The Crucible: Characters :: Essay on The Crucible

The Crucible CharactersChetan Patel     The Crucible, a antic by Arthur miller that was first produced in 1953,is based on the legitimate story of the Salem Witch Trials of 1692. Miller wrote theplay to parallel the situations in the mid-twentieth century of Alger Hiss,Owen Lati more than, Julius and Ethel Rosenburg, and Senator McCarthy, if onlysuggestively. (Warshow 116) Some characters in the play have specific ag finishascarried out by their accusations, and the fact that the play is based onhistorical truth makes it even more intriguing.     The characters in this play be simple, common people. The accused arecharged and convicted of a crime that is impossible to prove. The followingwitchcraft hysteria quests place in one of Americas wholesome, theocratic towns,which makes the miscarriage of justice such a arcanum even today. The reasonsthe villains select the people they do for condemnation are both simple andclear. All of the accus ers have ulterior motives, such as revenge, greed, and coat up their own behavior. Many of the accusers have meddled in witchcraftthemselves, and are therefore doubly to be distrusted. (Warshow 116) The courtconvicts the victims on the most squiffy testimony, and the reader has to wonderhow the judges and the townspeople could let such a charade continue.     The leading character of the play is John Proctor, a piece of music who oftenserves as the only voice of reason in the play. He had an affair with AbigailWilliams, who later charges his wife with witchcraft. Proctor is seemingly theonly somebody who can see through the childrens accusations. The reader sees himas one of the more "modern" figures in the trials because he is hardheaded,skeptical, and a voice of common sense. He thinks the girls can be cured oftheir "spells" with a good whipping. (Warshow 114) At the end of the play,Proctor has to make a choice. He can either rat to a crime h e is unreservedof to save himself from execution, or exit proclaiming his innocence. He ends upchoosing death because a false confession would entertain implicating other accusedpeople, including Rebecca Nurse. (Rovere 2632) Proctor feels she is good andpure, unlike his adulterous self, and does non want to tarnish her good name andthe names of his other innocent friends by implicating them. (Warshow 117) Bychoosing death, Proctor takes the high road and becomes a true tragic hero. Thereader feels that his punishment is unjust (especially since the crime ofwitchcraft is imagined and unprovable.) Because the trials take place in aChristian, American town, the reader must wherefore wonder if anything like this