The Crucible HW 4

Pages 49-67

"The town’s gone wild, I think. She speaks of Abigail, and I thought she were a saint, to hear her. Abigail brings the other girls into the court and where she walks the crowd part like the sea for Israel. And folks are brought before them, and if they scream and howl and fall to the floor- the person’s clapped in jail for bewitchin’ them." (52)

The people in Salem are obsessed with witchcraft and the idea that the Devil is present in their town. They believed and did whatever it took to free themselves from the Devil. Abigail was granted the authority to decide who deserved to live and who deserved to die. If Salem did not put their trust in a few teenage girls, the witch trials could have been easily avoided. Originally, Abigail was fearful that she would be accused of being a witch, so she immediately pointed her finger at someone else, usually an outcast of society. Abigail was intelligent and had the ability to manipulate others. These people succumbed to her, and as a result, she was able to gain control over the town. No one dared to oppose her because they risked losing their own life.

I’ll plead no more! I see now your spirit twists around the single error of my life, and I will never tear it free! (62)

Salem was filled with tension, not only between neighbors, but between husbands and wives. John Proctor could not understand how much he affected his wife by cheating on her. Although, it was one of his few mistakes, Elizabeth could not forgive him. She lost all her trust and faithfulness in him. This is unfortunate because with chaos in Salem, Elizabeth and John might need each other’s support. John’s “single error” had a much larger impact then he realized. John gave Abigail hope that they would be together one day, as long as Elizabeth was not around. Elizabeth fired Abigail from her job because she had an affair with her husband. This led to Abigail’s hatred for Elizabeth. The only reason Abigail practiced witchcraft was to kill Elizabeth. Proctor was not aware that the Salem Witch Trials were a consequence of his single mistake. Accusing Elizabeth of being a witch would be the best way to get rid of her. John Proctor was correct; he would never be able to free himself from the turmoil he caused.

Questions:
When naming the commandments, why did John Proctor forget adultery, after he just discussed it with his wife and knew it was the only commandment he broke?
Since Sarah Good confessed to witchcraft, she was not hanged and only had to sit in jail. If Abigail confessed to witchcraft why doesn’t she have to sit in jail?