The Crucible - analysing acts 3 and 4.
The Crucible Play
Written by an American Playwright
Arthur Miller, 1953
The last two acts of The Crucible are highly dramatic. Focusing on two key moments, explore and analyse their significance to the play as a whole. You must comment on how these relate to the social and historical context of the play.
Introduction
This essay is set out to analyse and explore on two key moments in the play called The Crucible. My two key moments are in both Act 3 and Act 4. Act 3 explains why she dismissed Abigail Williams, the servant of theirs, and her affair with John Proctor, he husband. Act 4 is the moment where John Proctor signs a paper showing his confession that he was seeing the Devil. Now I am going to explain in more detail what happened
ACT 3
Just before this key moment, Proctor admits that he had an affair with Abigail Williams. Then the key moment starts of with Danforth ordering Parris to bring Elizabeth to the court, because Proctor states that Elizabeth never lies and will agree with him that he had an affair. If Elizabeth admits to firing Abigail for her affair with Proctor, Danforth will charge Abigail. Cheever brings Elizabeth to the court, where she says that she fired Abigail because she displeased her, and because she thought that her husband fancied Abigail. She says that Proctor never committed lechery. Proctor cries out for Elizabeth to tell the truth for he has confessed, but Danforth orders Elizabeth to leave.
The characters have turning points in the key moments, and I am going to discuss what happens to Elizabeth Proctor and Danforth in this key moment. Elizabeth Proctor shares a similarly strict link to justice and moral principles like John Proctor. She is a woman who has great confidence in her own morality and in the ability of a person to maintain a sense of righteousness even when this principle clashes with strict Christian belief. Although she is regarded as a woman of blameless honesty, she causes her husband to be full of guilt when she lies about his affair with Abigail, thinking that this will save him. However, Elizabeth can be a cold and demanding woman whose unfriendly behaviour she feels may have driven her husband to adultery and whose constant suspicions of her husband makes their marriage tense.
Deputy Governor Danforth is a strict yet a practical man more interested in caring for the dignity and greatness of the court than in breaking justice or behaving with any sense of fairness. He approaches the witchcraft trials with a strict link to rules and law that involved any sense of reasonability, for under his legal rite, an accusation of witchery automatically involves a conviction.
When Elizabeth say 'no, sir' referring the question being asked by Danforth, "Is your husband a lecher!", this is a dramatic moment. Firstly 'no, sir' is very dramatic because it is ironic. John Proctor said before "In her life, sir, she have never lied." which is wrong when she said no because that is a lie, that Proctor is not a lecher, not having an affair with Abigail Williams. The second thing which makes the moment dramatic and a crucial moment for the audience, is that 'no, sir' is affecting the audience because it is dramatic irony. Dramatic irony is when the audience understand the implications of words or a situation when the character does not. This is true with Elizabeth, because the audience know that Proctor is a lecher, having an affair with Abigail, but she says no, which is not the right answer. The audience know the answer, but it wasn't said.
When Elizabeth said 'no, sir' it all shows a crucial moment to the entire plot because it gives Proctor a bad name to the society, that he is lying about his affair with Abigail. Also, Danforth would of charged Abigail Williams for lying about the witchcraft, and shows that she had and affair with Proctor, and the whole big situation would be ended. This didn't happen, because of Elizabeth saying no, letting the whole story go on.
ACT 4
Just before this key moment starts, the guards takes Rebecca Nurse out of her cage, on its way to the place where people are hanged. She is astonished that John is confessing. The key moment starts with Proctor refusing to say that he saw Rebecca Nurse in the Devil's company, or anybody else. Danforth demands that Proctor prove the purity of his soul by accusing others, but Hale advises that it is enough that he confesses himself. Parris agrees, but Danforth demands that Proctor should sign a document. Proctor says that he has confessed to God, and that is enough. He asks Danforth whether a good confession must be public. Proctor wishes to keep only his name, and Danforth thus refuses to accept his confession. Danforth orders Proctor to be hanged. Hale begs Elizabeth to plead with Proctor to sign a confession, but Elizabeth states that Proctor has his goodness now, and God forbid that she take it from him.
The characters have turning points in the key moments, and I am going to discuss what happens to Hale, John Proctor and Danforth in this key moment. Hale's beliefs in witchcraft changes, so does his faith in the law. In Act 4, he tells the accused witches to lie, to confess their supposed sins in order to save their own lives. This change of heart and hopelessness, makes Hale gain the audience's sympathy but not its respect, since he lacks the moral character of Rebecca Nurse or, and as it turns out at the end of Act 4, John Proctor. Although Hale recognises the evil of the witch trials, his response is not resistance but surrender. He thinks that survival is the highest good, even if it means helping oneself to injustice, which honourable and truly heroic characters can never accept.
John Proctor changes himself and provides a final charge of the witch trials. Offered the opportunity to make a confession that he has seen the Devil, he almost surrenders, even signing a confession letter. His great pride and fear of public opinion drove him to hold his truth, adultery, from the court, but by the end of the play he is more concerned with his personal honesty than his public reputation. He still wants to save his name, but for a personal and religious view, rather than the publics' reasons. Proctor's refusal to provide a false confession is a true religious and personal determination. His confession would dishonour his friends who are convicted who are brave enough to die as support to the truth. Also it will dishonour himself, staining not just his public reputation, but also his soul. He then decides to change his mind and tells Danforth that he does not want to lie, this bringing him to heaven. He has now redeemed his sin. As Elizabeth says to end the play, responding to Hale's plea that she convince Proctor to publicly confess: "He have his goodness now. God forbid I take it from him!"
In this key moment Danforth shows that his greatest interest is to protect the reputation of the court when he prompts Proctor to sign a confession, thus preventing the response of his death. I think that Danforth has changed internally but not externally. I think he believes that the witchcraft is fake, but externally he is still a strict and craving for a good reputation. If he did believe people at the end of the play, then he would not convict John Proctor, but he did because it was to late then, and his reputation would be ruined, as he has convicted people before.
It is a crucial moment for the audience because they think Proctor is a bad and not a honourable man when he signs the paper. It is dramatic irony, but not as much. The audience know that Proctor does not see the Devil, to save his life by confessing and showing you don not lie, he says he has been seeing the Devil. But he suddenly changes, he rips the piece of paper representing his confession, and explains that his name is more important, he wants to show he is a heroic man, so he says he never has see the Devil, which is true, and the audience see how he is a better man, and is going to die being an honourable and a heroic man.
A crucible is a melting pot, where substances are heated to a high temperature to get rid of impurities. Miller is suggesting the play is like to purge by fire, a form of 'cleansing'. This is a metaphor for spiritual improvements as the result of a confession being exerted. It is known as 'cleaning' or 'cleansing' yourself by confessing to seeing the Devil. There is many ways to explain the name of the book and here are some more: first witches supposedly boil potions in cauldrons and a synonym for cauldron is crucible. Secondly, it has a metaphorical ...
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A crucible is a melting pot, where substances are heated to a high temperature to get rid of impurities. Miller is suggesting the play is like to purge by fire, a form of 'cleansing'. This is a metaphor for spiritual improvements as the result of a confession being exerted. It is known as 'cleaning' or 'cleansing' yourself by confessing to seeing the Devil. There is many ways to explain the name of the book and here are some more: first witches supposedly boil potions in cauldrons and a synonym for cauldron is crucible. Secondly, it has a metaphorical meaning: the society of Salem is being heated and stirred in an attempt to remove the impurities and leave only the pure members of the society.
One of the central themes of the play is the spiritual development of John Proctor. It is a powerful and complex play. All of the action takes place indoors and it is very black, simplistic and it emphasises the lifestyle of the people and it echoes the claustrophobic atmosphere of the play. The play focuses on ordinary people in extraordinary circumstances. In the play Miller is discussing the forces of evil. In the attempt to cut out evil there is certainly a degree of irony. The irony in this play is that evil and tragedy actually occur from the actions of the unwise and over eager characters such as Danforth and Parris and to a certain extent Hale, who became responsible for deaths, misery and cruelty. Miller is suggesting that humans are vulnerable to evil and he aims to show that the evil generated in Salem was through a combination of circumstances for which no one person could be held entirely responsible but yet none were guilt free.
The Crucible was based on real events and characters. The people of the 17th Century Salem, witchcraft were a very real and forceful threat. Many people were accused of being witches, and were tortured and executed. The discrimination of witches spread to a lot of places around the world. Witches thought to commit crimes have various 'proofs' of a witch including the testimony of a fellow witch, the common belief or accusation of those who live with suspected witch, cursing followed by some mischief or the person disagrees with the person when questioned. Miller was interested in McCarthy trials in the 1940s/50s and made the book parallel to it, Salem witch trials of 1682. Miller may have oversimplified matters, in that while there were no actual witches in Salem, there were certainly Communists in 1950s America. However, one can argue that Miller's concern in The Crucible is not with whether the accused actually are witches, but rather with the refusal of the court officials to believe that they are not. McCarthyism limits, which wronged many innocents and this parallel was felt strongly in Miller's own time. In real life, at Millers time, Abigail Williams was 12 years old, but in the play she is 17, but why did he change the age? He did this to make Abigail Williams a better character to make her do all the mischievous things she does in the play. At the age of 17, you are mature and able to make an opinion, and act more like an adult, unlike a 12 year old where you are still to young to do things adults do. Danforth was not a real person, he was made up, but the wonderful thing about him is that he is made up of 3 characters. These three characters were the judges, but they would not be as dramatic and neither strong, unless there is one person who rules, making that character more remembered, and more important to the play.
Analyse of the Two Key Moments
ACT 3
Miller choose to have this moment, in Act 3, because you know what happens after. At the end of Act 4, Proctor is signing a confession to show he has met the Devil, and to say he has not had an affair. But the audience are confused on why it came to this, even though they know that he has had an affair, but he confessed it early before the key moment. It was chosen to show the audience how Proctor has come to sign a paper at the end of the play, and to show that Abigail has lived on, and shown that she is not lying about being a 'whore'.
Also Miller choose this key moment to grab the audience, and to have dramatic irony with the audience. This key moment is good with dramatic irony because of Elizabeth saying no, and that is not true, it not the right answer, and it is ironic because she never lies. Audience know the real answer but people in the play do not. Elizabeth avoiding the question "My husband - is a goodly man, sir." and "Your Honour, I - in that time I were sick. And I - My husband is a good and righteous man. He is never drunk as some are, nor wastin' his time at the shovelboard, but always at his work." grabs the audience in, wanting an answer from her, the answer which is important for the story to go on. Miller needed this key moment for the audience to stay interested in the play, and this tension building does, keeping you guessing, and waiting.
In the first moment of Act 3, the setting is cold and grime, with rain pouring showing the sadness and fear spinning around the characters. This weather is better than having light, because the moment would not look sinister and the moment would not be as dramatic. It is known as pathetic fallacy, links in with the key moment, sad and fear. This Act is set in the main room of Salem Meeting House, a building at the heart of this religious community, which is now serving as the courtroom for the trials. As the tone of the play becomes more sinister, the setting for the action also becomes more sombre and threatening within this 'forbidding' room.
Plain and heavy furniture sits within the room. When you walk in there are rows of seats, like a church, and at the front is a long table for the judges to sit. Everything is so dull and dark, and all the windows are slightly shut letting no light or darkness in, but you can hear the sound of rain and thunder. The windows are higher up and it is as though the light, or goodness, is receding. One door leads outside and two doors lead into the main room of the Meeting House, suggesting perhaps that, metaphorically, the route out of the courtroom is more difficult than the way in. The effect of the setting must be to intimidate the characters that come to protest.
When Elizabeth enters the room the dramatic device ...[glancing at PROCTOR'S back] shows she is nervous, wanting answers from Proctor. She is nervous for what to say, and her mind is about Proctor, and his affair with Abigail, but if she should say this or not. Her idea to take away time is to say things slowly, [faintly] and doing things like [glance at Proctor] and [wetting her lips to stall time]. When Danforth says, "For what cause did you dismiss her?" Elizabeth has a slight pause [Slight pause. Then ELIZABETH tries to glance at Proctor] this shows that she paused to think of what to do to make Danforth angry and letting time go by. Danforth is forcing for an answer from her "Look at me." and "Your husband - did he indeed turn from you?" but Elizabeth can only say, "My husband - is a goodly man, sir", avoiding the question. The dramatic device says [in agony] which shows that she is getting weaker and weaker; Danforth is pushing, getting stronger and stronger. Finally [faintly] Elizabeth says "No, sir."
In one interpretation of this play is a video of 1996 Nicholas Hytner film, which has music in it as dramatic devices. The stances are relevant to. When Elizabeth comes into the court place, Danforth is sitting on a chair behind a table, and Proctor on the left, with Abigail on the right facing forwards to the court, and standing up. This is through Elizabeth's eye, and this arrangement is significant because the middle is the best, who is Danforth, High and mighty, and the two who are Elizabeth's concern and pressures are Proctor and Abigail, that is why they are placed on the side of Danforth and Elizabeth. It is like a diamond. When Danforth asks why she dismissed Abigail, music starts up, like incidental music, sharp and is dramatic, because as I said, Miller choose this key moment to build up all the tension.
There is a lot of irony before and in this moment. Firstly to prove Proctor's own innocence and prove himself faithful to his wife, John Proctor must publicly declare his unfaithfulness. To save Elizabeth and protect himself from a predictable accusation of witchcraft, Proctor must tear down his name and condemn himself for the crime of lechery. Despite Proctor's obvious sin, Proctor is placed as a victim, sacrificing any chance for a good reputation in Salem, where public reputation is essential, one's name. It is needed to save his wife and others wrongly accused of witchcraft. The second irony involves the testimony of Elizabeth Proctor. To save her husband from accusations of witchcraft, she must condemn him for lechery. She is an honest woman who never lies, yet at the moment in which her honesty is needed, she chooses the noble yet practical lie that she believes will defend her husband, "No, sir". As Hale notes, it is a natural lie for Elizabeth Proctor to tell. She chooses dishonesty at that moment that her truth matters the most, especially for Danforth.
All the way through the moment, she was avoiding the question and deciding what to say. As Danforth says, "In what way dissatisfied you?" but Elizabeth replies "Your Honour, I - in that time I were sick. And I - My husband is a good and righteous man. He is never drunk as some are, nor wastin' his time at the shovelboard, but always at his work." This is not answering Danforth's question- "In what way dissatisfied you?" But her reply is stating good things about her husband, not why Abigail 'dissatisfied" Elizabeth and her husband, John Proctor.
Danforth says 'dissatisfied' instead of something like disappointed, disapproved, displeased or unfulfilled, because the word 'dissatisfied' is more strong to use, and this is how Danforth is, pushing an answer out of people, so he uses stronger words to get an answer from Elizabeth. Another thing is that Miller choose to use this word, 'dissatisfied' because Elizabeth used it, and it helps to use the same words as the witness, to get an answer and to make the witness understand what to say, but like above she is resisting the question.
Danforth use the word 'lecher' and this is because people used it in that time, but also it is more formal, Miller choose it because Danforth is formal, judges have to be, and so this formal word was chosen, from Millers point of view. Miller could of used this word in his time.
The time when Elizabeth said "No, sir", this is important for the whole story like I have discussed in my introduction. But the simple word is not truthful at all; it has affected the way the story has ended. Why did she say it though? She told a lie, which she has never done in her life time, (as we know), and at that moment she lied, which would cost a bad ending, and letting the hole thing go on. She did this to save Proctor so people could not call him a lecher, and ruining his name any further. But there is another side to her, she could be so cold, and evil that she would say that he is not a lecher, not to agree with Proctor, and to keep the secret held up. She already knows the secret, and Proctor knows that she knows, which makes Proctor feel even guiltier.
When she said "No, sir", this is relevant to what is going to happen in the fourth Act. Danforth now assumes that Abigail is not a 'whore', (prostitute), and thinks that Proctor is a lie. I believe Elizabeth did not know that he confessed, because when Proctor said "Elizabeth, I have confessed it!" then Elizabeth replies "Oh, God!" knowing that she said the wrong thing, letting Proctor down, and Hale who has changed, and know that the whole thing was not real. What is to come is that Proctor could be charged to lie, or something terrible could go on, that he has been accused of the Devil.
ACT 4
Miller choose to have this moment, in Act 4, because it shows how Proctor dies after the moment. In this moment, Proctor is signing a confession to show he has met the Devil, and to say he has not had an affair, ...[PROCTOR now lays the paper down and signs his name]. It links what has gone before, because he was locked in jail, and this shows how he is going to save his life by signing a confession paper, "I confess to God, and God has seen my name on this! It is enough!" Not just because it is relevant in the story, but it is a good device for the audience as well, because it gives the audience a sense that he is heroic. With this scene it shows first how he gives up and signs a confession paper, but then he has a change of heart and rips the paper [hysterically, as though the tearing paper were his life], saying he has never seen the Devil. This gives the audience a sign of relief, because he has done the right thing. This moment will give the audience a final decision about how good Proctor is "...for now I do think I see some shred of goodness in John Proctor." But some people may think he is not a good and heroic man, because of his affair with Abigail Williams, and that Proctor is letting people have pain, because he is a very important man to his friends, family and Elizabeth, [ELIZABETH, in a burst of terror, rushes to him and weeps against his hand]. Your left to decide how good he is. For this moment, Miller may have shown Proctor as Jesus. He has given his name up to show his honour to his friends who are going to die showing there innocence. Jesus is the same, a good man, letting himself die for the causes and deaths of his fellow friends.
It is now six months later and autumn, though the American term 'fall', used by Miller, seems far more suitable considering where we have now come to in the play
As well as the darkness of the setting, we are struck by the emptiness of the room. Miller mentions no furniture other than two benches and a lantern on the wall. Here life is stripped down to the bare minimum. It is in this setting that Proctor will have to search his conscience, his inner self, and make the crucial but basic decision whether to live or die.
In one interpretation, a video 1996 Nicholas Hytner film, the setting is outside. It is beside the sea, which I guess is on the edge of Salem. It is early in the morning because the sun is starting to rise up. It was set at the seaside because it shows that the play is ending on a good sunny note. Also the sea is better than the Salem meeting house, because it shows the rise of Proctor. It is ironic because the seaside shows good, and is like a rise to heaven, another reason for the sea to be chosen, but Proctor is dieing, not showing good. Although he is dieing and rising up to heaven, he is dieing like his loyal friends. The background of the sea is lighter, than in the courtroom, the sea makes Proctor look more heroic to the audience.
As this key moment is set in autumn, and it is in the morning, when the sun is coming through. Light is not much used in the key moment, but until John Proctor says his name is important, "Because it is my name! Because I cannot have another in my life!...", and then he rips the piece of paper there is a stage direction [hysterically, as though the tearing paper were his life] this shows lightning coming through. As we know light is shown shining down on Jesus when he heals somebody, light comes through the windows to show how good Proctor is. In the interpretation, the sun comes up and shines, again showing Proctor as Jesus, doing the right thing to stick with what is truthful, that he has not seen the Devil.
In one interpretation, a video 1996 Nicholas Hytner film, music is there as dramatic devices. The stances are relevant to. When Proctor is answering to Danforth's questions if he has seen certain people with the Devil. Danforth is standing up behind a small table, and Cheever and Parris are there, are three wearing black. Proctor is in very old cloths, all thilthy, but this gives him more power, firstly it shows he is given up, that he has seen the Devil, his cloths taking him down, even though he is saving his life, but the cloths are significant because Jesus wore bad cloths, ripped and torn, but he was dieing for his fellow friends like Proctor. The three behind the table: Cheever on the left Danforth in the middle, and Parris on the right, looks like they are the high people, there are high in reputation, but Proctor is low, and only wearing bad ripped cloths. When he rips the paper, there is a drumbeat, and this changes everything, because then Proctor is more of the higher reputation. Music is used when Danforth asks if he has seen certain people with the Devil, he carries on saying no. His no is important to show how weak he has become, so music makes it more dramatic to emphasise on the rhythm of Danforth and Proctor saying no.
Before my key moment starts, which is when he starts to sign the paper Proctor starts to get questioned by Danforth "Mr Proctor, have you seen the Devil in your life?" and then the dramatic devices is used upon Proctor [PROCTORS jaws lock.] and also afterwards [through his teeth, his face turned from REBECCA] all shows how weak Proctor is. His knows that all of this is wrong to confess, but he is saying it, and going ahead like his wife had told him. The stage direction which says [astonished] when Rebecca is talking, is no surprise, because she knows, Elizabeth knows and Proctor himself knows that he is doing the wrong thing, by confessing.
Now the Key moment starts when Proctor is signing his name on a paper, to show his confession, the stage direction says [CHEEVER goes to PROCTOR, the confession and a pen in hand. PROCTOR does no look at it] which again proves he is doing the wrong thing, which he knows. The stage direction after says [after glancing at the confession] and then the quote " You have all witnessed it - it is enough." this shows how he is trying to resist the paper, and thinks that the paper of his confession is a lot worse then to say it out to the judges. He knows this confession is wrong, but he does not want a paper to give evidence he confessed he has been with the Devil. It makes others, who died, annoyed and disappointed with Proctor; he is a good man and would die for his loyal friends, he is a 'good man'. After that he starts to sign the paper with the stage direction [His breast heaving with agonized breathing. PROCTOR now lays the paper down and signs his name] which shows the impact of Proctor. He is full of anger and knows that he has been beaten to sign the confession paper. So this is a dramatic device, to show how he hates this paper, and does not want to sign it.
Danforth is eager to have this paper, but does not to show it. He wants to tell everybody that Proctor has confessed, and is a good man, even though he is not. Miller choose this stage direction, [perplexed, but politely extending his hand], to make Danforth look less eager then he usually is, but Proctor takes his the wrong way again. He thinks that Danforth is going to take it away and show everybody, but that's not true as seen [as though PROCTOR did not understand], and Proctor shows weakness and gives away slightly, that he did not want for this to all go through. Others did not complain any further to show they have confessed as said by Proctor after "You will not use me! I am no Sarah Good or Tituba, I am John Proctor!..." As this argument carries on Danforth get suspicious [with suspicion] and is wondering why Proctor is resisting for Danforth to take the paper.
Proctor gives in, and [with a cry of his soul] Proctor says it is his name, and this shows that he does not want to give his name corruption; he wants his friends, who are dead or dieing, to know he is better then the confessors. Danforth is so astonished, [pointing at the confession in Proctor's hand] and he answers, "Is that document a lie?" and [PROCTOR is motionless] and [PROCTOR does not reply]. He realises he has said the wrong thing, and he has given in, not saving his life. At this point he is in a dilemma, to say he has seen the Devil, or he has not. Before he was going through that he has seen the Devil, in the middle of this key moment, he is in the dilemma, and so he must now say he has not seen the Devil, which means torture. This is true because the stage direction, and dramatic device is used [His breast heaving, his eyes staring, PROCTOR tears the paper and crumples it, and he is weeping in fury, but erect]. He has though that this is the true and desirable answer he wants to show. He shows now he is strong, and the paper is historic as well [hysterically as though the tearing paper were his life]. The paper is a dramatic device because it represents the confession, but it is a lie. When he rips it he rips the confession, and the lie, which represents Danforth's triumph over Proctor. It allows use to see Proctor's change of heart.
Contrasting considerations of self-interest lead Danforth and Parris to beg John Proctor to confess to witchcraft. While Parris fears for his safety, Danforth operates to defend the court from any more attacks. The change in Danforth's open desire is very important because previously, Danforth meant to confirm the goodness of the court, but here he suggests corruption to protect the political value of the government; he worries if postponing the executions, it will show weakness on him and part of the court. By prompting Proctor to give a false confession, Danforth indicates that he likely believes the witchcraft charges are false. This shows how the witch hunts have gained a life of their own; the reputation and hierarchy lead the court to continue with the case and executions even when the original delay of the trials was a bad idea and even when the people who run the trials are concerned about the power of the charges.
When Proctor says, "Because it is my name! Because I cannot have another in my life!..." this shows how he cares for his name like when he cleaned his name about his lechery, his affair with Abigail Williams. When he said, "I have known her, sir. I have known her." which he releases his secret about his affair, and this is cleaning his name, like when he rips the paper and does not agree that he has seen the Devil. He is cleaning his name.
Of course there is speech in the key moment, which is not truthful, but nobody is speaking truthful. Proctor saying he has meet with the Devil. As you can see by Danforth asking "...Mr Proctor. Did you bind yourself to the Devil's service?" and then Proctor saying "I did." This we know is not true because before he was accused of seeing the Devil, all down to Mary. She is a weak person, and Abigail was tormenting her, showing the judges that Mary was hurting her, which is not true. Then when Mary was getting weaker and weaker, she gives in and says she has seen the Devil, but Proctor is been seeing the Devil as well "You're the Devil's man!" and then "He come at night and every day to sign, to sign, to -".
There is some dramatic irony involved in the key moment but it is not as strong as the first key moment I choose. The dramatic irony involved in this key moment is when Proctor says he has been with the Devil, even though he has not. He at first signed a paper for confession, showing he has seen the Devil. It is dramatic irony for the audience because Proctor is doing the wrong thing, and confessing for being accused, which is not true. Proctor would not usually do this, because he likes to keep his name clean from anything, which is why he teard down his name, that he had an affair with Abigail. But this time he did not tear down his name showing he has not seen the Devil, he tries to save himself "I did."
Conclusion
The Crucible is always related to themes, because it is based on real true issues. Here are themes related to the two key moments:
Reputation - Reputation is very important in the religious Salem, where public and private goodness are important. In an atmosphere where reputation shows an important role, the fear of blame by friendship become
s particularly evil. Focused on a high public reputation, the people of Salem fear that the sins of their friends and other important people will hurt their names. Some characters think their name is to be protected and their respective reputations. John Proctor especially thinks his name should not be harmed, and will tell the truth to keep his name clean. Early in the play, he has a chance to put a stop to the girls' accusations, but his desire to keep his reputation makes him from testifying against Abigail. At the end of the play, however, Proctor's need to keep his good name leads him to make the brave choice not to make a false confession and to go to his death without signing his name to something he hasn't done. By refusing to surrender his name, he frees himself for his earlier failure and dies with honour. Danforth is very powerful the Act 3 key moment
Power- The witch trials allow many characters in the play who are previously edgy in the Salem society. In general, women are low ranked, doing the housework etc, compared to the male-dominated Sale. They have little options in life and work as servants for townsmen, until they can get married, and having kids. For this reason, Abigail is a 'slave' to John Proctor's sexual desire, but he strips away her purity when he commits adultery with her, and he provokes her nasty jealousy when he terminates their affair. Abigail's accusations of witchcraft and Devil-worship immediately command the attention of the court. By supporting herself, in the eyes of others, with God's will, she gains power over society, as do the other girls in her pack, and her word becomes incontrovertible, as do theirs.
Accusations, Confessions, and Legal Proceedings- The witch trials are central to the action of The Crucible, and dramatic accusations and confessions fill the play. In the first act, before the hysteria begins, Parris accuses Abigail of dishonouring him, and he then makes a series of accusations against his parishioners. Giles Corey and Proctor respond in manner, and Putnam soon joins in, creating a group of accusation even before Hale arrives. The entire witch trial system relies on accusations, the only way that witches can be seen, and confessions, which provide the proof of the honesty of the court actions. Proctor attempts to break this with a confession of his own, when he admits to the affair with Abigail, but this confession is false from the accusation from Elizabeth. Proctor's brave decision, at the end of the play, to die rather than confess to a fault that he did not do, he finally breaks the cycle. The court collapses afterwards, undone by the negative responses of its victims to spread lies.
The Witch Trials and the Witch Hunt- There is hardly any symbolism within The Crucible, but, in total, the play can be seen as symbolic, the fear about communism. Miller has this matter in his play. In that while there were no actual witches in Salem, there were Communists. However, Miller's concern in The Crucible is not with whether the accused actually are witches, but rather with the opposition of the court officials to believe that they are not. In light of the witch-hunt extremes, which hurt many innocents, this was felt strongly in Miller's own time.
Good and evil- One very important battle that is not very obvious in the story is with God and the Devil, being good and evil. The question is will the accused people be sent to heaven with the good God or will they burn in hell with the evil Satan? This is mainly what the whole play is based on. The puritan religion is the reason for why the people are being executed. The forces of good always tried to do what was best for everybody, even if it meant breaking some puritan laws. The evil group did whatever was best for them. They were greedy and had no consideration for others.
The moment, which is most dramatic, is the 1st one in Act 3 because it leads up to a very important factor for the final Act. When Elizabeth says no, this is very relevant to the whole story because it shows Proctor was lying about his affair with Abigail Williams, and that she will not get charged for lying about the whole witchcraft. The story would of ended on Act 3 but it went on. This does not show why it is the most dramatic, but it is a good idea to make it the most dramatic moment, that is why I think Miller made this moment dramatic, because it is very important to the play.
The play is a full of emotions for the audience, different all the way through. Miller takes the audience on this 'roller coaster ride' by making them experience hatred, love, confusion and intrigue by using the characters as different tools. The audience are to have mixed feelings for certain characters, some members of the audience do not like Proctor for his adultery, others give him sympathy and think he is heroic at the end of the plays. The play in its entirety is an oblique comment on 1950s situation in America; it was not simply that, it has emotions and 'real' characters. It is an intricate web of relationships and hidden priorities from each character, which together makes for a complex, but an enclosing play. The way the audience feels gets Millers message through.
The play is relevant nowadays for many reasons: because it links with the situation in Afghanistan how people are tortured if they do not apply Sadam as the Prime Minister, also the film versions of the play it is exciting to watch because of the high tension and quite fast pace throughout, it incorporates dramatic irony to make the audience part of the action. The play is twisted and left on a cliffhanger, like soaps, which shows how the play is relevant to today and the audience of today. The whole thing about lechery and sexual interest can link to soaps and it is like a soap opera, and is artistically pleasing for the audience. The girls' hysteria gives play excitement and activity, something physical to watch if you do not understand the words. The play can appeal to religious people, for new views and ideas, historians, real events, and people young adults, for excitement women, for love story
The first key moment in Act 3 was the best. It is full of tension and at the end of the moment it ends with dramatic irony and irony. This moment catches me as the audience, and the way Elizabeth avoids the question, builds my interest in the story. When she says 'No, sir' I wanted to go on, because I wanted to know what is going to happen now.
The second key moment in Act 4 also was good; I found it hard for me as the audience. When he signed the paper of his confession, I though he has done the wrong thing, even though it is to save his life. Other people may disagree, but I think Hale was not so good as others would think. If I were him I would die a honourable man so I could be placed in history books, and known as a good man, instead of saving your life for a name. But then Proctor came to his senses and he changed his mind, which made the audience fell more relieved because he shows his true self, a heroic man, like Jesus, and dieing to show he is honourable and his loyalty with his friends who are going to be hanged.
I have thoroughly enjoyed reading 'The Crucible', and even though it is about events that happened over 300 years ago, it still holds an uncanny relevance because, sometimes, we can see ourselves in Arthur Miller's characters. Perhaps 'The Crucible' can so relevant that it helps to stop terrible tragedies like the witch hunts happening again in the future.
