However, once the trial was underway it was Abigail’s childish urge to be centre of attention and lust for power that had her continue to prosecute innocent people. Abigail had a low status in the town as an orphan and an unmarried girl; this meant she had little respect within the town as she was among the lowest ranks of Salem’s social ladder. And this low status is lowered again by the fact the in the eyes of the court and council, at 17 years of age, she is legally a child. Declaring witchcraft overnight gave Abigail the higher status she never had.
At the beginning of the trial Abigail was lying solely for self preservation at the expense of others. Lying for this reason is childish and immature but as the play continues and the trial goes on Abigail takes a more adult approach and realises that she can manipulate the situation to her advantage by getting her own way and harming those she dislikes such as Elizabeth Proctor.
Another implication of Abigail’s apparent adulthood is the fact she is so much more sexually mature than any of the other girls. This sets Abigail miles apart from other girls in Salem due to the repressive theocracy that takes place in the town. She knows how to seduce John Proctor and has done so many times. She uses language that is definitely not childlike or innocent.
However, it may have been John Proctor who originally took advantage of Abigail and made her become sexually ready before she may have felt comfortable feeling so. Proctor is very clever when being seductive and complimentary. Another point in the play where John Proctor’s nature is shown is when he adds salt to the soup is wife is cooking when she is out of the room and then tells her it is perfectly seasoned. This makes Elizabeth Proctor blush with pleasure. This proves Proctor definitely does have a manipulative side that he may have used to seduce the immature Abigail. This is also backed up by the fact that in the repressive society that is Salem it is very unlikely for the 17 year old to be able to initiate such a sexual relationship with Proctor.
This kind of language would definitely shock Parris, Hale and the judges who she acts very innocent in front. The core reason the court trusts the girls is the fact that they are children and therefore would not have the capacity to lie to the extent to that the girls do. “I’m a good girl! I’m a proper girl!” she exclaims to Hale when questioned about her activities in the forest.
Abigail also uses threatening language to the other girls in order to keep them quiet about the rituals that took place in the forest. “I saw Indians smash my dear parents’ heads on the pillow next to mine”, Abigail tells her cousin Betty. This experience obviously scarred Abigail badly and could be responsible for the sinister side present in Abigail. This experience may also have caused Abigail to grow up faster than her age and reach adulthood far before any of the other girls in Salem.
The fact that Abigail uses her language differently in these three situations may also prove she has a very clever streak that allows her to manipulate her words and actions to get her way. This makes me think that although Abigail by law is a child, has been forced to grow up faster than her age because of reasons such as seeing her parents die, growing up on her own and having an inappropriate relationship with John Proctor. So because of this things Abigail has acquired many traits that many people may never had or at least would not have until adulthood which arguably Abigail has reached.
