Salem in the late 1600’s was a Puritan based society built solely around religious values and the word of God. Lifestyle and laws were derived from Christian-based morals, being that if you went against this, you would be punished by being sent to jail or hung. In the Puritan society, the social classes often held women at the bottom, particularly young unmarried women, and even below this, women of color. They were often overlooked and rarely got a say in anything; in The Crucible, Tituba, Abigail, Mary Warren, Betty, and a group of single young girls were able to acquire a role in society through the manipulation of witchcraft.
We first get a glimpse of this when Tituba, a female African American servant, was able to justify her actions …show more content…
The main reason for Abigail taking advantage of these accusations was for her to accuse Elizabeth Proctor of being a witch. If she were to successfully eliminate Elizabeth, she could have John all to herself, which empowered her to act as if Elizabeth was the Devil herself. Abigail is seen as an innocent child of God to the eyes of the townspeople, and most importantly to the Judge, so the fate of Elizabeth essentially rested in her hands. In one instance, she used Mary Warren’s poppet as a setup to convince the town that Elizabeth was indeed working with the Devil. Upon finding the poppet, clerk of the court Cheever declares, “...And demandin’ of her how she come to be so stabbed, she - to Proctor now - testify it -were your wife’s familiar spirit pushed it in.” (74), which displays the lengths that Abigail was willing to go to eliminate Elizabeth. Abigail became a divine figure to the townsfolk, and she used this authority for her own selfish …show more content…
The townsfolk would swoon over their every word, listening to them even though they were committing fraud, which gave them a sense of authority for probably the first time in their lives. The people of the town worshipped these girls, seeing them as a way to eliminate the Devil from Salem. Rev. Parris encouraged the girls to continue their fraudulent scheme, mostly to protect his reputation, which only led the accusations to become the hanging of innocent people. In court, while Proctor is trying to prove that the girls are lying about the accusations, Judge Danforth declares, “Do you know, Mr. Proctor, that the entire contention of the state in these trials is that the voice of Heaven is speaking through the children?” (88), showing that many people perceive the children as being in direct connection with God. Mary Warren, who had earlier confessed to fraud, betrayed Proctor and said her confession was untrue because she was afflicted by the Devil in Proctor, showing that the feeling of empowerment she had earlier possessed was so strong, she went against her own moral behavior. The impact that the girls had over the town was the ultimate manipulation and authority that the girls, who were once powerless, now
We first get a glimpse of this when Tituba, a female African American servant, was able to justify her actions …show more content…
The main reason for Abigail taking advantage of these accusations was for her to accuse Elizabeth Proctor of being a witch. If she were to successfully eliminate Elizabeth, she could have John all to herself, which empowered her to act as if Elizabeth was the Devil herself. Abigail is seen as an innocent child of God to the eyes of the townspeople, and most importantly to the Judge, so the fate of Elizabeth essentially rested in her hands. In one instance, she used Mary Warren’s poppet as a setup to convince the town that Elizabeth was indeed working with the Devil. Upon finding the poppet, clerk of the court Cheever declares, “...And demandin’ of her how she come to be so stabbed, she - to Proctor now - testify it -were your wife’s familiar spirit pushed it in.” (74), which displays the lengths that Abigail was willing to go to eliminate Elizabeth. Abigail became a divine figure to the townsfolk, and she used this authority for her own selfish …show more content…
The townsfolk would swoon over their every word, listening to them even though they were committing fraud, which gave them a sense of authority for probably the first time in their lives. The people of the town worshipped these girls, seeing them as a way to eliminate the Devil from Salem. Rev. Parris encouraged the girls to continue their fraudulent scheme, mostly to protect his reputation, which only led the accusations to become the hanging of innocent people. In court, while Proctor is trying to prove that the girls are lying about the accusations, Judge Danforth declares, “Do you know, Mr. Proctor, that the entire contention of the state in these trials is that the voice of Heaven is speaking through the children?” (88), showing that many people perceive the children as being in direct connection with God. Mary Warren, who had earlier confessed to fraud, betrayed Proctor and said her confession was untrue because she was afflicted by the Devil in Proctor, showing that the feeling of empowerment she had earlier possessed was so strong, she went against her own moral behavior. The impact that the girls had over the town was the ultimate manipulation and authority that the girls, who were once powerless, now