The main characters in the play are John Proctor, a simple farmer who lives just outside of Salem with his wife, Elizabeth, his children and servant Mary Warren. Reverend Hale, a respected holy man and expert in witchcraft and the Devil, Hale comes form Beverly, another town in Massachusetts.
Reverend Hale arrives in the early stages of the play from Beverly; he came to determine whether the Devil had presence in Salem. “…Have no fear- we shall find him out if he has come among us, and I mean to crush him utterly if has shown his face”. By saying this he believes that he can contend with the Devil. This would give himself an arrogant impression to the people of Salem and the readers. What would seem to be arrogance from the people that met and knew him was quite possibly just strong pride, he wants to accomplish great things to be able to justify his pride (crushing the Devil).
Reverend Hale also likes to keep good company. “ Putnam! I had not expected such distinguished company, sir.” This shows us that he possibly has too much pride to enjoy the company of poorer, less powerful people.
Throughout the play the character of Reverend Hale changes significantly, his character at the start of the play would not have been able to admit when he was wrong, compared to at the end of the play where he actually tries to save people already accused of witchcraft, in this he gains personal integrity, being able to admit when he is wrong. Hale’s pride was unjustified mainly because he thought the court was administering a fair trial, so he did not care how many people he accused of witchcraft because he believed that the court would find them guilty if they were guilty or innocent if they were innocent. He did not for-see that all people who were accused would have some kind of punishment, whether it be death by the rope if the accused denied charges, or imprisonment if the accused admitted charges.
Elizabeth Proctor was John Proctor’s wife. Elizabeth is first mentioned by Abigail Williams as being a cold and bitter liar. In act two Elizabeth fails to gain a favourable impression, she goes about her household duties and eventually produces John’s anger
with her unforgiving manner. Elizabeth seems to be quite a proud character and will accept no allegations of witchcraft. “ I cannot think that the Devil may own a woman’s soul, Mr Hale, when she keeps an upright way, as I have. I am a good woman, I know it, and if you believe I may only do good work in the world, and yet be secretly bound to Satan, then I must tell you, sir, I do not believe it.” This means that she is proud enough to call herself a “good woman,” she knows that she has committed no sinful deed and is not afraid to say so, even if she will be called a liar by powerful judges and men of the cloth. When questioned in court by Judge Danforth on the reason that Abigail was dismissed from duty as their servant and whether Abigail and John had a secret affair she said the only reason Abigail was dismissed was because she displeased them. This shows us that Elizabeth Proctor had too much pride to bring shame upon her family. In Elizabeth’s final appearance it becomes evident that as a result of her cruel imprisonment, she became wiser and more understanding.
She managed to appreciate John’s goodness whereas formally she only recognised John’s betrayal. Elizabeth Proctor was also able to recognise her own part in John’s fall from grace. Because she was unsure of herself, believing she was plain and unattractive, she was tense and anxious, as well as easily gaining jealousy. Elizabeth realized that if she had been loving and caring, he might not have strayed.
To conclude on the part of Elizabeth Proctor, her pride was not justified but not in a large part. If she had not lied in court about the relationship between Abigail and John, the whole witchcraft trial would probably have collapsed, many lives would have been spared, and Abigail would probably have been hung for attempted murder and harlotry.
John Proctor was a plain-spoken farmer who would seem to represent the good, average citizen who may, upon occasion, be moved to take heroic action. John was no saintly individual, and had no eagerness to become a martyr. Yet when put to the final test, the meaning here of ‘crucible’, he would rather go to his death than irrevocably compromise his integrity. John Proctor was an incredibly proud man, and spoke of himself to be a good Christian. Notably though, when asked to recite the Ten Commandments he could only give nine of them, forgetting ‘adultery’. After John Proctor had almost lost everything and was given the opportunity to confess, he eventually did so, but when Judge Danforth stated that the confession would be nailed
to the church door, Proctor took it back, shouting “Because it is my name! Because I cannot have another in my life! Because I lie and sign myself to lies!” This is saying that Proctor values his name more then his life, and would rather die than bring shame upon his family and name. He knew that he would get a fair, last judgement after he had died. The result of his pride was his death. John Proctor’s pride in the eyes of the reader was not justified. He left Elizabeth as a widow and his children without a father. It would have been exceptionally hard for the family to then support themselves, as it was John who farmed the food, and brought money into the household. It would seem he would not give himself a bad name or lie, as he believed that it would affect his final judgement after death.
To conclude this essay, I would say that John proctor, compared to all of the other characters had the most pride. The only character that comes near to matching his pride is Judge Danforth. I believe the he had realized that there was no witchcraft or presence of the Devil in Massachusetts. His pride would not permit him to accept his bad judging and he could not go back now after he had sentenced dozens of people to their death.
I would say that John proctors final act was definitely one of excessive pride. To lose your life in exchange for remaining all of the goodness in your name is a step too far. The title of the play “ The crucible” relates to the theme of the play because many, many people had to take the severe test of the courts, their lives were hanging on a thread, and many of these threads snapped. The hot melting pot meaning could mean all of the things were boiling down the reach one final product, a witch free Salem.
