Essay Crucible

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Similar qualities may be shared between a multitude of characters throughout The Crucible, but not all of these qualities are easy to spot. Elizabeth Proctor and Abigail Williams may appear to be as opposite as night and day; however, if one were to look deeper than the surface, one would see that they do, in fact, share a handful of similarities. In order to seek these connections, it is required to look at the true, inner features of each individual character, and by doing so, one will definitely find characteristics that they never expected to find. Therefore, Elizabeth and Abigail are two characters that have similarities such as passion, lying, and the lack of personal peace. Elizabeth and Abigail are akin due to the fact that they both have a passionate love for John Proctor, yet for exceptionally different reasons. Elizabeth has a true love for John, as he is her husband. The both of them have shared their whole lives with each other and have two sons, which they care a great deal about. The love that John and Elizabeth have is a true and genuine affection because Elizabeth would do anything for him, just as he would do the exact same for her. On the other hand, Abigail believes that this is what she and John share, when in reality, it is only a one way relationship—Abigail is the only one in the ‘relationship’ that would do anything for the spouse, whereas John Proctor would not do a single thing for Abby. “I will cut off my own arm before I’ll ever reach for you again” (Miller 23). John Proctor does not reciprocate his feelings for Abby merely because they do not exist. Although Elizabeth and John went through a rough patch, John still loved Elizabeth deep down inside. Abigail only loves John out of lust; she knows she cannot have John so she pursues her chase after him. Therefore, Elizabeth clearly loves John for all the right reasons, as Abby only loves him for the selfish reasons. Elizabeth and Abigail both yearn for Proctor, creating an accurate similarity between the two women. The two characters of Abigail and Elizabeth both happen to lie in The Crucible, yet they have different motives for doing so. Elizabeth Proctor was said to have never told a lie in her life, however, she eventually nulls that fact as she lies in the court scene. She lies in hopes to save her husband’s reputation, and even though she could have saved her own life by saying that John cheated, Elizabeth chooses to try and save someone else. This proves that Elizabeth, in a way, lies only out of compassion because she did not lie to save herself, but instead she lies in attempt to help someone other than herself. Abigail also lies, but for a different reason. An example would be when Hale tries to get Abby to confess, she points to Tituba and yells, “She made me do it” (Miller 43)! This establishes how Abigail only lies to save herself, rather than someone else, as Elizabeth does. Abby is obviously a habitual liar, as she continues to lie in order to get what she wants. She lies about many people in Salem being witches, such as Elizabeth, and she also lies about her name being good in the town, when in reality, it is blackened by herself—and with a little help from Elizabeth. In other words, Abigail Williams chooses to lie for her own benefits, while Elizabeth lies for the greater good. Personal peace is when a person comes to terms with how discontented he really is, and then strives to mend those broken aspects. Finding happiness in oneself is all one must do to find his personal peace. Another connection that one could make between Abby and Elizabeth is the fact that both of them were in dire
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