Use Of Pathos In The Crucible

In the "The Scarlet Letter" and "The Crucible," both authors Nathaniel Hawthorne and Arthur Miller argues that one 's individual conscience should take precedence over the rules of one 's religion. For short, a person should follow their own beliefs and conscience thoughts before following their religious virtues. Both authors show evidence that supports their claim in their novels by using Pathos. By using pathos, both authors ' were even able to convince me into agreeing with their statement. Nathaniel Hawthorne uses the rhetorical strategy pathos to appeal to the reader 's emotions. That technique comes in handy when trying to persuade their audiences into using their own personal experiences and emotions as a personal representation …show more content…
Arthur Miller shows evidence to support his claim when John Proctor is about to get executed for "confessing to witchcraft". In this scene, one Elizabeth Proctor 's very last words to John "ELIZABETH: Do what you will. But let none be your judge. There be no higher judge under Heaven than Proctor is! Forgive me, forgive me, John—I never knew such goodness in the world!" (IV.204-214) . Even though Elizabeth knew when you commit a sin you are a bad and unholy person, however, Elizabeth did not comply to those ideas when it came to the judgment of her loved one. She did not need a bible to caption her husband 's worth and integrity, she used her own personal judgment. "Theoretically speaking if you drop a box of knives and it somehow landed on a person 's head and they die...bare with me don 't laugh, does that truly make you a murderer? Should you be titled as a "murderer" for the rest of your life? NO! The bible may claim you are but to me, you are not a murderer it was, although it was a terrible one, it was a mistake you are not a murderer to me, to your mom, but to the bible you are" (SHAWN VON BARGEN, MA. MFT, LMHCA). It takes little for a sinner to repent, but takes a lot for religious women like Elizabeth, who is faithful to her church to define John Proctor as a good person and to forgive him. That is how …show more content…
I personally agree 100% with both authors similar statements. For example, Pavlina in his article "10 reasons why you should not have a religion" stated that religion "operate by eroding your trust in your own intellect, gradually convincing you to put your trust into some external entity, such as a deity, prominent figure, or great book" Yes, there will be times where people will break their religious rules and commits sin. However what is there to living if one does not make decisions for themselves and live in happiness through their actions. Personally I would choose happiness for others and myself over my religious rules any moment. Being atheist probably has something to do with my statement, however, If it means that listening to my conscience and making my own decisions are what I believe is right then so be it. Pathos uses emotions to influence a bystander to think about themselves and how they would react if they were placed into the very same position as the charter, and how they would respond by using their own experience and emotions into the story. For instance, a personal story of mine, a boyfriend of 3 years cheated on me very long ago, and although it was wrong and goes against any beliefs I do have, by complying to his emotions of grief and gratitude I found it in me to forgive him. Personally I