Why Is Abigail Wrong In The Crucible

Words: 889

Pages: 4

Open Document

The events of The Crucible came from a completely different era from what we know today. Undergoing massive witch hunts and burning people at the stake were just God’s children doing their holy duties. But even with the pitiful tragedies occurring, Abigail’s demeaning and selfish measures stood out from all of the havoc. Her behavior could be blamed on her young age and immaturity, but Abigail’s initial longing to bewed John Proctor brought the witch trials upon Salem. Taking advantage of Salem’s deteriorating state, Abigail’s ingenuity flourished and began to inflict tragedy on many others through terrible, villainous actions. As the girls were caught dancing in the woods, Abigail took many precautions to avoid being a suspect of witchcraft, …show more content…
Even Abigail claims this when she shouts at John Proctor, “I saw your face when she put me out, and you loved me then and you do now!” (Miller 22). Abigail seems as a confused, naive love-struck girl that is only chasing what she thought she could have. But does an “innocent child” condemn several people to death, forge a framing of witchcraft, and steal from their own family? Abigail’s stake at an innocent character is gone by the first few pages of the Act One, once she beats Betty for speaking the truth. Again and again, her underlying true motive appeals to her wants, and only uses the excuse of love to reconcile morality. In literature, the simple outline of a story poses an protagonist and an antagonist facing a conflict. In The Crucible, Abigail’s actions clearly identify her as an antagonist with a selfish, villainous background. She continues to be the one character who can effortlessly be found inflicting difficulty on others for the benefit of herself. Without the troubles begotten by the infamous Abigail, the town of Salem would have been free of much pain, death, and

Abigail Williams In The Crucible

Ruiz 10/24/17 Period 1 Abigail Williams “The Crucible” is a play by Arthur Miller about witchcraft during the early colonial American period, comparable to the Salem witch trials. While there are characters who are more at fault than others in this play, it seems like there are no characters who are completely without any blame in the play’s events. But, there is one character in “The Crucible” who can be identified as the central villain, Abigail Williams. Abigail William is the niece of Reverend…

Words 579 - Pages 3

Similarities Between The Crucible And Just Ask My Children

Compare/Contrast: The Crucible & Just Ask My Children There are many similarities and differences between The Crucible and Just Ask My Children. Both are based true stories have to do with accusing innocent people and negatively changing their lives. The accusations both start because of envy and jealousy. The people accused aren’t given a chance or the jury make it near impossible to defend themselves. The setting and accusations are different but the stories follow the same theme. First of…

Words 658 - Pages 3

Who Is Abigail A Victim In The Crucible

In the play "The Crucible", seventeen year old Abigail Williams is an orphan. She has been through a lot in her younger years and will do anything for attention-even risking lives of innocent people. Abigail uses her powers in many evil ways. This leads her to abuse other people to keep her out of trouble. In some ways, Abigail is not a victim, it depends on how you look at it. Abigail takes most of the blame in the events that happen in the play. She is the one that started the chaos. It was mostly…

Words 434 - Pages 2

The Crucible Book Report

The crucible is a book that takes place in Salem, Massachusetts in 1632 on a spring. The girls are doing witchcraft in a forest. They then get caught by Rev.Parris who is very religious. The town’s minister is Rev. Parris. John Proctor comes to see what is wrong with Betty. He confronts Abigail, who says that Betty is just pretending to be ill or possessed. As Proctor and Abigail have this conversation, it is obviousness that they had an affair while Abigail worked in the Proctor household and Proctor’s…

Words 667 - Pages 3

The Crucible Social Commentary Essay

in The Crucible “There is no passion so contagious as that of fear”- Michel de Montaigne. The Crucible, inspired by the McCarthy hearings of the 1950s and based on the Salem witch trials, is a play of which clearly depicts the effects of moral panic within a community. When fear originates, it quickly catches fire and engulfs the great majority of people within a given society. This public anxiety brings rise to changes in one’s morals and societal norms. Arthur Miller’s play, The Crucible, argues…

Words 1070 - Pages 5

Consequences In The Crucible

is similar to Abigail’s decision making, which also had an enormous amount of negative consequences. In The Crucible, Abigail is the most to blame due to her self-centeredness in her choices. Abigail is at blame because of her lack of positive leadership skills. By this I mean she would lead girls into doing wrong and acting as if they are devils. For example, when Betty says to Abby why did you not tell them about…

Words 619 - Pages 3

Who Is John Proctor An Allegory In The Crucible

The Crucible written by Arthur Miller, is a play that was written during the cold war. This play was written as an allegory about the Red scare, which is a time in America where the communist party in Russia and other places was just starting. Many people in America were accused of being communist followers and were severely punished for things that they were not actually doing, just in the nature of Salem during the witch trials, in a protestant colony in 1692. When the Red scare was happening,…

Words 715 - Pages 3

Essay about The Crucible and Human Beings

most powerful emotions that controls the way human beings act in certain circumstances. In The Crucible a lot of fear is displayed which basically caused the problem. Abigail is afraid to for Reverend Hale to find out what she did in the forest and because of this she almost destroys the village. Also John Proctor of everyone finding out about the affair with Abigail and speaks up too late. In the Crucible no one wants to gets blamed for anything so everyone just past the blame onto someone else to…

Words 459 - Pages 2

Crucible Essay

Weinstock American Lit. February 9, 2015 Crucible Essay The Crucible is a 1953 play written by Arthur Miller, that showcases the Salem witch trials that took place in the Massachusetts in 1692. The play was made into a 1996 film directed by Nicholas Hynter. In the movie, several teenage girls sneak out of their houses around dawn one morning. They meet in the forest and dance, which is forbidden in the town. While dancing a woman named abigail sheds her clothes and proceeds to drink an animal’s…

Words 939 - Pages 4

Abigail Williams The Crucible Essay

In The Crucible written by Arthur Miller the city of Salem was scared and the court was being used for personal gain. Many people went to court accusing people of witchcraft for their own personal gain. It was at the time an easy way to possibly cause who you accuse to die and you can take their land or no longer have to worry about them if you do not like that person. In the story the most despicable character is Abigail Williams because she doesn’t take responsibility, she adds to her lies, and…

Words 698 - Pages 3