will come to you in the black of some terrible night and I will bring a pointy reckoning that will shudder you..."Throughout this scene Miller delays revealing the true nature of the girls' activities in the woods. This has the effect of increasing suspense and audience involvement with the scene. Here Miller uses the character of Betty to reveal Abigail's vindictive nature – not only in relation to herself but also to Elizabeth Proctor. Miller effectively establishes Abigail's dominance over others and her ability to use intimidation to secure her own ends."...He is a sinner, a sinner not only against the moral fashion of the time, but against his own vision of decent conduct..."With his introduction of Proctor, Miller's stage directions suggest how crucial Proctor's view of himself is to his own identity."...Abigail: You are no wintry man. I know you, John. I know you..."Abigail's appeals to Proctor to resume their relationship here are ironic. She claims to know Proctor, yet throughout most of the play Miller presents Proctor as a character struggling to know himself, struggling to overcome his past sin. This leads him to reject her advances."...Proctor: then what's he coming for?Putnam: there be children dyin' in the village, Mister!Proctor: I seen none dyin'. This society will not be a bag to swing around your head, Mr Putnam..."Miller makes skillful use of imagery here to show tension and hostility between these two. Proctor will not have the Putnams assuming authority of the situation to further their agenda. From this tense exchange it is clear that the community of Salem is divided and subject to internal conflict."...Rebecca: There is prodigious danger in the seeking of loose spirits. I fear it, I fear it. Let us rather blame ourselves.Putnam: How may we blame ourselves?..."Rebecca's comments are filled with dramatic irony. She unconsciously predicts her destruction and the destruction of Salem here. Through his characterisation of Rebecca, Miller suggests that the people of Salem should look to the conflicts and tensions within their own community rather than blame some external, supernatural agency as the cause of their problems."...Parris: There is either obedience or the church will burn like Hell is burning..."Parris gives a clear assertion of the church's authority here. The Church requires total obedience to its laws. Parris preaches fire and brimstone and exploits fear of damnation to ensure that his parishioners subscribe to his authority."...Proctor: I like not the smell of his authority..." An early indication that Proctor is at odds with the authority of the Puritan Church. At this point however his stance against the authority of the church is somewhat vague- choosing to remain detached from these events which have so gripped Salem."...Parris ( taking some books) : My, they're heavy!Hale ( setting down his books) : They must be; they are weighted with authority..."Miller's initial depiction of Hale clearly illustrated his inflated confidence. Hale perceives himself as a figure of authority – his authority being derived from his expertise. Contrast this depiction with Hale's character at the end of the play where his moral authority has been destroyed."...Tituba: And I say "You lie Devil, you lie... And I look – and there was Goody Good... Aye, sir and Goody Osburn.Mrs Putnam: I knew it! Goody Osburn were midwife to me three times. My babies always shriveled in her hands..."Tituba's "confession" serves as the turning point in Act 1. To escape further persecution she gives her interrogators the lie they wish to hear, thereby initiating a tidal wave of vendetta, persecution and mass hysteria."...Abigail: I want the light of God! I want the sweet love of Jesus! I saw Sarah Good with the Devil! I saw Goody Osburn with the Devil!..."Miller makes effective use of characterisation here. He clearly establishes Abigail as a shrewd opportunist and a consummate actress. She is devious enough to recognise that a false confession will ease the pressure of interrogation that she and the girls face concerning their activities in the woodsAct 2"...The common room of Proctor's house. It is the low, dark and rather long living room..."Miller's effective presentation of this dark, claustrophobic environment subtly prepares the audience for the oppression of interrogation which the Proctors are subjected to in this scene."...Proctor: I mean to please you Elizabeth..."Miller indicates Proctor's desire to atone for his past sin and to restore his relationship with Elizabeth."… Her back is turned to him. A sense of their separation rises..."Miller deploys stage directions effectively here to convey a sense of the Proctor's estrangement and the moral positions they take on whether Proctor should reveal his evidence that the trials constitute nothing more than a worthless sham."...Elizabeth: Abigail brings the ither girls to court and where she walks the crowd will part like the sea for Israel... If they scream and howl – the person's clapped in the jail for bewitchin' themProctor: Oh, it is black mischief..."Elizabeth's report of the trials gives a clear indication of Abigail's increasing power within the trials. Proctor is perceptive enough to assert that Abigail's pernicious influence over proceedings is the work of mischief."...Elizabeth: God forbid you keep that from the court, John. I think they must be told.Proctor (Quietly struggling with his thought) : Aye they must, they must.Elizabeth: I would go to Salem now, John – let you go tonight.Proctor: I will think on it.Elizabeth (With courage now): You cannot keep it, John.Proctor (Angering): I know I cannot keep it, I say I will think on it..."A tense exchange between Proctor and Elizabeth here in which Miller shows Proctor's moral cowardice. He attempts to stall Elizabeth's investigation that he go to court with his evidence for fear of exposing his sin of adultery:"...Proctor: I have good reason to charge fraud on Abigail...""...Proctor: Let you look sometimes for the goodness in me and judge me not.Elizabeth: I do not judge you. The magistrate sits in your own heart that judges you. I never thought you but a good man, John only somewhat bewildered..."Throughout the course of the play Miller shows that Elizabeth's assessment of her husband is indeed accurate. Proctor is struggling in his efforts to achieve a more positive view of himself. He is essentialy, as Elizabeth asserts, a morally good man who is judging himself too harshly and cannot forgive himself for his past sins."..Spoke or silent, a promise is surely made. And she may dote on it now and thinks to kill me, then take my place..."Elizabeth here explains to Proctor why Abigail would continue to pursue him and persecute her. She tells him that by sleeping with her, in Abigail's eyes, Proctor made a commitment to her."...This is a strange time, Mister. No man may longer doubt the powers of the dark are gathered in monstrous attack upon this village..."Hale asserts his paranoid belief that the village of Salem is being subjected to a supernatural attack. The Puritan church is struggling to maintain its authority and Hale's response is to blame "the forces of darkness" - look for external answer to the community's tensions and conflicts, rather than examining the community itself."...Proctor: when I look to heaven and see my money glaring at his elbows – it hurt my prayer sir..."Proctor asserts that his opposition to the church stems not from a lack of Christian commitment – indeed his concern is that Parris is more preoccupied with materialistic concerns than spiritual values."… Hale: You have said that twice, sir.Proctor (Lost): Aye. (He is flailing for it)Elizabeth ( Delicately): Adultery, John..."Proctor's failure to recall The Sixth Commandment concerning adultery is ironic since this is the one he has broken. His literal failure to recall it serves to reinforce his metaphorical failure to remember it when he committed adultery with Abigail."...Proctor: there are them that will swear to anything before they will hang; have you thought of that?Hale: I have. I have indeed. (It is his own suspicion)Miller shows Hale beginning to have doubt over the credibility of the court's proceedings. He cannot reject Proctor's assertion that many of the accused are giving the court the lie it seeks to perpetuate to further its authority."...Hale: These are new times sir. There is a misty plot afoot so subtle we should be criminal to cling to old respects and ancient friendships..."Hale attempts to defend the witch trials in the face of the outrageous arrest of Rebecca Nurse. His weak defence of the court's extreme course of action is based upon fear and paranoia."...Cheever: The Williams girls. He goes to save her, and, stuck two inches in the flesh of her belly, he draws a needle out. She testify it were your wife's familiar spirit pushed it in..."Through Cheever, Miller reveals the extreme lengths Abigail is prepared to go through in order to persecute Elizabeth and secure Proctor for herself."...Proctor: I'll tell you what is walking Salem – vengeance is walking Salem. The little crazy children are jangling the keys if the Kingdom and common warrant's vengeance. This warrant's vengeance! I'll not give my wife to vengeance!..."Miller's powerful use of imagery shows that Proctor's appraisal of the circumstances is accurate. He is perceptive enough to see that the cause of Elizabeth's persecution is spite and vengeance. This marks the turning point for Proctor as he becomes increasingly involved in the course of events which are destroying Salem. This shows his resolve to defend Elizabeth."...Proctor ( To Hale): You are a coward! Though you be ordained in God's own tears, you are a coward now!..."Proctor accuses Hale here of moral cowardice. Proctor senses that Hale has doubts over the authenticity of the proceedings but he will not at this point challenge the authority of the court"...Mary Warren: Abby'll charge lechery on you, Mr Proctor!Proctor ( With deep hatred of himself): Good. Then her saintliness is done with. We will slide together into our pit..."Miller shows that the arrest of Elizabeth serves a catalyst to Proctor's involvement in proceedings. Determined to save his wife, he is now prepared to confess his sin of lechery and his self-disgust is evident. Miller's imagery reveals Procotr's self-loathing over his past actions and suggest that Salem has been plunged into a moral abyss.Act 3"...The room is solemn, even forbidding..."Miller's stage directions show that the action of the play has shifted from private to public space – the Court House. His presentation of this space indicates an oppressive atmosphere."...Giles: Thomas Putnam is reaching out for land!..."Through the character of Giles Corey, Miller indicates that the witch trials have become a smokescreen for vendetta, greed and personal gain. It provides the ideal opportunity of such persecution for own personal gain."...Danforth is a grave man in his sixties, of some humour and sophistication that does not however interfere with an exact loyalty to his position and his cause..."Miller's initial depiction of Danforth clearly confirms that he is man committed to doing his duty – as he perceives it."...Danforth: Do you take it upon yourself to determine what this court shall believe and what it shall set aside?Giles: We mean no disrespect.Danforth: Disrespect indeed! It is disruption, Mister..."Danforth makes it clear that he will not tolerate what he perceives to be any challenge to his authority since, in his eyes, he represents the court's authority."…Danforth: We burn a hot fire here; it melts down all concealment..."Miller's use of fire imagery with its suggestions of persecution and punishment serve to intensify the veiled threat Danforth makes to Proctor."...Danforth: Now sir, what is your purpose in so doing?Proctor: Why I- I would free my wife sir.Danforth: These lurks nowhere in your heart or hidden in your spirit any desire to undermine this court?..."Miller effectively illustrates Danforth's suspicions that Proctor's purpose is to challenge the authority of the court."...Danforth: I have until this moment not the slightest reason to suspect that the children may be deceiving me. Do you understand my meaning?..."Danforth seems to inter that he is unwilling to reject the girls' testimonies as false since this will damage the authority of the court."...Proctor: That woman will never lie, Mr Danforth..."Proctor's comments are filled with dramatic irony. In this scene Elizabeth will unwittingly lie to protect his reputation. This will serve as the turning point in this scene – the court will view his allegations as lies and persecute him accordingly."...Danforth: Good then she is saved at least this year and a year is long. What say you, sir? It is done now.(In conflict Proctor glances at Francis and Giles)Danforth: Will you drop this charge?Proctor: I- I think I cannotDanforth (With a hardness in his voice): Then your purpose is somewhat larger.Proctor: These are my friends. Their wives are also accused.Miller effectively depicts another turning point for Proctor as develops an increasing sense of social responsibility. He resists Danforth's corrupt efforts to bribe him over Elizabeth's future. Proctor realises here that he cannot abandon his friends and neighbours who are also being persecuted."...Parris: This is clear attack upon the court!Hale: Is every defence an attack upon the court?..."Parris accuses Proctor of undermining the court's authority. Hale defends Proctor's actions challenging Parris' perception that defence of oneself does not constitute a challenge to the court's authority. Hale's support of Proctor is used by Miller to indicate this character's growing disillusion with the court's oppressive handling of proceedings"...Danforth: This is a sharp time now, a precise time – we live no longer in the dusky afternoon when evil mixed itself with good and befuddled the world. Now, by God's grace, the shining sun is up and them that fear not the light will surely praise it..."Danforth's tone here is one of committed self-righteousness. His firm conviction is that the court is doing the work of God. His comments are ironic here – Salem still is morally befuddled – thrown into confusion and corruption by events. Miller's use of sunlight in the play is to symbolise genuine understanding/enlightenment. The fact that Danforth - the character least disposed to geniune understanding – should make reference to this is ironic."...Hale: There is a prodigious fear of this court in the country.Danforth: Then there is a prodigious guilt in the country..."Danforth's response to Hale's concerns is to assert that if people fear the court's authority then this is a clear induction of guilt."...Hale: I cannot say he is an honest man; I know him little..."Hale's comments on Proctor link to one of the key themes in the play – self knowledge. Literally Hale is not well acquainted with Proctor; metaphorically he has no understanding of Proctor's morality. This is particularly true of the final act of the play where he will not accept Proctor's decision to die with honour."...Hale: I am a minster of the Lord and I dare not take a life without there be proofs immaculate no slightest qualm of conscience may doubt it..."Hale's concern over the need for proof and the credibility of proceedings are effectively used by Miller to suggest the level of guilt he feels"Abigail: Let you beware, Mr Danforth. Think you so mighty the power of Hell may not turn your wits?..."Abigail's warning to Danforth indicates her supreme confidence in her new-found power and authority. She is audacious enough to intimidate Danforth himself when she senses that his confidence in her testimony is slipping."...Proctor (Trembling, his life collapsing about him): I have known her, sir..."A key moment in Proctor's moral development. He has overcome his moral cowardice to publicity admit his sin of lechery."...Proctor: A man will not cast away his good name..."Miller indicates nere just how much Proctor values his name. For him, is inextricably linked with his reputation and integrity. It is central to his identity and sense of self."...Proctor: She thinks to dance with me in my wife's grave. God help me, I lusted. But it is a whore's vengeance and you must see it..."Miller uses the character of Proctor to explain Abigail's motivation for persecuting Elizabeth."...Proctor: I have rung the bell of my honour! I have rung the doom of my good name!..."Miller's effective use of imagery indicates that Proctor's public exposure of his sin and its damaging effect upon his reputation reinforces the fact that his testimony against Abigail is genuine."...Danforth: Is your husband a lecher?Elizabeth (Faintly): No, sir..."Elizabeth ironically lies to protect her husband's reputation. This marks the turning point for Proctor since her unwitting actions damage the credibility of Proctor's testimony"...Hale: Excellency, it is a natural lie to tell. I may shut my conscience to it no more – private vengeance is working through her testimony!..."Miller depicts Hale listening to the voice of his conscience here. He publicly expresses his doubts over proceedings, attempting to defend Proctor."...Danforth: What are you? What say you?Proctor: I say - I say – God is dead! A fire, a fire is burning! I hear the boot of Lucifer! I see his filthy face! And it is my face and yours, Danforth! For them that quail to bring men out of ignorance as I have quailed and as you quail now when you know in your black hearts that this be fraud – God damn our kind especially, and we will burn, we will burn together!..."Danforth's question to Proctor here prepares us for Proctor asking himself this question in Act 4. Morality and identity are thematically linked in the play. During this point of crisis where Proctor is charged with witchcraft, he denounces the moral authority of proceedings. While acknowledging his own sins and guilt here, procor affirms Danforth's sin of Persecution and asserts that both of them deserve to be punished."...Hale: I denounce these proceedings, I quit this court!..."Hale now listens to the voice of his conscience, denounces proceedings and rejects the moral authority of the court.Act 4"…A cell in Salem jail. The place in darkness..."Miller's use of lightening and stage directions work effectively to suggest the moral darkness which has engulfed Salem."...Parris: It cannot be forgot, sir, that when I summoned the congregation for John Proctor's excommunication there was hardly thirty people come to hear it. That speak discontent..."Parris here indicates that the tide of popular opinion has turned against the proceedings of the court. His comments indicate that Proctor's moral authority and reputation is still supported by the people of Salem."...Parris: If Hale bring one of these to God that confession surely damns the others in the public eye, and none may doubt that they are all linked to Hell. However this way, unconfessed and claiming innocence, doubts are multiplied and many honest people will weep for them..."Parris is prepared to use Hale to elicit false confession from the accused. He hopes this will strengthen the court's authority. He acknowledges that if the accused do not confess then there will remain doubts over the credibility over proceedings"...Danforth: I will receive a single plea for pardon or postponement. Them that will not confess will hang. Postponement now speaks a floundering on my part; reprieve or pardon must cast doubt upon the guilt that died till died now. While I speak God's law I will not crack its voice with whimpering..."Miller shows Danforth's steely resolve here. He is not prepared to pardon the accused since this suggests that his authority if weak. Danforth is ruthlessly determined to uphold the courts and his own authority at all times."...Hale: I come of my own, Goody Proctor. I would save your husband's life for if he is taken I count myself as his murderer..."Miller clearly indicates that Hale's reason for returning to Salem and urging the accused to confess derives not from a desire to support the court, rather it is to alleviate his own guilt."...Hale: Let you not mistake your duty as I mistook my own. I came into this village like a bridegroom to his beloved, bearing gifts of high religion; the very crowns of holy law I brought and what I touched with my bright confidence, it died: and where I turned the eye of my great faith, blood flowed up..."Miller nment with proceedings. Here Hale guiltily acknowledges his own role in events and his guilt and disillusionment serve as a powerful contrast to the character, confident in his own expertise who appears in the first act."...Hale: God damns a liar less than he that throws away his life for pride.Elizabeth: I think that be the Devil's argument..."Elizabeth rejects Hale's efforts to encourage her to plead with Proctor. She is only too aware that the logic of Hale's argument is motivated by a desire to alleviate his own guilt."...Proctor: I cannot mount the gibbet like a saint. It is a fraud. I am not that man..."Proctor here affirms that he is not a martyr – in his eyes he lacks the essential goodness necessary to be one."...Elizabeth: John, it come nought that I should forgive you, if you'll not forgive yourself.He stands, as though in great physical pain, slowly rising to his feet with a great immortal longing to find his answer.Elizabeth: Only be sure of this, for I know it now: whatever you will do, it is a good man does it..."Elizabeth's comments indicate that Proctor is the harshest judge of himself – he needs to forgive himself for his past actions. She confirms his moral goodness here."...Elizabeth: Do what you will. But let none be your judge. There be no higher judge under Heaven than Proctor is!..."Elizabeth recognises and confirms that Proctor is the highest moral authority concerning himself and that he is best qualified to judge himself."...Proctor: God in heaven, what is John Proctor, what is John Proctor? (He moves as an animal and a fury os riding in him, a tantalised search) I think it is honest, I think so: I am no saint. Let Rebecca go like a saint; for me it is a fraud..."Miller skilfully depicts Proctor's agonised search to establish his moral identity which has so profoundly affected him throughout the play. His search of his moral self is clearly influencing his deliberations over whether to confess to a lie or to die with integrity.Stages in Proctor's confessionStage 1"...Danforth: Did you see the Devil?Proctor: I did..."Proctor "confesses" giving the court the lie they wish to hear. Here terse response here indicates that he will not say more than he intends"...Danforth: Courage, man – Let Rebecca witness your good example that she may come to God herself..."Miller effectively indicates here that Danforth here proposes to use Proctor's confession to encourage Rebecca to lie, thereby strengthening the moral authority of the court.Stage 2 – Proctor refuses to implicate others"...Danforth: Mr Proctor. When the Devil came to you did you ever see Rebecca Nurse in his company?Proctor (Almost inaudibly): No.(Danforth now sensing trouble goes to the table)…"Proctor's refusal to implicate others creates tension and conflict. Through his actions here Proctor js attempting to "confess" on his terms. He will not allow innocents to be implicated"...Proctor: I speak my own sins; I cannot judge another. (Crying out with hatred) I have no tongue for it..."Proctor affirms that he will not implicate nor judge others in his confession. He feels that he is not in a position to do so. Miller's stage directions clearly emphasise roctor's loathing at Danforth's interrogation here and his self-loathing for giving the court the lie they so desire.Stage 3 – Proctor initially refuses to sign his "confession""...Proctor: You have all witnessed it – it is enoughDanforth: You will not sign it?Proctor: You have all witnessed it; what more is needed?Danforth: You will sign your name or it is no confession, Mister!(His breast heaving with agonised breathing, Proctor now lays down the paper and signs his name)"Proctor refuses to sign the confession since in his eyes, he is signing away his integrity.Stage 4 – Proctor refuses to hand over the "confession"(Proctor has just finished signing the confession when Danforth reaches for the paper. But Proctor snatches it up and now a wild terror is rising in him, and a boundless anger)Danforth: Proctor, the village must have proof that- Proctor: Damn the village! I confess to God, and God has seen my name on this! It is enough!..."Proctor's refusal to hand over the confession symbolically relates to his refusal to hand over his reputation and integrity. This naturally brings him into conflict with the authoritarian objectives of Danforth."...Proctor: You will not use me! I am not Sarah Good or Tituba! I am John Proctor!..."Here Proctor comes to understand the value of his own moral integrity. He defiantly asserts that he will not be used by the court."...Proctor: I have three children – how may I teach them to walk like man in the world, and I sold my friends..."Here Proctor's sense of social responsibility comes to the fore. He cannot have any moral authority over his children if his integrity is tainted by betraying his friends. Proctor cannot reconcile himself to this."...Danforth: Then explain to me Proctor, why you will not let - Proctor (With a cry of his soul): Because it is my name! Because I cannot have another in my life! Because I lie and sign myself to lies! Because I am not worth the dust on the feet of them that hang! I have given you my soul; leave me my name..."Proctor emotionally asserts the importance of his good name and reputation to his moral identity. He cannot betray his integrity – to do so constitutes a betrayl of self.Stage 5 – Proctor destroys his "confession""…(His breast heaving, his eyes staring, Proctor tears the paper and crumples it, and he is weeping in fury, but erect)Proctor: Now do I think I see some shred of goodness in John Proctor. Not enough to weave a banner with, but white enough to keep it from such dogs..."A moment of revelation for Proctor. In destroying his confession Miller shows that Proctor has finally come to recognise the moral goodness that has always been inherent within him."...Elizabeth: He hath his goodness now. God forbid I take it from him..."Elizabeth resists Hale's guilt-ridden efforts to persuade her to get Proctor to confess. Knowing her husband, Elizabeth appraises that the course of action Proctor has taken has restored his sense of moral integrity to him. In choosing to die with honour, Elizabeth understands that Proctor is redeemed of his past sins."…The new sun is pouring in upon her face..."Miller's stage directions work effectively here to illustrate Elizabeth's enlightenment - her understanding that Proctor's self conflict is resolved through maintaining his integrity. ................
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