Thou shalt not bear false witness against your neighbor, thou shalt not commit adultery. For Puritan in the 1690s, the 10 Commandments were to be followed as law. It was shamed upon to lie in Puritan society. In The Crucible by Arthur Miller, the characters choosing to not follow the 10 Commandments was partly the cause of possibly innocent lives being accused of witchcraft and executed. While all the people in Salem are suffering from the witch trials, the character of John Proctor is suffering greatly compared to others. Since John Proctor is motivated by love and lust, his decision to finally tell the truth in the end creates absolute chaos in Salem by the end of the play.
When John Proctor is introduced in the play it is revealed that he has cheated on his wife, Elizabeth Proctor, with Abigail Williams. Even after 7 months of no contact, John still lusts for Abigail but loves his wife dearly and wants to please her. "Abby, I may think of you softly from time to time. But I will cut off my hand before I'll ever reach for you again." (Miller, Pg. 177). Because of his love for Elizabeth, he ends his relationship with Abigail, which in turn began the witch trials in Salem. When …show more content…
When John tells the truth in order to save his wife from hanging, Elizabeth lies to save his name and reputation, which seals her destiny and causes his fate to change. “I have known her sir. I have known her.” (Miller, Pg. 220). As soon as John tells the truth in court, he blackens his name. He ruins his reputation forever in an attempt to save the woman he loves, and hurts the name of the woman he once lusted for, by exposing their affair. Unfortunately this backfires, Elizabeth tells a lie to save his good reputation which he just ruined. John telling the truth sealed his wife’s fate to hang, and caused him to be tried alongside fellow