'Is John Proctor A Tragic Hero?'

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Steff Morville

Is John Proctor A Tragic Hero?’                 Stephanie Morville

What is a tragic hero? The most well known definition of a tragic hero comes from the great philosopher, Aristotle. When depicting a tragic hero, Aristotle states "The change in the hero's fortunes be not from misery to happiness, but on the contrary, from happiness to misery, and the cause of it must not lie in any wickedness but in some great error on his part.” In addition, he explains the four essential qualities that a tragic hero should possess, which are goodness, appropriateness, lifelike, and consistency. All of these necessities help to classify the character of John Proctor as the tragic hero of the play. Not only does he unfortunately fall to desolation, but also his character captures the sympathy and pity from the audience or readers.

A tragic hero is also known to be someone who brings about their own death, through a flaw within their character or through their actions. Proctor's downfall in the play is initiated by a human error, which to a great extent qualifies him to be the tragic hero.

Is John Proctor a tragic hero? In this essay I will be exploring his character, personality, and relationship towards others.

The Crucible, written by Arthur Miller, depicts the story of the Salem witch-hunt and the chaos it caused. One of the main characters is John Proctor. Proctor is put through many life-changing decisions. In many cases, a decision he made in one situation led to another problem. Miller sets ‘The Crucible’ in a Puritan community in Salem, Massachusetts, in the spring of 1692. The Puritans were a group of religious separatists who sought to worship God in uncomplicated and basic ways. They built their own houses, made their own furniture, and did not believe in any indulgences of any kind (no alcohol, unnecessary singing and dancing etc.). Miller sets ‘The Crucible in 1692 when Salem was swept in hysteria, following multiple witch-hunts instigated by Senator Joseph McCarthy in 1950s America, whereby innocent people (Miller included) were accused of being communists.

‘(With a cry of his whole 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. How may I live without my name? I have given you my soul; leave me my name!’

This quotation from the play shows us Proctors integrity and dignity. This is an essential part of Proctors personality, as we will discover throughout this essay. Perhaps to a fault, his pride is sometimes too great…?

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Miller’s narrative at the opening of the Act1 introduces the protagonist (main character) of the play as John Proctor. ‘John Proctor is a strong and virtuous farmer in his middle thirties, he was a kind of man-powerful body, even tempered, and not easily led. Proctor is a down to earth man who speaks his mind and has a deep sense of pride in himself.’ However, we learn that Proctor regards himself as a sinner and for this reason he is not perfect. Miller creates Proctor like this so the audience view him as the ‘everyman’ (he could be any ...

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