Introduction to Proctor's Character

Arthur Miller created John Proctor as an allegory to the McCarthyism period. He represents the victims of hysteria. Though he was innocent he was accused, convicted, and killed. Proctor is the tragic hero of The Crucible. He is a 30 year old farmer whose name is respected in the community. He loathes hypocrisy and has a fatal flaw. He and Elizabeth have three sons. He and his wife are strong Christians though he dislikes the local reverend, Paris. He fell victim to the lies of the young Abigail Williams.
Proctor is a complex character, mixed with pride and self-loathing. He has pride in his community and the contributions he has made to it. He helped to build the town church and has transformed his land into a productive farm. He unlike many citizens of Salem speaks his mind against injustice and authority. Though the play he stand up against the authority to prove him and his wife’s innocence. He even sacrifices his good man for truth. Despite his pride he feels like a sinner. His affair with Abigail made him feel like he wasn’t a good man. Proctor’s flaws make him a tragic hero. He is a relatively good man he is taken to sin by his lust. In the end he regains his goodness and is hung for his honesty. He decides that he can’t bare to have his lie publicized.
He changes his opinion about himself and what’s going on through out the play. From Act I to Act IV his character transforms and evolves.

Act one

John Proctor is The Crucible’s protagonist. He has major issues. John was a very fortunate character. He had a nice farm, three sons, and a wife. He was the kind of guy who spoke his mind. He took pleasure in exposing hypocrisy and was respected. Most importantly he respected himself. All it took was on shameful sin to destroy proctor’s self respect. He made the mistake of sleeping with the seventeen year old Abigal. He had committed adultery and lechery. In Act one Proctor’s lust for Abigail, which led to their affair is revealed. Proctor’s sin led to Abigail’s jealousy of his wife. John Proctor had become the thing he hated most, a hypocrite. Since through out the play Proctor challenges authority there is no question to why he was attracted to Abigail. In Act one Abigail told Proctor that she and the girls had nothing to do with witch craft and that they just were dancing in the woods. Proctor’s smile widened and he said to Abigail, “Ah, you’re wicked yet aren’t y.” Abigail seemed defiant when it came to authority and that may have been what attracted John Proctor to her, besides the fact that his wife was sick. He was consumed by the feeling of guilt. He is revealed as a character whom has lost his self respect, and his goodness.

Act two and Three

In Act two the tension between Proctor and his wife is revealed. They say little to each other before an argument begins. In Act two we realize that Proctor doesn’t like people judging him and prefers to answer to no one but God. He is frustrated with everything that’s going on and lets his anger gets the best of him. He is a calm character until his temper problem emerges. In act two he threatened Mary Warren and his wife. Another aspect of Proctor that is revealed during Act two is his dislike for Paris and the work of the court. He thinks that Paris is materialistic and that the work of the court is nonsense. He feels that the court’s convicting innocent people on the words of silly children. When Cheever came to arrest Elizabeth, Proctor tore up the warrant. He soon after decided that something had to be done about Abigail.
In Act two once the trials have begun Proctor realizes that he could stop Abigail’s hysteria if he confessed his sin. Thought he wanted to save his wife his name was very important to him also. Proctor is the type of character who thinks reputations are significant. In order to stop Abigail he knew he would have to ruin his good name. At first he is hesitant and convinces Mary Warren to speak against Abigail and the girls.



In act three. Proctor gets involved with the action of the play. He is angered by the arrest of his wife and decides to stop the witch trials. At first he tries to show Abigail as the pretender she is without blackening his name. He went to court hoping to use Mary Warren’s testimony, Abigail’s admission to there being no witchcraft involved, and he and Abigail’s affair to bring down Abigail. Desperate and frustrated he confessed, hoping that the court would see Abigail as no longer a saint but a whore. He soon realizes that’s its too late and the truth can’t help the situation. He ends up getting himself arrested and accused of being a witch. Even though he didn’t convince the court, he was closer to regaining his self respect. He feels that by admitting his lechery he is no longer a hypocrite.

Act four

In Act four, Proctor destroys the final obstacle to him regaining total redemption. He has a hard time at first. He is offered an opportunity to save his life by confessing to witch craft. He felt that since he was already a bad man he might as well stay alive. He felt that he wasn’t good enough to be hung along with the other Christians because his name is already blackened. He looks toward his wife for advice for what to do and for her forgiveness but she gives him no help. He finally decides to confess. After he finds out that the confession would be shown to the public he rips it up. Toward the end of act four he cares less about public opinion and more about his personal integrity. He still couldn’t the thought of his name being soiled in front of the whole community. He still wanted to save his name but for religious and personal reasons. He feels that he has already given the court his soul and pleads that they let him keep his name. Proctor feels that he needs his name to live and can’t teach his sons too walk up right accused of being a witch. With all of these thoughts going through his mind he tells the truth. His decision caused him to regain his honor. He now felt like a good man. He felt that his goodness was more important than his life.

” 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.”


His refusal to confess to a lie was an important religious stand for him. His friends had decided to die as a testimony to truth and so did he. He didn’t want his reputation and soul to be dishonored. Proctor felt that by the decision not to blacken his soul with the lie would get him into heaven. He felt forgiven by God from all his previous sins and went to the gallows as a good man.

“He have his goodness now. God forbid I tale it from him!”

Proctor's Important Quotes

Act one:

1.“Abby, I may think of you softly from time to time. But I will cut of my hand before I ever reach for you again. Wipe it out of mind. We never touched, Abby.”

2.“I have trouble enough without I come five mile to hear him preach only hellfire and bloody damnation. Take it to heart, Mr. Parris. There are many others who stay away from church these days because you hardly ever mention God anymore.”

Act two:

3.“I am only wondering how I may prove what she told me, Elizabeth. If the girls a saint now, I think it not easy to prove she’s a fraud, and the town gone so silly.”

4.“No more! I should have roared you down when you first told me your suspicions. But I wilted, and, like a Christian, I confessed. Confessed! Some dream I had must have mistaken you for God that day. But you’re not, you’re not, and let you remember it! Let you look sometimes for the good in me, and judge me not.”

5.“And why not, if they must hang for denyin’ it? There are them that will swear to anything before they’ll hang; have you never thought of that?”

6.“I will fall like an ocean on that court! Fear nothing, Elizabeth.”

7.“I’ll tell you what’s walkin Salem- vengeance is walkin Salem, but now the crazy little children are jangling the keys of the kingdom, and common vengeance writes the law.”

Act three:

8.“They’re pretending!”

9.“How do you call upon Heaven? Whore! Whore!”

10.“A fire, a fire is burning! I hear the boot of Lucifer, I see his filthy face! And it is my face, and yours, Danforth! For them that Quail to bring men out of ignorance, as I have quailed, and as you quail now when you know in all your black hearts that this be fraud- God damns our kind especially, and we will burn, we will burn together!

11.“You are pulling down heaven and raising up a whore.”


Act four:

12.“I cannot mount the gibbet like a saint. It is a fraud. I am not that man. My honesty is broke, Elizabeth; I am no good man. Nothing’s spoiled by giving them this lie that were not rotten long before.”

13.“Spite only keeps me silent. It is hard to give a lie to dogs.”


14.“How may I live without my name? I have given you my soul; leave me my name!”

15.“You have made your magic now, for now I do think I see a shred of good in John Proctor. Not enough to weave a banner with, but white enough to keep it from such dogs.”

Citations

1.Bradford, Wade . "Crucible Charecter Study: John Proctor." About.com:Plays/Drama. The New York Times Company, n.d. Web. 15 Apr 2010. http://plays.about.com/od/plays/a/jproctor.htm.

2."The Crucible ." Sparknotes. SparkNotes LLC, n.d. Web. 15 Apr 2010. .