John Proctor A Prideful Man

Isabella Zontelli
Mrs. Burke
American Literature R
October 29th, 2014 John Proctor, A Prideful Man



In
The Crucible by Arthur Miller, one of the main characters is John Proctor. He is an outspoken and successful farmer in the village. Religious at heart, he committed a horrible

sin of adultery. John is consumed by guilt; trying to decide if he should tell the truth about

his affair with Abigail Williams or keep his good name in the village. John Proctor’s internal

conflict conveys the message that people full of pride make decisions based on how they

would be viewed in the public eye versus, who they truly are.

Honest, upright, and highly looked upon in the village, John Proctor is a good man, but with

one secret flaw. His lust for Abigail led to the affair, and created Abigail’s jealousy of his wife

Elizabeth, which caused all of the hysteria to start. Once the trials start, John realizes that he

could try and stop Abigail’s lies from spreading throughout Salem, but only if he confesses

his sin. Confessing this could destroy his good reputation, and Proctor being a proud man,

who places good emphasis on his reputation. He attempts to name Abigail for the fraud she

is through his servant Mary Warren without revealing the information on the affair. “You’re

coming to the court with me, Mary. You will tell it in court.” (page 80) When his attempts fail,

he finally decides to confess, yelling at Abigail and saying, “How do you call heaven! Whore!

Whore!” (page 109) Only then did he realize that it was too late, that matters have gone too

far, and not even the truth can calm down the town’s frenzy that Abigail made up. This

confession only leads to his arrest and accusations of being a witch.

John saves himself and provides a final accusation of the trials in the final act. He is given

the opportunity to make a public confession of his guilt and keep his life. He almost caves

into writing the confession, but his pride and fear of what the townspeople’s opinion compels

him to deny his adultery from the court. “Because it is my name! Because I cannot have

another in my life! Because I lie and sign myself to lies! Because I am not worth the dust on

the feet of them that hang! How may I live without my name? I have given you my soul; leave

me my name!” (page 143) He still wants to save his name, but for personal reasons. At the

end of the play, he is more concerned with his personal integrity than his reputation. John’s

refusal to give his confession is a great stand. By refusing to give up his integrity, Proctor

proclaims his conviction that his integrity will get him to heaven. So he goes to the gallows to

hang. Redeeming himself from his earlier sins. As Elizabeth says towards the end of act four,

responding to Reverend Hale’s pleas to convince John to publicly confess and save his life.

“He have his goodness now.” (page 145)

In conclusion, John Proctor’s internal conflicts conveys the message that people who are

full of pride make decisions based on how they would be viewed in the public eye versus,

who they truly are. Proctor’s decision was not an easy one to make. As a famous man once

said, “ The ultimate measure of a man is not where he stands in moments of comfort and

convenience, but where he stands at times of challenge and controversy.” (Dr. Martin Luther

King Jr.) John was saving other people’s lives, saving his name, saving his pride, and saving

his integrity.