The+Crucible

The Crucible [| http://s001.demaria.edu.glogster.com/period-5-crucible/] __**Good**__: when they raised the roof, they had good food and drink;
 * 1) In his stage directions, what are some good and bad points that Miller observes about the Puritans?


 * __Bad__**: they weren't allowed to read; during holidays, they prayed constantly; they're very serious; afraid of the woods; a lot of neighborly disputes;


 * __In Between:__** spent all of their time working; religion is prime;

Betty- sick and unable to do anything,
 * 1) What does the audience learn about the members of Reverend Parris’ household as each is introduced?

Parris- in his mid-40's, wherever he goes he is persecuted, slave owner

Abigail- Parris's niece, 17 year old orphan, beautiful, liar

Tituba- believes she can talk to the dead, Parris's slave, she's from Barbados, in her 40's, was at the fire with the girls

Abigail said that they were dancing all in sport, when really, Tituba conjured with Putnam's dead sisters, Abigail drank blood, and Mercy ran around naked.
 * 1) How does Abigail’s story of what happened in the forest differ from what she reveals in her conversation with Mercy, Mary Warren, and Betty?

They had an affair together due to Abigail working in the Proctor household until John Proctor's wife kicked her out.
 * 1) What is the history of Abigail and John’s relationship?

They would kill her if she didn't confess.
 * 1) Why does Tituba confess to Reverend Hale?

Why do Abigail and Betty finally join in with Tituba’s accusations They want to shift the responsibility off of them and unto others.

WHO HOLDS THE POWER AT THE END OF ACT I? Why?
 * Tituba, Abigal, and Betty
 * They have the power to kill of anyone they want, because everyone thinks that they have seen certain people with the Devil.

Act II 1. Describe John and Elizabeth Proctor’s relationship in the first scene.
 * John is still trying to make it up to Elizabeth for his affair with Abigail. Elizabeth is criticizing John's every move due to her unforgiving attitude towards him. The argument can be described as: frustrating, passive, Paranoid, awkward, tense and critical.

2. Why can John Proctor not go immediately to the court to expose Abby when he first hears of the trials? 3. In what ways has Mary Warren changed and what changed her? 4. Why does John agree to talk to Abigail? What will he tell her?
 * Says he has no proof if its witchcraft
 * Abby said it had nothing to do with witchcraft
 * They were alone so he has no proof she said it
 * John and Abby had an affair before and he doesn't want to hurt her or sell her out.
 * He does not want to admit that he had an affair
 * She used to be a servant of the Proctors, but now she is rebelling against them and is now more loyal to the courts. She feels that the court gives her power.
 * Elizabeth wants John to break his promise with Abigail
 * He agrees to talk with Abigail so he can persuade her to save Elizabeth's life

5. Why does Reverend Hale come to the Proctor house? 6. What commandment does Proctor forget? What is the significance? > (OOPS) 7. As proof of witchcraft, Reverend Hale points out that a number of people have already confessed to being witches. What is Proctor’s response? 8. How did Abigail find a way of officially accusing Elizabeth?
 * He comes to the house because Elizabeth's name was mentioned at the trials and he wanted to make sure the evidence was valid.
 * He is there to warn them
 * he is poking around-trying to make a judgment about them.
 * Adultery.... he committed it
 * anyone would confess instead of being hanged
 * Put needle in the stomach of the doll that Mary gave Elizabeth, and LATER pulled a needle out of her own stomach....(Vu-do doll?)

9. How does Reverend Hale cope with the arrests of Rebecca Nurse, Martha Corey, and Elizabeth Proctor? 10. What is John Proctor’s plan at the end of Act Two?
 * "The courts will find them innocent if they are innocent"
 * Get the wife back in the house
 * Make Mary to confess to the court (knowing that his adultery may be exposed)


 * He is taking Mary Warren to court to testify for Elizabeth.

Act III 1. What are the differences in manner between Judge Hathorne and Deputy Governor Danforth? Hathorne really wants to know exactly what is going on and strives to understand and Danforth takes everything to an extreme when it comes to accusations.

2. What is the judge’s concern about Proctor’s motives in accepting evidence from him? They probably think he is there just so that he can free his wife. Parris thinks that he is going to overthrow the whole court.

3. How has Hale changed since we last saw him? He stated in this past act that he has the sense that Abigail has been lying the whole entire time.

4. Why is Mary Warren’s testimony critical for Hale, Proctor, Nurse, and Corey? The deposition could actually free their wives that are in jail.

5. What charge does Corey make against Putnam? The charge is that he told his daughter to cry out witchery against George Jacobs so that he can get the land.

6. What is Giles Corey’s proof for his charge, and why will he not supply the proof to the court? That someone told him he heard him telling his daughter to cry witchery against Jacobs and he cannot foreclose the name of the person because they would be immediately arrested.

7. Why does Proctor not drop the charges against the court when he hears that his wife is pregnant and will be spared for at least a year? "Personal integrity worth dying for." He wants Abigail and the other girls to be known as frauds. Proctor is also willing to take the chance by clearing the witchcraft trials out of Salem.

8. What finally convinces Proctor to admit his affair with Abby? In doing so, what charge and punishment does Proctor open himself to? Abigail keeps lying to the court and not answering questions so he openly accuses her of "being a whore and wanting to dance on his wife's grave" and he has to provide her motive. His charge is lechery and he is sentenced to at least jail.

9. Why does Elizabeth lie? She wants to protect John's name.

10. Why is Proctor arrested? On what dramatic note does Act III end? Proctor is arrested because he was accused of conspiracy with the devil and for saying "God is dead."

Act IV 1. What are some of the indications that life in Salem is not in complete chaos? Hale is trying to calm everyone down. Have unity in Salem by trying to get those remaining to confess.

2. What is the relationship between the rebellion in Andover and the flight of Abigail and Mercy Lewis?
 * The rebellion in Andover could forecast what will happen in Salem and Abby and Mercy ran away so that it didn't happen to them.

3. Reverend Parris is the same in which he still cares about how the town views him. He is different because his position on the hangings changed and he is trying to save more of the accused and put an end to the witch trials.

4. Why does Hale try to get Elizabeth and the others to lie when lying is clearly against church principles?
 * So they would not be killed after being falsely accused
 * He doesn't want to feel responsible for even more deaths

5. Although Giles Corey is tortured and eventually executed by the court, he still manages to defeat the court. Explain. Protected his name so his sons could have his farm. Didn't answer yes or no so he couldn't be condemned as a wizard.

6. How has Elizabeth and John’s relationship changed? 7. Why does John revoke his confession and what is the choice he ultimately makes? John revoked his confession to protect his family name. He decided to sacrifice himself and be hanged.
 * she trusts him more
 * she now supports his decisions
 * she wants to be loyal to him
 * No more judgment between them

8. As John Proctor struggles with the question of his confession, with what other struggle is he also going through? He is worried about his baby and his other kids. Also he is worried and concerned about the other accused witches. He does not want to ruin his name. And he does not know what Elizabeth wants him to do.

1. Why does John Proctor come to see Abigail?
 * Appendix:**

2. Why does Abigail not believe John’s threats?

THE CRUCIBLE-CHARACTER LIST


 * John Proctor** - A local farmer who lives just outside town; Elizabeth Proctor’s husband. A stern, harsh-tongued man, John hates hypocrisy. Nevertheless, he has a hidden sin—his affair with Abigail Williams—that proves his downfall.


 * Abigail Williams** - Reverend Parris’s niece. Abigail was once the servant for the Proctor household, but Elizabeth Proctor fired her after she discovered that Abigail was having an affair with her husband


 * Reverend John Hale** - A young minister reputed to be an expert on witchcraft. Hale is a committed Christian and hater of witchcraft. His arrival sets the hysteria in motion, although he later regrets his actions and attempts to save the lives of those accused.


 * Elizabeth Proctor** - John Proctor’s wife. Elizabeth is supremely virtuous, but often cold.


 * Reverend Parris** - The minister of Salem’s church.. Many of the townsfolk, especially John Proctor, dislike him, and Parris is very concerned with building his position in the community.


 * Rebecca Nurse** - Francis Nurse’s wife. Rebecca is a wise, sensible, and upright woman, held in tremendous regard by most of the Salem community.


 * Francis Nurse** - A wealthy, influential man in Salem. Nurse is well respected by most people in Salem, but is an enemy of Thomas Putnam and his wife.


 * Judge Danforth** - The Deputy Governor of Massachusetts and the presiding judge at the witch trials. Honest and scrupu-lous, at least in his own mind, Danforth is convinced that he is doing right in rooting out witchcraft.


 * Giles Corey** - An elderly but feisty farmer in Salem, famous for his tendency to file lawsuits. Giles’s wife, Martha, is accused of witchcraft, and he himself is eventually held in con-tempt of court and pressed to death with large stones.


 * Thomas Putnam** - A wealthy, influential citizen of Salem, Putnam holds a grudge against Francis Nurse for preventing Putnam’s brother-in-law from being elected to the office of minister. He uses the witch trials to increase his own wealth by accusing people of witchcraft and then buying up their land.
 * Ann Putnam** - Thomas Putnam’s wife. Ann Putnam has given birth to eight children, but only Ruth Putnam survived. The other seven died before they were a day old, and Ann is con-vinced that they were murdered by supernatural means.


 * Ruth Putnam** - The Putnams’ lone surviving child out of eight. Like Betty Parris, Ruth falls into a strange stupor after Reverend Parris catches her and the other girls dancing in the woods at night.


 * Tituba** - Reverend Parris’s black slave from Barbados. Tituba agrees to perform voodoo at Abigail’s request.


 * Mary Warren** - The servant in John Proctor’s household and a member of Abigail’s group of girls. She is a timid girl, easily influenced by those around her.


 * Betty Parris** - Reverend Parris’s ten-year-old daughter. Betty falls into a strange stupor after Parris catches her and the other girls dancing in the forest with Tituba. Her illness and that of Ruth Putnam fuel the first rumors of witchcraft.


 * Martha Corey** - Giles Corey’s third wife. Martha’s reading habits lead to her arrest and conviction for witchcraft.


 * Ezekiel Cheever** - A man from Salem who acts as clerk of the court during the witch trials. He is upright and determined to do his duty for justice.


 * Judge Hathorne** - A judge who presides, along with Danforth, over the witch trials.


 * Herrick** - The marshal of Salem.


 * Mercy Lewis** - The servant in Thomas Putnam’s household. Mercy belongs to Abigail’s group of girls.