A Fable of Witchcraft “He who tells a lie is not sensible how great a task he undertakes; for he must be forced to invent twenty more to maintain that one.” (Alexander Pope). Arthur Miller proves this point very strongly in his dramatic work, The Crucible. One of the main themes in this story is that of lying and how a simple lie can create chaos, more lies and overreactions. In the tragedy, The Crucible, Arthur Miller suggests that when people tell a lie that the situation can quickly spiral out of control and more lies will unfold to build upon the one already told; as a result of her series of lies, Abigail Williams became so uneasy that she left Salem, proving that liars never win. From the beginning Abigail’s true colors are
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The people arrested her for witchcraft know they are not truly witches but some would still confess. “Goody Osburn will hang! But not Sarah Good. For Sarah Good confessed, y’see.” (Miller, 56). In an attempt to save herself from being hung, Sarah Good told the court she was a witch. She admitted to writing in the Devil’s book. Her deceit, along with the lies of all the other members of the community were a direct cause of Abigail’s lie, these women would never have been arrested if it were not for Abigail’s deception. Lies can spread faster the disease in some cases and should not be taken lightly. To convince the court of their intentions to do the work of God, the girls accused many innocent people of the heinous crime of witchcraft. These women 's names would forever be sulled with the title of witch, although they did not wish to lie it still affected them negatively and Abigail’s would soon cause her just as much …show more content…
Despite her fear, Mary eventually goes into town with John. Mary admits to Judge Danforth and the others that all of the supernatural occurrences in the court were actually a hoax to fool the court. Unwilling to believe this story, Judge Danforth calls upon Abigail and the other girls. Obviously siding with Abigail and her coven of fake witches, Danforth questions both Abigail and Mary. When Mary refused to once again take Abigail’s side, she begins to shiver, clasp her arms about herself and lie once again.“I - I know not. A wind, a cold wind, has come.” (Miller, 108). As other girls join her charade, hope for Mary Warren appears to be lost. They begin to shout and claime to see a shadowy figure flying about the room. The girls repeat everything as Mary says and convince Danforth that it is Mary’s spirit tormenting them, until even Mary is pulled into the madness and pushes the the blame behind the shadowy figure onto John Proctor. “My name, he want my name. ‘I 'll murder you, he says, if my wife hangs! We must go and overthrow the court, he says!” (Miller, 119). Despite all of John’s efforts he was unable to persuade the people of Salem to see the truth once more. The girls had become too devoted to their deceit and the people of Salem could not bring themselves to believe the truth. After John Proctor 's arrest it became clear to Abigail that eventually her lies
The people arrested her for witchcraft know they are not truly witches but some would still confess. “Goody Osburn will hang! But not Sarah Good. For Sarah Good confessed, y’see.” (Miller, 56). In an attempt to save herself from being hung, Sarah Good told the court she was a witch. She admitted to writing in the Devil’s book. Her deceit, along with the lies of all the other members of the community were a direct cause of Abigail’s lie, these women would never have been arrested if it were not for Abigail’s deception. Lies can spread faster the disease in some cases and should not be taken lightly. To convince the court of their intentions to do the work of God, the girls accused many innocent people of the heinous crime of witchcraft. These women 's names would forever be sulled with the title of witch, although they did not wish to lie it still affected them negatively and Abigail’s would soon cause her just as much …show more content…
Despite her fear, Mary eventually goes into town with John. Mary admits to Judge Danforth and the others that all of the supernatural occurrences in the court were actually a hoax to fool the court. Unwilling to believe this story, Judge Danforth calls upon Abigail and the other girls. Obviously siding with Abigail and her coven of fake witches, Danforth questions both Abigail and Mary. When Mary refused to once again take Abigail’s side, she begins to shiver, clasp her arms about herself and lie once again.“I - I know not. A wind, a cold wind, has come.” (Miller, 108). As other girls join her charade, hope for Mary Warren appears to be lost. They begin to shout and claime to see a shadowy figure flying about the room. The girls repeat everything as Mary says and convince Danforth that it is Mary’s spirit tormenting them, until even Mary is pulled into the madness and pushes the the blame behind the shadowy figure onto John Proctor. “My name, he want my name. ‘I 'll murder you, he says, if my wife hangs! We must go and overthrow the court, he says!” (Miller, 119). Despite all of John’s efforts he was unable to persuade the people of Salem to see the truth once more. The girls had become too devoted to their deceit and the people of Salem could not bring themselves to believe the truth. After John Proctor 's arrest it became clear to Abigail that eventually her lies