Examples Of Characterization In The Crucible

The fear of witchcraft was the major concern for the people in the late sixteen hundreds. The Crucible, tells the story of how a town accused innocent people of witchcraft. All the accusers were young females who claimed they were attacked by evil spirits, but in reality, the girls were doing it as a sport. These lies soon got out of control and have taken many innocent lives. Abigail Williams clearly saw this as an opportunity to accuse the people she wanted to get rid of for selfish reasons. In The Crucible, Miller uses characterization in order to argue that lies tend to spin out of control and destroy society.
First and most importantly, Abigail William is the main person who drives these crazy group of girls into accusing innocent people …show more content…
After taking Elisabeth into custody, John Proctor comes out of the shadow and tells the court that Abigail has been with him. In order for the court to believe what John is saying Elizabeth who has fired Abigail has to confess that she fired abigale for having an affair with John. “My name is good in the village! I will not have it said my name is soiled! Goody Proctor is a gossiping liar!”(Miller 12). Elizabeth is the most honest person in the whole play but Abigale lie’s about her being a gossip liar. After listening what Abigail had to say, the court brings in Elizabeth, who is believed to be the most honest person, to see if John and Abigail really had an affair. So the court brings in Elizabeth and asks her if John ever had an affair with Abigail. “‘Look at me! To your own knowledge, has John Proctor ever committed the crime of lechery? Answer my question! Is your husband a lecher!’ ‘No, sir’” (Miller 113). This is clearly a lie that Elizabeth says even though she knew that John had a affair with Abigail. Elizabeth’s lie had proven Abigale to be innocent and the court now believes even one of Abigail's lies. Because of Elizabeth lying everyone who has been accused of witchcraft now are going to be