the story. The main theme is focussed on deceit and lying and how lies can lead down a dark
road which results in the ruin of many. The Crucible is a fictional play based on the Salem Witch
Trials which occurred between February 1692 and May 1693 and resulted in over 150 people
being accused of witchcraft and 20 executed. The story focusses on the story of John Proctor
and Abigail Williams, his niece, and how lies, jealousy, revenge, and deep seated feuds caused
a community to turn on each other in a vicious circle of accusations and misunderstandings.
The characters in the play who lie significantly are Abigail, John Proctor, and Mary Warren …show more content…
For example we read “But we never conjured spirits” (Miller, 170). Before this Abigail was being
questioned about what happened the previous night, and after this she continues to lie. This
shows that she is willing to lie even to close family. Miller perhaps wanted us to see how it takes
a simple lie to lead to a thousands lies. On page 48 we find the following: “... I saw Sarah Good
with the Devil! I saw Goody Osburn with the Devil! I saw Bridget Bishop with the Devil!” (Pg.
189), this is when we see Abigail start to wildly accuse people and direct the conversation away
from herself. Abigail has many reasons to lie, but wild accusations makes her one of the most
significant liers in the story.
John Proctor tells significant lies in the story, although not as vicious or evil …show more content…
We see that she accuses, much like the accusers in the story, the lowest common denominator:
a poor, elderly, beggar who has no home and no husband. This
again, shows the message Arthur Miller would like us to see, that lies come from the evil and
Lies and deceit is the main theme of the story, we have many examples Arthur Miller
has kindly given us. The main liars that have contributed greatly to the tragedy of the Salem
Witch Trials are Abigail Williams, John Proctor, and Mary Warren whom have made significant
lies that either hurt themselves or hurt others in order to protect themselves or others. This
theme is consistent with hints along the story and as Noorbakhsh Hooti wrote “It could be
argued that Proctor’s tragedy comes into being due to his very first choice of adultery with
Abigail. All subsequent events in Proctor’s life can be traced back to this original choice, which
gradually leads him to his tragic fate.” The message of the story is really to understand that all it
takes is one action or a simple lie to lead you down a road of ruin, and Arthur Miller displays this
through the three characters I