The author of Beowulf once wrote, "In his lord's service, a man must suffer pain,.../He must be willing to lose his flesh and blood.../And if I die, whoever take my sword,/Can say its master has nobly served his lord." A master is not limited to being a human being, but can be an idea. In the case of some, integrity and morals are masters. It is honorable to keep one's morals and integrity even to death. The Crucible by Arthur Miller illustrates this theme. Written during the McCarthey trials of the 1950's it is an allegory to the Salem Witch Trials. This work illustrates the idea that it is nobler to die with integrity then live with compromised principles. Giles Corey makes the ultimate sacrifice for his children. Mary Warren succumbs to
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That it is better to live, then die. Dying is not exactly something people are ecstatic about. Some people will do anything to live, even betray their own morals. But what sort of life will that bring? For some it will be one of guilt, regret, or sorrow. All with even a shadow of a moral, will look back on that decision and wonder if the choice they made was correct. In The Crucible Rebecca Nurse is the most respected, pious woman in the town. Despite this she is accused of witchcraft. Her integrity and morals convince her to plea innocent. For months she resides in jail awaiting her dying day. At any moment she might have falsely confessed to save her own life, but she does not. When she is asked to confess, her reply is this, "Why, it is a lie, it is a lie; how may I damn myself? I cannot, I cannot"(237). At that moment, among incentive and pressure, she relies on her integrity and beliefs. Despite knowing she is going to die, she is not willing to sacrifice her principles in order to live. Her character is one who would never forget a decision to corrupt her principles, nor could she ever escape the guilt. In a way she saves herself a life of guilt and remorse by taking her integrity and morals to an honorable death. Others follow in her footsteps. One of those is John …show more content…
The judges of the trials are concerned that public opinion will sway when they hang numerous, honorable citizens. They practically beg Proctor to confess in order to give the trials some backing. When trying to convince the judge to get Proctor to confess Parris states, "...it will strike the village that Proctor confess himself"(239). For Proctor this is huge. He is given his literal life back. Now he can return to his wife, unborn child, and three boys. This huge decision does not come easily and he exclaims, "… I am not worth the dust on the feet of them that hang"(240)! Proctor knows he cannot bear to watch his friends die for staying firm in their principles, as he corrupts his own to live. As Judge Danforth bears down on him, Proctor finally seems to realize what his conscience calls for. As Proctor makes his decision to die with his morals intact, Reverend Hale begs him to confess by saying, "Man, you will hang! You cannot"(240). A tearful Proctor responds, "I can. And there's your first marvel that I can...I do think I see some shred of goodness in John Proctor"(240). With a clear conscience and heart, Proctor walks to the gallows. As he hangs, his wife udders a final thought, "He have his goodness now"(240). Though he dies Proctor does not corrupt his morals and integrity. Ironically he dies happy, knowing he has a clear mind. He accepts death, and knows it is better to die with intact
That it is better to live, then die. Dying is not exactly something people are ecstatic about. Some people will do anything to live, even betray their own morals. But what sort of life will that bring? For some it will be one of guilt, regret, or sorrow. All with even a shadow of a moral, will look back on that decision and wonder if the choice they made was correct. In The Crucible Rebecca Nurse is the most respected, pious woman in the town. Despite this she is accused of witchcraft. Her integrity and morals convince her to plea innocent. For months she resides in jail awaiting her dying day. At any moment she might have falsely confessed to save her own life, but she does not. When she is asked to confess, her reply is this, "Why, it is a lie, it is a lie; how may I damn myself? I cannot, I cannot"(237). At that moment, among incentive and pressure, she relies on her integrity and beliefs. Despite knowing she is going to die, she is not willing to sacrifice her principles in order to live. Her character is one who would never forget a decision to corrupt her principles, nor could she ever escape the guilt. In a way she saves herself a life of guilt and remorse by taking her integrity and morals to an honorable death. Others follow in her footsteps. One of those is John …show more content…
The judges of the trials are concerned that public opinion will sway when they hang numerous, honorable citizens. They practically beg Proctor to confess in order to give the trials some backing. When trying to convince the judge to get Proctor to confess Parris states, "...it will strike the village that Proctor confess himself"(239). For Proctor this is huge. He is given his literal life back. Now he can return to his wife, unborn child, and three boys. This huge decision does not come easily and he exclaims, "… I am not worth the dust on the feet of them that hang"(240)! Proctor knows he cannot bear to watch his friends die for staying firm in their principles, as he corrupts his own to live. As Judge Danforth bears down on him, Proctor finally seems to realize what his conscience calls for. As Proctor makes his decision to die with his morals intact, Reverend Hale begs him to confess by saying, "Man, you will hang! You cannot"(240). A tearful Proctor responds, "I can. And there's your first marvel that I can...I do think I see some shred of goodness in John Proctor"(240). With a clear conscience and heart, Proctor walks to the gallows. As he hangs, his wife udders a final thought, "He have his goodness now"(240). Though he dies Proctor does not corrupt his morals and integrity. Ironically he dies happy, knowing he has a clear mind. He accepts death, and knows it is better to die with intact