Analysis of John’s Character in The Crucible by Arthur Miller

The Salem witch trials took place in Salem, Massachusetts 1692, a time period in which people were falsely accused of witchcraft. Arthur Miller wrote the play The Crucible, loosely based off of these trials. John, a character in the play, can be perceived differently through other characters’ viewpoints. Throughout the play John is shown as a father, a husband, an adulterer, a well respected member of the community, and even as a witch, all depending on which characters perspective that is read. One is able to find out what he really wants and how he attempted to achieve it. John is very character, his language stays the same even when he talks to the most ruthless characters. John is just trying to do what is best for others and stand firm on his beliefs.

John has a mission and he will do whatever it takes for him to achieve his goal, in his case he went as far as death. John Proctor wants to prove to the town that there is no such thing as witchcraft, and that the people in Salem are ridiculous for believing the accusations of teenage girls. This was shown when John said “My wife will never die for me! I will bring your guts into your mouth but that goodness will not die for me!” (pg 80) John uses an appeal to fear tactic to force Mary Warren to confess to the court that she was lying all along. He is trying to save his wife's life because Abigail falsely accused her of witchcraft and it was all Johns fault. John needs to prove to the court that Abigail is accusing Elizabeth because she believes that if Goody Proctor died then John would want to be with her. Proctor became an outspoken opponent of the trials and stated, to many, that the afflicted girls, who had been accusing many of the villagers of witchcraft, were frauds and liars. This got him in some trouble and later it ended putting himself on trial. But John stands strongly in his beliefs and refuses to confess to witchcraft, which resulted in his death. John stand strong when he says “You will not use me! I am no Sarah Good or Tituba, I am John Proctor! You will not use me! It is no part of salvation that you should use me!” He doesn't allow his fate to be determined by a teenage girl but he also refuses to commit to doing something that he didn't do, no matter what the consequences where. He wants to prove the corruption in the church, John was very high up in society, so the fact that he is getting put on trail proves how messed up Salem's government system is.

Johns has many purposes for refusing to confess to witchcraft. But he had three main reasons, the first was for himself, then for his family, and lastly for his community. John refused to have his name looked down upon. This is shown when he said “ I have confessed myself! Is there no good penitence but it be public? God does not need my name nailed upon the church! God sees my name; God knows how black my sins are! It is enough!”. John doesn't want his name to be forever remembered as a witch when, in fact, he was not! Only God needs to know what he has done, and in Johns opinion that is all. Another one of his reasons for not admitting to the false accusations is because he wanted his family to still respect him. He wants his sons to look up to him and follow in his footsteps, for them to stand up for what they truly believe in. and to not back down when everyone else in society says ‘it's the right thing to do’. John loses his life just to be remembered as a hero. His last main reason for not committing to the crime was for his community. Although they may not have realized it at the time their government, which was based off of the church was very corrupt.

John stays true throughout the whole play, keeping up with his same goal in mind. The way he talks to different people stays the same. John is a static character, he doesn't go through any major changes. All through the play John stays strong to his beliefs, the people in the town try to convince him otherwise but he stands alone. When Abigail talks to him she attempts to manipulate him and force him to fall in love with her. This happens in the first act when Proctor had said “Abby, I may think of you softly from time to time. But I will cut off my hand before I’ll ever reach for you again. Wipe it out of mind. We never touched, Abby.” He had refused to commit adultery again because he loves his wife Elizabeth. When John talks to Elizabeth, he talks only good things of her. He feels very sorry for what he had done in his past which ended up putting his wife on trial. During the trial he has hope for his wife and helps her fight. When he talks to the judges he says how good and kind she is he even says on pg “” John loves his wife Elizabeth, and nothing will change his mind. John is unlike the other characters in the play, he is static, his motivations don't change, and the way he talks to each individual person never changes. He is real and straight forward to everyone. In act pg Rev Parris is trying to convince the court that witches are real, Proctors response is . This quote shows how Proctor has a sense of humor and common sense, unlike the rest of the people in Salem.

1692 was a wild time in Salem. John Proctor’s goal was to expose the court for what they truly are, fraud. In order for him to achieve his goal he stuck to his logic and didn't back down. Johns static characteristics helped to discern the truth for lies. John doesn't change his language for anyone, no matter how manipulative, how convincing, or how rude the other characters are. John stays consistent.