Abigail's Lies In The Crucible

Love can take you to new extremes. In Arthur Miller’s The Crucible, Abigail William attempts to incriminate the wife of the man she loves. Her condemned lies induce the city of Salem, with their restrictive theocracy, in a cry of hysteria when witchery is threatened upon their society. Out of Abigail’s adolescent adoration of a forbidden love and a deliberate defense for her reputation, Abigail perpetrates irremediable sins, losing her morality within her society. Without looking at all the misdeeds Abigail has caused, she is just a teenage girl growing up. Over the course of young woman's life, one is bound to fall in love. That happened to Abigail with John Proctor, but their lust brought a spawn of lies. When Abigail discovers that …show more content…
At first she lies, saying she was not a part of witchcraft, and continued lying to ensure her original lie. She persists the lies to prevent herself getting her named soiled. Abigail firmly tells Hale, “I never sold myself! I’m a good girl! I’m a proper girl,” (Miller 40). Abigail is already struggling with Goody Proctor “blackening my name in the village,” but now Abigail has to worry about her town looking at her in wrath and antipathy for her untruths of witchcraft (Miller 22). When finds herself opportunity as the victim to witchery, she is given a chance to elucidate her voice. Tituba, a black slave, a one person lower than Abby on the social hierarchy, making her an easy choice to put the blame. Proclaiming her purity, she exclaimed, “I danced for the Devil; I saw him; I wrote in his book; I go back to Jesus: I kiss His hand,” (Miller 45). People like Proctor and Elizabeth scorn Abigail for condemning them with such charges, while the Puritan church doesn’t know who to side with. The attention she gained would not have been prevalent if she told the truth and had accepted the punishments. Like the nature of humankind, she defended herself to only avoid consequences, just like most people