The Crucible Danforth Character Analysis

“Danforth: A Considerate Judge?”
A few imperative traits that describe a responsible and mature judge are devotion, integrity, and accuracy. Some say that Danforth is a seemingly intelligent and experienced judge, but does he contain the traits that are desired in every judge? Others may believe that his pride leads him to making irrational decisions in “The Crucible” by Arthur Miller. Danforth likes to think of himself as a fair-minded man, which is not clearly represented throughout the play. He is unwilling to believe the truth and has no integrity.
Throughout the play, Danforth consistently fails to examine evidence or proof to stop the tension within the community. He refuses to see that the witchcraft trials and hangings might have been part of the reason why people are accusing others. After John Proctor tells Danforth that he has committed adultery, Danforth is horrified by the realization that Abigail may be accusing others based on jealousy and revenge. Danforth ignores this chance and continues to
His arrogance makes him rely on persuasion and information from others. Most of his sources of information and accusations comes from the girls. Danforth can be easily convinced and sticks to tradition by the book. This shows that he has a difficult time coming up with his own opinion and tends to look at others, specifically a group, of people and believes them. Abigail’s impressive deceitful actions and assertive attitude makes her seem more reliable than Proctor, in Danforth’s eyes. This is another way that shows Danforth is conflicted and doesn’t know who to believe. At the end of the play, It would ruin Danforth’s reputation if John Proctor had proved his judgements wrong. Danforth would, essentially, have wrongly murdered many people and would never be able to show his work or face again. This a valid reason why Danforth avoids the truth and decides to let Proctor accept his own