Character Analysis of John Proctor in The Crucible
Character Analysis of John Proctor in The Crucible
In Arthur Miller’s play, The Crucible, the small town of Salem is engaged in hysteria due to the accusations of children that many of the townspeople took part in witchcraft. Among the accused is John Proctor, a strong, faithful farmer. A contemporary writer, W.H. Auden, defines a modern hero, not as “the doer of great deeds, but the man or woman who, in spite of all the pressures of society, manages to keep his own identity.” John Proctor fulfills the requirements of this type of hero by his actions throughout the story. His hero status is shown by his efforts to save his wife from being put to death, his attempt to prove the children are making deceitful claims, his unwillingness to confess to practicing witchcraft when accused by town and lastly his ability to maintain his identity throughout the book.
Proctor is a tragic hero in his efforts to save his wife. Proctor’s first display of trying to save his wife is shown when the Court officials come to take Elizabeth away. Proctor is so angered by this attack on his house that he rips the warrant and tells them to leave forcefully saying, “Damn the Deputy Governor! Out of my house!”(77), demonstrating his intense love for his wife. Proctor shows signs of being a hero when he attempts to go into court to save his wife and prove the girls liars. However, he ends up being accused himself. Mary Warren is in court testifying when she suddenly breaks down “ hysterically, pointing at Proctor, fearful of him: My name, he want my name. ‘I’ll murder you,’ he says, ‘if my wife hands! We must go and over throw the court,’ he says”... “ [Proctor] wake me every night, his eyes were like coals and his fingers claw my neck and I sign, I sign…”(119). Thus John Proctor fails in trying to rescue his wife from the false accusers and the Court and instead he becomes accused as a witch.
Proctor establishes that the children are lying in court with respect to their accusations of the townspeople. Proctor first learns of this through his household servant, Mary Warren who is one of the accusers. Proctor takes away from the events that Mary Warren and Abigail, the lead schemer, are trying to kill Proctor’s wife by accusing her of witchcraft. They come up with the...