In The Crucible, by Arthur Miller, despite the fact that John Proctor has various respectable assets, he is considered a tragic hero and destined to tragedy as a result of his own imperfections. The way that John puts his companions above everything else proves his noble characteristic, his aspiration to correct his previous errors, and his need of justice. However, his imperfections are his temper, him hardly ever going to church, and his affair with Abigail Williams. Although he is a virtuous man, his flaws lead to his ruin. John proves that he puts his companions above everything else with his wife Elizabeth. He proves this by putting his life at risk just to demonstrate that she is not guilty. He also wants to correct his past mistakes and make up for his affair with Abigail to his wife. John once told his wife during a disagreement, “Spare me! You forget nothin’ and forgive nothing. Learn charity, woman. I have gone tiptoe in this house all seven month since she is gone. I have not moved from there without I think …show more content…
John’s rage is shown various times throughout the play. When John and Elizabeth were having a conversation about how Abigail said dancing in the woods was not part of witchcraft, it led to John ending the conversation with “I say I will think on it”. John Proctor also rarely attends church for the reason that he does not believe Reverend Parris is a consecrated man. He once told Reverend Hale he did not want Mr. Parris to lay his hand on his baby because he saw no light of God in him. Furthermore, his affair with Abigail contributed to his downfall the most. When John slept with her, she thought it was a vow to be with her. Abigail still wanted to be with him which may be a reason why she put a needle in the poppet. When it led to Elizabeth’s arrest, even though it embarrassed John to confess, he was willing to make it known in order to save his wife. This however later led to John Proctor’s arrest and
A tragic hero is a very favored person that suffers from a downfall which leads to their death. John Proctor, like many others, is a tragic hero. The author, Arthur Miller, gives John Proctor the role of a tragic hero throughout the story of The Crucible. This protagonist, John Proctor, made judgement errors that inevitably led to his own destruction. John Proctor is an afflicted individual. He believes his affair with Abigail irreparably damaged him in the eyes of God, his wife Elizabeth, and himself. John Proctor succumbed to sin and committed the crime of adultery; however, he lacks the capacity to forgive himself. When referencing criticism, John Proctor and the Crucible of Individuation in Arthur Miller’s The Crucible, Michelle I Pearson, who also agrees John Proctor is a tragic hero, once said in her article that “While the people of Salem look at Proctor and see a strong, hard-working, no-nonsense man, Proctor himself knows that he is an adulterer, a lecher, and that he drives himself to try to be free of his guilt. Not until faced with a crisis, however, will he leave the persona behind and begin the process of individuation.” The criticism provided helps prove John Proctor fits the role of a tragic hero in The Crucible. In order to convey the message of iniquity in the Puritan society, Arthur Miller casts John Proctor in The Crucible because he is able to overcome his tragic flaw of hubris, but still the circumstances unfortunately led to his death. Proctor is a very respected man in Salem but he also has a few flaws that have proved him to be a tragic hero which are prideful, lustful, and well respected. Later in The Crucible, Proctor realizes his flaws and tries to fix them but it is too late. One of Proctor’s tragic flaws is that he is too prideful.
In every story there is a hero. Every story has a villain. Every story has good and evil. All good has its flaws. In order for the good to out way the evil the good has to sacrifice something. John Proctor was this hero. Procter had his flaws, but so does everyone else in the book. No matter what's his flaws are,Procter wanted to do good. He say good in people, but also saw bad in people. In Reverend Paris he saw a man who was not ordained by God. In the end he wanted to do good.
Through John’s constant lies he pulls his wife into his ct by making her think it is okay to lie in court to save his name. What neither of them know is this will just causes more problems for the family and town. Elizabeth is pulled into court in Act 4 to testify on whether or not her husband committed adultery. She is unaware that for the last stitch of hope her husband has already confessed. In hopes of protecting her husband she tells the court “My husband – is a goodly man, sir” (Miller 118). Then she explains he has never had an affair with Abigail. This rehearsed lie sends John to be
In the beginning John is a suspicious and a non trustworthy man. He felt guilty, but continued doing what he has been doing for quite a while which was committing adultery with Abigail. In an attempt
Shortly after Abigail had arrived, Elizabeth grew ill. Her illness caused her and John to start to grow apart. During this time, him and Abigail had been spending a lot of time together and that caused them to grow closer. One late night, john went to Abigail's chambers and they laid together. Soon after Elizabeth found out and sent Abigail back to her Uncle Parris. This act of lechery was kept a secret, until John was standing in front of the court trying to prove his innocence. Elizabeth was accused of witchcraft and Reverend Hale showed up to inform them. Reverend Hale asked John about his kids wondering why they hadn't been baptized. “And you, Mister?” (66). Rev. Hale directed towards John; questioning his faith and memorization of the 10 commandments. Ironically, John could remember them all except “Thou shalt not commit adultery” (Exodus 20:14), the very sin he committed. Therefore planting the seed in Hale’s mind that he was a man of the devil. John Proctor was taken to court and
His actions destroyed the marriage, which led to mistrust. This demonstrates how John has grown and wants to put his wrong doings in the past and build a stronger more trusting relationship with his wife. A lesson that was learned but hard to overcome due to the rage and frustration being built up inside. John Proctor is the reason for this outbreak. John saying this to Elizabeth truly shows how much John’s disturbance has overwhelmed him with emotions, and how aggravated John is with the lack of trust in the relationship. John expressing this to Elizabeth benefits both in rebuilding the marriage. Additionally, John saying this helped play a major role between the two during the trials, and how John and Elizabeth will do whatever it takes to keep one another safe and keep the honorable reputation of the
During the play, Abigail’s dishonest, deceptive, and selfish nature is revealed. In the play Abigail was a liar she was and she had gotten other people in trouble to save herself. In the play John Proctor has an affair on his wife with Abigail and then reason all this happens is to kill or get rid of John Proctor’s wife. If you John proctor would not .have had the affair Abigail would have different traits.
“God is dead” this is a quote that was said by John Proctor, a character in “The Crucible” when he was in court testifying that he was not the devil. John Proctor is a middle aged man who is an outcast and doesn't go to church. He had an affair with his wife Elizabeth and Abigail wants him all to herself and she'll do anything to get rid of Elizabeth. John has a bad reputation for not going to church, plowing on Sundays, and not having all of his kids baptised. John and I have a few character traits in common such as we are both outcast, independent, and loyal.
There are an array of Aristotelian tragic heroes throughout American literature. One of which includes John Proctor, main character farmer in mid-30s, from Arthur Miller 's play, The Crucible. Yet, in order for him to obtain such a title he must possess specific characteristics. Five of which include possession of hubris, a flaw or decision leading to desire for revenge, a reversal of good fortune brought forth by the error of judgement, acceptance of poor fortune brought forth by their actions, and lastly the fate dealt to these characters must be greater than deserved. Aristotle once said that “ A man doesn 't become a hero until he can see the root of his own downfall.” Before the play even begins John Proctor has already conducted adultery, a fatal flaw in judgement, with Abigail Williams, a sneaky seventeen year old. This crucial crescendo leads to the development of the Salem Witch trials and the downward spiral of John`s comfortable lifestyle.
Arthur Miller’s play The Crucible is a tragedy not because so many innocent people died and so many corrupt, power hungry people let it happen, but because John Proctor acts in the role of a tragic hero. A tragic hero is a character that has the potential to resolve all conflict in a story without undue struggle, but because of a character flaw they fail and usually end of up ruined or dead. In the play The Crucible, John Proctor has several chances to resolve conflict but because of pride in his name, guilt, and his own lustful nature, he fails. Firstly, John Proctor could have saved his marriage by staying faithful to his wife Elizabeth, but he instead lusts over Abigail and commits adultery. Secondly, John could have saved his life when
John Proctor is a smart man and he cheated on his wife. John Proctor is a very intelligent man because he can realize when someone is not telling the truth and if they don't admit it, you will be hung. An important guitar from him is "do that which is good, and no harm shall come to thee". This shows his intelligence because he is saying that if someone always does good nothing bad will happen to them. John Procter has also made a mistake, he cheated on his wife Elizabeth with his servant Abigail. During a scene Proctor burst out with a confession, calling Abigial a "whore". He said that because Abigail slept with him and she wanted his wife hung so she could marry him. Although John proctor is a very smart man this goes to show that everyone
He has confessed to his sin honestly, but Elizabeth still remains cold. Elizabeth loses her hope in John. “Do as you wish then”[193]. She said this after he mentions that he was alone with Abigail but only briefly. As the story continues, you see how Elizabeth is upset with Mary Warren.
Tragic Hero Essay In The Crucible a drama by Arthur Miller, a prime example of a tragic hero is John Proctor. John Proctor was a prominent man of the community and his hubristic personality trait ultimately leads to his downfall. John Proctor was a prominent member of the community. This is shown when he is speaking to Reverend Hale and he states that he helped build the church.
In some Novels, there are more than one characters that can be a tragic hero. In the book, Crucible, one of the characters, John Proctor is a representation of a tragic hero set by the author, Arthur Miller. He had defined that the tragic hero is an average man. But, in order an average man can be a tragic hero, this person should have a fault that leads to the tragic downfall. This kind of fault would not be able to accept his fate if it ruins his dignity of his character. The hero will suffer anything rather than signing away his honor, name, and dignity. An average man like John Proctor is a tragic hero that had suffered a lot to be an honest man, honor and protect his good name, and his dignity.
John shows his attempt to make things right in his decisions. Instead of being seduced by Abigail again he has self control and tells her that it is over. This choice Proctor makes early on in the story demonstrates his desire to correct his mistakes. It is never more evident that Proctor is trying do good than when he confesses to lechery to save his wife. He tells the judge that he slept with underage Abigail and that is why she accused his wife, so she can get rid of her. Proctor’s decision to not say anything when asked to confess to witchcraft reveals how much he cares about his reputation. He would rather be hung than be known to everyone as a man who performed whichcraft.