• The whole storyline revolves around Proctor’s agonizing search for his soul or his integrity and sense of self-respect
• He is an upright and honest farmer who is confronted by a challenge to his honesty
• On Proctor’s entrance, it is clear that the sexual attraction between him and Abigail still exists
• Towards the final act, Proctor feels his honesty had long since been compromised and therefore there is a greater sense of dishonour appearing to go like a saint
• “Because it is my name! Because I cannot have another in my life! Because I lie and sign myself to lies! Because I am not worth the dust on the feet of them that hang! How may I live without my name? I have given you my soul; leave me my name!”
• “woman”- commanding
• Stage direction “He is not quite pleased” suggests there are problems in their friendship and Proctor might have a justification for sleeping with Abigail
• The fact that his relationship with Elizabeth has been harmed is clear due to short sentences in Act 2 suggesting lack of proper communication
• Rational logic “and why not if they will be hanged for admitting it”. Thinking beyond the Theocracy
• Rebellious (may explain why he is attracted to Abigail)
• Still regards Abigail as a child and may be sympathetic towards her childhood innocence therefore- “Do you look for a whipping?”
• “I will cut off my hand before I’ll ever reach for you again”
• “You’ll speak nothing of Elizabeth”
• John Proctor is a classic Arthur Miller hero – a man who struggles with the incompatibility of his actions with his self-image
• After Abigail admits that it wasn’t witchcraft- “"PROCTOR, his smile widening: Ah, you're wicked yet aren't y'!” Stage direction suggests that he is amused or even charmed by Abigail’s behaviour which is effectively the opposite of Elizabeth.
• In Act 3, Proctor ends up publicly staining his good name and getting condemned for witchcraft
• In Act 4, Proctor is tempted into admitting his is in league with the Devil with the justification that he was a bad person anyway. This however is a lie.
• He refuses to sign, as he doesn’t want to sign away his soul.
Abigail
• Abigail is vengeful, selfish and manipulative which makes her a perfect antagonist to Proctor
• Leads this whole thing in order to get with Proctor
• In her mind she sees herself as the centre of Proctor’s existence as opposed to an awkward teenager who took advantage of a man’s loneliness and insecurity during his wife’s illness
• In Act 1, in order to avoid herself getting pinned, she blames Tituba and others despite the fact she told Tituba to go out and cast the spells.
• "I saw Indians smash my dear parents' head on the pillow next to mine" Being exposed to such brutality at a young age, may explain her brutality
• She’s female, orphan, teenager and unmarried which gives her a very low social position
• Doesn’t like being respected as a child (shown by reaction to Proctor)
• Enjoys having authority (takes authority in social group and uses it for evil in the court)
• Act 1- “nervous laugh” shows she is manipulative as she is the opposite (very confident)
Elizabeth
• Virtuous woman who is steadfast and true
• She seems to be struggling to forgive her husband and hates Abigail for this reason.
• Only crime she commits is lying in court (proves she cares about Proctor)
• By the end of Act 4 she understands that she was a cold wife and that’s what caused Proctor to have an affair with Elizabeth
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