As act two opens, Miller’s stage directions describes Elizabeth as “singing softly to her children” which contrast sharply with Abigail’s description of her in Act one and immediately arouses their suspense. In act one John tries to break up with Abigail who doesn’t take it to well and calls Elizabeth a “cold sniveling old woman”. This however is in contrast with act two because in the stage direction it said that Elizabeth was singing softly to her children and this shows that Elizabeth is not as cold as Abigail makes out to be or is she? However, her home is described as a “low and dark” which reflects on the couple’s relationship at the moment. When Elizabeth enters the scene she shows how cold she is when John starts to talk to her and her answers are very one worded and when he goes to kiss her:
“She receives it. With a certain disappointment”
This emphasizes Abigail when she said she was a cold sniveling woman. She only receives the kiss because after several months she is still very upset with John for what he did.
John is clearly uncomfortable in her presence because whatever he says or does Elizabeth is going to act coldly towards him because of the affair she never told him to leave and he never walked out and to her it’s just a small price to pay for what he did.
Furthermore, their conversation is tense and everything they do or say will or ways come back to the affair and Abigail Williams.
During the course of their conversation, Elizabeth relaxes and becomes more communicative. They become at ease with each other and they start to speak in a different way, and their body language changes and how they move around the room and each other. Soon they start building up to a argument and this is when it hits Elizabeth about Abigail and john alone together and she turns “cold” and accusatory once again and this develops into an argument in which John becomes very angry and insults Elizabeth by saying:
“Your Justice would freeze beer”
Over the several months since Elizabeth knew about the affair he has done her every wish and when they have this argument he lets out his anger by insulting her. He is supposed to be the head of the master and probably has not felt that that was his job in the household and he comes to blow with her.
This argument is interrupted by Mary Warren’s entrance their new maid and the Proctors show their allegiance towards one and other and stop arguing. They discover that events in Salem have become extremely serious when there is know a court, she is now a court official and that fourteen women have been arrested.
During Hale’s inquisition of Proctor, Elizabeth is extremely loyal and supportive of her husband, which is revealed when she gently reminds him about the commandments that Hale asked if they knew all of them. Which he remembered all nine apart from Adultery which touched on the fact that he had an affair and Elizabeth wants to see how he reacts to this reminder. Unknowingly, Mary Warren gives Elizabeth a poppet, which proves to be instrumental in condemning her. When questioned, Proctor fiercely defends Elizabeth and declares that his wife would never lie about something like this and for someone who has never lied in her whole life why would she start now. This statement has serious consequences later in the play.
Upon the discovery that she is being accused of being a witch, she remains calm and declares her religious convictions quite firmly.
As she leaves her home, she looks to her husband for support but her last words are for her children making sure John and the children have to eat and how Mary can make some more. Not to tell the children that she has been arrested tell them she has to go and visit someone sick.
In Act three, in order to save his wife and his friends’ wives, John admits to his adultery and denounces Abigail Williams as “a whore”. He explains his relationship with Abigail and instructs to ask his wife to confirm his story believing that she would tell the court the truth. When Elizabeth is in court and is asked about John’s adultery it’s her natural instinct to lie to save them as a couple but then contradicts what John has just admitted to and contradicts what john also said in act two that she has never lied in her life.
In view of Elizabeth’s previous behaviour and John’s claims, the audience would expect to of maybe change her mind and told the truth about Abigail Williams and the affair not knowing that John had already confessed to his adultery.
Consequently, one of the most dramatic moments of the play occurs, when Elizabeth tries to look at him to say sorry it contrast to the stage directions in act two where it was a certain disappointment when John kissed her.
At this point, it is clear that Elizabeth is going through her own “crucible” due to the fact that she lied to save her husband and get Abigail in trouble and so other people know what she is like. It is also her own crucible because in act two John promised people that Elizabeth has never lied and wasn’t going to start now so in a way she got her self in trouble for not lying the one time she needed to save herself and John.
