...A tragic hero is a person who has heroic qualities and is fated by the Gods or by some supernatural force for doom or at least to great suffering. In The Crucible by Arthur Miller, Salem was in a period of time where witch hunts were frequent which created chaos throughout the town. These witch hunts often targeted innocent, hard working people who were accused of witchery with no actual evidence. As a result when this conflict introduced itself to John Proctor, he exhibited tragic hero traits such as pride, catharsis, and nobleness. Pride plays an interesting role in the life of John Proctor in The Crucible. During the trials, Proctor daily wages an internal, war between his conscience and pride. His prideful mindset is what primarily caused his downfall; a person who rises and falls because of their own ignorant flaw, which is the true meaning of a tragic hero. Therefore there are several traits that exemplify a tragic hero in John...
Words: 800 - Pages: 4
...must risk their reputation to do what is right. This is what made John Proctor a hero, despite the flaws he had. The Crucible by Andrew Miller is a play about the Salem witch trials during the Puritans era. John Proctor is a hero in The Crucible because he believes in justice, values his reputation, and is fallible. John Proctor believes in justice for the people accused of witchcraft. He is willing to put himself on the line so others can be free. When John was at the courthouse, in front of all the judges—trying to save his wife’s life, he admits to his affair with Abigail. It does this so he can end the wrath of Abigail. John said—admitting to his faults “I have known her, sir; I have known her,” (Miller 1309). Another example would be when he is not willing to give the names of others away, because he wants to be the good person that he was always inside. He says when the towns’ men are questioning him for other “witches”. Danforth asks him if there was...
Words: 632 - Pages: 3
...What would you do if your choice was to save your name or get hung? Would you die? John Proctor died for his name. He signed a document saying he was a witch but then he thought to himself that if they posted that on the church door, he would lose his last name, meaning, his last name would not be a name people wouldn't want to hear. John Proctor was a tragic hero because, he died for his pride, his integrity, and hysteria. John Proctor had a few flaws; one of them that really hurt him was his pride. That flaw would make him go through a series of events that would soon lead up to his hanging. Proctor’s internal pride was lost when he had a affair with Abigail. Proctor's life is completely turned upside down when Abigail accused his wife who was then sent to jail, and almost executed. A Tragic hero is when he or she has a complete reversal of fortune brought by the hero's own flaw. At the end of every tragic play, the audience must feel pity or remorse for the...
Words: 551 - Pages: 3
...explains Miller’s definition of a tragic hero as well as why a common man has as much ability to be the hero of a tragedy as someone of nobility. The Crucible is a play written by Arthur Miller in 1953 that dramatizes the Salem witch trials of the late seventeenth century in the Massachusetts Bay Colony. In the play, the town of Salem falls into hysteria after Reverend Parris finds his daughter, niece, and their friends dancing in the woods with his slave Tituba. The young girls claim they have been bewitched by people in the town to avoid punishment, although, the punishment then comes for the accused regardless of their innocence. A vital character to the...
Words: 948 - Pages: 4
...deaths and malicious lies. People died standing up for what they believed in, and according to the story, one of those people was John Proctor. However, he wasn’t the courageous individual who wanted to save the lives of others. He had something else in mind, his own reputation. John Proctor died to save his own reputation in his town. He chose to die rather than live with his pregnant wife and children, just to avoid losing his good name. As the story was spun, John Proctor was supposed to appear as a tragic hero, however this is not the case. John Proctor’s actions were driven by guilt, selfishness and arrogance, not because of heroism. Although John Proctor's death was not warranted, he...
Words: 1050 - Pages: 5
...Lauren Barash Mrs. Dachille ELA: Hour 4 25 November 2014 John Proctor Tragic Hero A tragic hero is one who holds a high status in a community. The protagonist habitually faces a supernatural force of misfortune in which they conquer and gain admiration from the audience. In The Crucible, by Arthur Miller, John Proctor was not the ordinary resident living in the small town of Salem, Massachusetts. Salem during this time period embodies pure unintelligence. The community faced ruthless weather, deceased crops, and sickness. They didn’t know how these dreadful happenings arose. The only knowledge they had came from books, which did not contain the solutions for their troubles. The idea of witchcraft was proposed, and with this being the only possible...
Words: 1180 - Pages: 5
...November.11.2015. The Crucible: Is John Proctor truly a tragic hero? A tragic hero is a person with admirable qualities yet they have a tragic flaw that leads them to their downfall. In Miller’s play “The Crucible,” the protagonist, John Proctor, is a tragic hero known for his good reputation yet commits adultery with Abigail thus making it a tragic flaw that leads to his death. John Proctor is a tragic hero because he is a well-mannered person that has a good reputation. John strongly believes in Elizabeth’s good morals by proving his honesty and bond towards Elizabeth and speaks up for her as he tries to get her and his friends’ wives out of jail. He tells Danforth...
Words: 1085 - Pages: 5
...A tragic hero is a character that is destined for a downfall or defeat. In the play, The Crucible by Arthur Miller, there is a debate going on about if the main protagonist, John Proctor, is a tragic hero. Some say he is because of the way he died to save the dignity of his name, yet others say he is not because of the sins he had committed. Proctor is a tragic hero because he learned from his flaw to become a better person and died to save the dignity of his name. During the play, Miller talks about a flaw that Proctor has that is the cause of his downfall. Miller talks about a girl by the name of Abigail Williams who worked for Proctor and his wife, Elizabeth Proctor. She wouldn’t be working for them for too long because Williams and Proctor had an affair. When Elizabeth Proctor finds out, she fires Williams and since then John Proctor has used this flaw to learned from it. For example, in Act III, Proctor confesses his sin publicly to the court. By doing this, Proctor shows his goodness and also has learned how to forgive himself and not live with the guilt. Even though John Proctor has sinned, he tries to keep his name a clean as possible. For example, at the end of Act III, Proctor is arrested for being a witch after the girl who works...
Words: 687 - Pages: 3
... Shakespeare believes that a tragic hero has potential for greatness, but is ultimately destined to fail. The character falls from greatness because of their ‘tragic flaw’. In Arthur Miller’s play The Crucible, the protagonist John Proctor is portrayed as the tragic hero. He fits this description for a number of reasons. His tragic flaw or Achilles heel, like many other tragic heroes is his pride. Compounded with conflicts with circumstances, this tragic flaw leads to Proctor’s loss of life and arguably the loss of his eternal life as well. One of the major requirements to being a Shakespearean tragic hero includes having a tragic flaw. Proctor places a great deal of importance on his pride or what he considers dignity and self-respect. He lets pride overshadow his life and actions. He would rather maintain his pride or die. As the play nears its end in Act Four, it shows that he would rather give up his life, rather than post his fake confession on the church doors for the public to see. He states, “Because it is my name! Because I cannot have another in my life... How may I live without my name? I have given my soul; Leave me my name!” (Miller, 133). John is too prideful and unwilling to stain his reputation. He prefers to die rather than have his name stained because of a fake confession. He wants to leave his name intact for his family. Another example of this is illustrated in Act Two, where Elizabeth urges Proctor to go to Salem and expose Abigail's lies...
Words: 1106 - Pages: 5
...What is the definition of a tragic hero. To many they would describe it as a person or character's basic goodness and superiority that are marred by a tragic flaw, that brings about or contributes to their downfall. The flaw may be poor judgement, pride, weakness, or an excess of an admirable quality. They recognize their own faults and its consequences ,only after it is too late(definition from book). In the crucible by Arthur Miller, it recognizes John Proctor as a tragic hero for the following reasons; he recognized his own faults ,was honorable, and died doing the right things. In The Crucible, John Proctor is a male in his early 30’s with three sons and a wife. He is a farmer and a holy man. Unfortunately, he is killed in the last act of the story. He was accused of witchery, by hateful...
Words: 866 - Pages: 4
...is set against the backdrop of the mad witch hunts of the Salem witch trials, where innocent people were being accused and hung because of witchcraft. Miller portrays a character that is known as a tragic hero, strong but flawed, to fight against the injustice of the town and to show that a tragic hero can still do what he believes is best even when the majority of society is influenced by lies. The character that Miller chooses to be his Greek tragic hero is John Proctor, who is a good, well known, and respected man in Salem. It is evident that John Proctor fulfills the requirements of the Greek Tragic hero because of his many positive traits, such as his noble characteristics, his honorable and righteous qualities, and always believing in himself fighting for what is true. However, he had a fatal flaw that showed the darker side to his perfect characteristics. His flaw is committing adultery towards his wife. Before the play began, Proctor’s lust for Abigail Williams, who was once the servant for the Proctor household and Reverend Parris’ niece, led him to have an affair with her. This is what set the entire plot of the play because after the affair Elizabeth, his wife, fired Abigail and caused Abigail to become jealous of her. The affair drove Abigail to want John Proctor all to herself and do anything to get...
Words: 1044 - Pages: 5
...Crucible. John Proctor is most affected by the thought of maintaining an acceptable reputation for his name. Throughout The Crucible, by Arthur Miller, John Proctor made many mistakes, one such as committing adultery, which made his wife, Elizabeth Proctor, lose his trust. Although he made mistakes, the town still saw John as a respectable man who cared immensely for his family. In the end, John did admit his sin of adultery and was hanged. Through “Aristotle’s Poetics” it is proved that John Proctor is the tragic hero of The Crucible because his true character comes out and he becomes a good man in the end by admitting to his wrong-doings, committing adultery, in order to save his reputation and family. John Proctor ruins his reputation within the change of fortune, or catastrophe, appeal of “Aristotle’s Poetics”. A change of fortune is explained as “occurs when a character produces an effect opposite to that which he intended to produce…”(McManus). John Proctor did not want his reputation ruined or his relationship with his wife ruined, however the complete opposite happened to him creating a major problem. The change of fortune is when John is finally forced to admit to the court about his sin (Miller 119). John Proctor commits adultery with Abigail and is compelled to admit this sin to his wife and to the town. John first admits to committing adultery to his wife, Elizabeth Proctor, after she had suspected something was going on between John and Abigail. John tells Elizabeth...
Words: 1043 - Pages: 5
...Deputy Governor Danforth: The “Savior” of Salem Village? In The Crucible, Deputy Governor Danforth plays a major role, seeing that he is the highest official that has been called in to officiate the Salem Village court. Danforth does his best to make everyone believe that he is like the “hero” of Salem Village. He acted like he could almost do no wrong, even though that is very incorrect. Danforth even keeps this attitude after the evidence is shown that the whole Salem Village Witch Trials were a sham. Danforth is not the “hero” of Salem Village, he is the destructor of Salem Village. There is much proof that shows that Danforth was not following his job of giving a fair trial to the accused people of Salem Village. Danforth has multiple...
Words: 546 - Pages: 3
...John Proctor as a Tragic Hero In The Crucible, John Proctor is an example of someone who would rather live and end his life with pride rather than live with the humiliation. John is portrayed as a man with good intentions and morals, from the beginning to the end of the play he managed to stick with how he felt, make sacrifices for his wife to prove he loved her, and stay true to himself. Although, in the beginning of the play he cheated on his wife and struggles to win back her forgiveness he did everything he could, so he could gain redemption from her again. In the beginning of The Crucible John Proctor had an affair, the girl he had an affair with, Abigail, struggles to tell John that she still loves him and that they love each other,...
Words: 626 - Pages: 3
...to jail for false accusations, but Giles didn’t stay quiet. He knew the risks because the whole village was on the girls side, believing their lies, nonetheless he went ahead of the judge and the villagers to prove his wife's innocence. Imagine him above everyone that believes he is a crazy-old man who comes to overthrow the court. Danforth says to Giles, “And how do you imagine to help her cause with such contemptuous riot? Now be gone. Your old age alone keeps you out of jail for this.” ,but Giles won’t leave without a fight because his morals are better than that. This eighty year old farmer, known as the most ‘comical hero’ in history is most well known for his death, Giles Corey was pressed to death after being arrested for contempt because he wouldn’t give up people and he was accused of being a wizard. Mary Warren was the one to break the news to Proctor, “He were not hanged. He would not answer aye or nay to his indictment; for if he denied the charge they’d hang him surely, and auction out his property. So he stand mute, and died Christian...
Words: 1250 - Pages: 5
