Theme Of Guilt In The Crucible

Words: 873
Pages: 4
Open Document
Jealousy, hysteria, greed, and guilt are just a few of the themes portrayed in the novel “The Crucible” by Arthur Miller. In his novel, Arthur Miller recreates the wrongful allegations during the Salem witch trials. These trials were performed because they were accusations amongst friends and neighbors of witch craft. Each character is connected to one or more of the themes. For example, John Proctor, the first male accused of witchcraft, is motivated critically by guilt. In coming forth with the truth about his affair John Proctor hoped to save his wife, but is unsuccessful in doing so. John Proctor an intimidating farmer in his mid 30’s transforms from a guilt-ridden sinner to an honorable man.

Initially, John Proctor is a guilt ridden …show more content…
After John signs the confession he becomes upset and proclaims,“ Damn the village! I confess to God, and God has seen my name on this! It is enough!”(142). He believes that the actual writing of his name represents who he is as a man. Signing the confession would be the final loss of his reputation. This shows his will on how much he wants to keep his name clean. Miller puts this line in the book to show how eager John is to keep a good reputation. John realizes how it will be without his name and is very upset and states, “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!”(143). Proctor is upset because he believes all he has left is his name this means a lot to him and he does not want it to have a bad reputation so he keeps bugging the judge. Miller puts Proctors voice this way to emphasize how much his name really means to him. He proclaims this because he does not know what he would do without his name. John finally realizing that he has a shred of goodness in him says “I can. And there’s your first marvel, that I can. You have made your magic now, for now I do think I see some shred of goodness in John Proctor. Not enough to weave a banner with, but white enough to keep it from such dogs. Give them no tear! Tears pleasure them! Show honor now, show a stoney heart and sink them with it!”(144). Miller uses this to show how John is becoming a tragic hero. He says this because he knows he is going to die but does not know if he will die an honest man, although he wants to. Lastly, Miller shows how John becomes an honest, noble, tragic
Show More

Related Documents: Theme Of Guilt In The Crucible

The Crucible Theme

doing something that you have never done? There are many people that have been accused of something they never done. The Crucible by Arthur Miller, is a story about people being accused of doing witchcraft, and people telling lied about other. There are three main theme in The Crucible, the three main theme are Deception, Irony, and Guilt. The first main theme of The Crucible is Deception. “Let either of you breathe a word, or the edge of a word, about the other things, and I will come to you…

Words 562 - Pages 3

Theme Of Forgiveness In The Crucible

the Scarlet Letter vs The crucible, they each demonstrate a big trait of forgiveness and betrayal. The main themes of each story are portrayed by the minds and actions of each individual character. Within the The Scarlet Letter, Hester and Reverend Dimmesdale portray their actions and want of forgiveness with god from the beginning to the end of the story. In the Crucible, John Proctor and Abigail Williams ask for the forgiveness. Forgiveness is used to help the main theme of each story through the…

Words 567 - Pages 3

Comparing The Crucible And The Scarlet Letter

The books The Crucible and The Scarlet Letter are similar in many ways. Both books include many of the same themes and very alike characters. Although both books were written at different times, they follow a certain guideline about the Puritan society. These two books each include characters with issues from within. Every book also uses a little bit of magic. These two books are no exception. One common theme between these books is of guilt and redemption. This theme plays a very large…

Words 1887 - Pages 8

John Proctor In The Crucible

John Proctor and His Motives in The Crucible Proctor was predestined to die. It was inevitable. Reading through The Crucible by Arthur Miller, one might see how this is true. The Crucible is formatted as a play, but the emotional aspects are described well enough to be a novel. As hero of this novel, Proctor must overcome his obstacles, and defeat the villain. The only way for these things to happen while Proctor is in jail is for him to die without confessing. To find this element, a reader truly…

Words 2043 - Pages 9

Self Preservation In The Crucible

reasons for self-preservation, many chose to deceive the general public of their motivations. This trait was highlighted within the play The Crucible by Arthur Miller, as well as the novel The Scarlet Letter by Nathaniel…

Words 1058 - Pages 5

How Does John Proctor Characterize In The Crucible

Arthur Miller’s play The Crucible paints us a picture of people who were once all equal fight their never ending battle for truth and justice.One character who faces this neverending loop of who’s to blame and who’s is not arguments is a man named, John Proctor.The character John Proctor in The Crucible portrays the characteristics of Guilty, Brave, and Bold which relate to the common theme of Fallen from grace. Everybody makes mistakes now and again, everybody feels guilt afterwards as a side effect…

Words 701 - Pages 3

Rock On Essay

Inverted syntax- what’s at the end is coming at the beginning (EX: “Whose woods these are I think I know,” when it should be “I think I know whose woods these are”) Idiomatic diction- you can’t take it literally (EX: lets hit the road, jack) The Crucible Logical Fallacies Help: 1. Appeal to Authority: accepting someone’s argument because of his or her field unrelated to the argument. EX: Whatever Abigail says, the judge, Rev. Hale, and Rev. Parris believe it. 2. Appeal to Emotion: FEAR. Abigail…

Words 1610 - Pages 7

Nigger: The Crucible and Abigail’s Ability Essay

Abigail Williams and Her Crucibles in The Crucible Arthur Miller is a master of incorporating multiple allusions and elaborate symbols into his text, but one of the most prominent symbols in The Crucible has to be the title itself. The word crucible has many meanings and connotations, but the one we are focusing on is the “severe test” version. The entire plot revolves and circles the idea of the characters being put through crucibles; trials, accusations, all of which push their morals along with…

Words 1189 - Pages 5

The Crucible Never Again Essay

After tragic events in history, it is common for people to say “Never Again”, but unsurprisingly, it always happens again. For example, Arthur Miller’s The Crucible was originally based on the Salem Witch Trials, with allusions to the Red Scare. Still, this powerful book can be applied to many other historical events because humans constantly repeat their mistakes. Any historical era where fear triumphs over truth can be reflected in Miller's skillful storytelling. Moreover, the story paints a vivid…

Words 887 - Pages 4

John Proctor And Abigail Williams In The Crucible

John Proctor vs Abigail Williams In the Crucible there are many symbolic conflicts that contribute not only to the themes in the play but also to the chaos that is such a moving part of it. One of the conflicts that I feel is among the more significant, is that between John Proctor and Abigail Williams, as it is that of lust and adultery, one of the most dark sins in Christian belief. The Conflict between John and Abigail is a significant one, that lasts the entire play, and is only observed by the…

Words 403 - Pages 2