John Proctor Essay

The audience now have conflicting emotions; there is confusion as although we know he has made a mistake, he doesn’t deserve to die for it, we also feel disappointed that Proctor has given into Danforth showing a weakness rather than power and bravery. The courts are relieved that Proctor decides to confess and they want him to sign a confession, Danforth explains why it needs to be signed ‘Why, for the good instruction of the village†¦ ‘ Proctor first shows signs of changing his mind ‘You have all witnessed it- it is enough’ Proctor is adamant that he doesn’t want to take his verbal confession any further. He says ‘I have given you my soul; leave me my name! ‘ he is in a desperate situation as although he has confessed to impiety he doesn’t want everyone in Salem to see the evidence of it. Proctor †¦ tears the paper and crumples it, but he is weeping in fury but erect. He has resolved his dilemma and has made his final decision to hang. The audience feel empathy for Proctor however we are glad he has made the righteous decision, redeeming himself in the end. His final words convey his good sense of morals and his courage. He says ‘†¦ I do think I see some shred of goodness in John Proctor. ‘ The audience agree with his decision as it separates him from the hypocrisy of others. It also expresses his honesty in direct conflict with Danforth who is completely corrupt and irrational; Proctor says ‘Show honour now, show a stony heart and sink them with it! ‘ It is a heroic end for Proctor showing his strength and dignity. By the end of the play some of the characters hold different views on Proctor. At the beginning of the play when Hale first arrived in Salem he was very enthusiastic about the witchcraft but throughout the play his views swayed towards Proctor’s explanation of the accusations. He realises that the witch-hunts are a consequence of dangerous pretence caused by a young girl’s vengeance. ‘It is a lie! They are innocent! ‘ Hale is certain that this is fraud and he feels guilty for his earlier actions. ‘Let you not mistake your duty as I mistook my own†¦. And where I turned the eye of my great faith, blood flowed up. ‘ Hale knows he has done wrong and he is sincere and honest enough to admit his errors. As the play progresses we see a change in Elizabeth’s attitude, at the very end of the play a lot of the tension between them is resolved. Elizabeth admits that she was also to blame for their difficult marriage; ‘It needs a cold wife to prompt lechery’ she has now fully forgiven him and they both realise their love for each other. Moments before Proctor hangs they share a loving, affectionate kiss He has lifted her, and kisses her now with great passion. Now that Proctor feels a genuine love and forgiveness he can die with an easy mind and with dignity. Hale’s condemnation and pleading with Elizabeth to save Proctor is a point of high dramatic tension as he knows that she is the only one that can change his mind. Hale pleads, ‘Woman, plead with him! Woman! It is pride, it is vanity. ‘ Elizabeth knows that she can’t take Hale’s advice as she knows her husband has made the morally right, honourable decision for himself. Miller uses Elizabeth’s final statement to confirm that Proctor is a tragic hero. ‘He have his goodness now. God forbid I take it from him! ‘ This demonstrates that she cannot intervene because she can’t take away his honesty and make his imperative decision for him. This proves that Proctor is a tragic hero as he chooses to die with an honest conscience. Proctor refuses to collaborate with the evil of the courts. ‘God does not need my name nailed up upon the church! ‘ He will not agree to his signed confession being shown to the people of Salem because he doesn’t want there to be any significant evidence of the lie he is giving. When Proctor reflects on himself, he is quite harsh. ‘I cannot mount the gibbet like a saint. It is fraud. ‘ He is blaming himself for the situation he is in now as it is a consequence of his affair with Abigail. As he realises his mistakes he begins to see himself as a fraud. The witch-hunt shown in The Crucible has a strong link to the McCarthy trials in the early 1950s, as both occasions created a vast hysteria. Both Danforth and Abigail are closely linked to John McCarthy as they are trying to gain power. Abigail was constantly manipulating the courts; therefore a consequent fear and hysteria is created and innocent people like Mary Warren, who get frightened and intimidated, start to betray friends. Millers’ message is trying to tell the audience to be aware of, and stand up to people like Danforth and Abigail and expose things before it’s too late. Also, that we should beware that a petty pretence can become extremely dangerous. As we observe, Proctor comes across as very self-centred at the beginning of The Crucible and he doesn’t seem to be aware of his mistakes- he is hypocritical and angry at Elizabeth for not forgiving him straight away for his affair, ‘You forget nothin’ and forgive nothin’. Learn charity woman. ‘ However as the play progresses the audience experience a new, moral and powerful Proctor who notices his faults. He now understands his errors and thinks of himself as a sinner ‘I cannot mount the gibbet like a saint†¦ My honesty is broke. Elizabeth; I am no good man. ‘ I do not completely agree with the statement ‘What is John Proctor? I am no saint; for me it is fraud. I am not that man. ‘ Although he has sinned by lying and committing lechery with Abigail he doesn’t deserve to die as a consequence of Abigail’s vengeance. I feel that Proctor is being quite harsh on himself because even though he makes mistakes that put him in this situation, he redeems himself in the end by telling the truth and dying with dignity. ‘†¦ for now I do think I see some shred of goodness in John Proctor. ‘ To conclude, I consider Proctor as more of a saint than a sinner. He is not a complete saint but I do believe that his courage, good sense of morals and power should be honoured and respected as he was a decent, noble man.   C20th Drama Coursework Essay: The Crucible Show preview only The above preview is unformatted text This student written piece of work is one of many that can be found in our GCSE Arthur Miller section.