The Crucible – Quotes analysis

Theme Quote Technique/purpose Analysis

Seeking power “She wants me dead. I knew This is somewhat using This shows the corruption of
through immoral all week it would come to irony as the audience Salem, as Abigail is able to find
actions this!” – Elizabeth (act 1) aware that Elizabeth has power and use to for her own
not sinned, and Abigail malicious benefits – to have John
has, yet Abigail belongs, Procter all to herself. Elizabeth is
and Elizabeth does not. aware of Abigail’s real motives,
whilst the court views Abigail as an
innocent victim of witchcraft.
Seeking “He have his goodness now. Elizabeth’s use of the Procter values his forgiveness of
redemption/ God forbid I take it from personal pronouns ‘his’ self over the church’s forgiveness.
forgiveness. him!” – Elizabeth (act 4) and ‘him’ shows that she This is ‘goodness’ in the sense that
values that john must is a truth in a society full of lies and
judge himself. Her use of self-preservation. John chooses to
‘god forbid’ shows that die over signing his name to lies.
she believes that God
supports John in his
private redemption.
Seeking status Procter: child- The stage direction of Abigail is affronted with the fact
Abigail: [with a flash of Abigail reacting ‘with that sexual relations with an older
anger] “How do you call anger’ is reflective of her man did not allow her status of an
me child!” (act 1) desperate attempts to be adult, not even with the older man
viewed as a woman / adult himself. This motivates her to
in Salem. manipulate society in order to gain
the power she desperately desires.
The cost of “Because it is my name! The repetition of ‘because’ Johns decision to die rather than
individuality in a Because I cannot have is emphasising the signing the confession is a
repressive society another in my life!” – John symbolic value of the assertation on his individuality and
Procter (act 4) virtue that John places on his rejection of Salem’s false
his name. This is for values, done on the basis of pride
dramatic impact. for his own name.
Guilt “There is blood on my head! Miller uses a total of 3 This is traditional Christian
Can you not see the blood exclamation marks along imagery of blood representing guilt.
on my head!!” – Hale (act 4) with repetition as an In Hales language the blood of
indication of the emotion others is on his head as a sign of his
behind Hales words. guilt and responsibility.
Loss of values “If Rebecca Nurse be Rebecca nurse is When Rebecca is accused of
tainted, then nothing’s left charecterised to be the witchcraft, it is known that no one
to stop the whole green symbol of goodness and is safe. Reputation and commitment
world from burning” – hale purity in Salem. The green to god now means nothing. The
(act 2). world is also reflective of a loss of purity reflected in this
pure world. statement shows the stain on Salem
left by the hysteria of witchcraft.
Deception “Man, remember, until an Biblical allusion This quote is exploring the idea that
hour before the Devil fell, people can be deceiving, with
God thought him beautiful anyone being able to present a false
in heaven” – Hale (act 2) version of them self on the outside,
hiding their true self.
Reputation “My ministries at stake, my Repetition Parris is detaching himself from his
ministry, and perhaps your own daughter as he values his
cousin’s life” - Parris power more. He would rather lose
his daughter than his good
reputation. His daughter is an
 afterthought.
Power & “and where she walks the Biblical allusion Abigail has manipulated the society
Reputation crowd will part like the sea of Salem to the point where she is
for Israel” feared, as it is not known who she
will accuse of witchcraft next. She
has gained power through fear, lies
and hysteria.
Anomalous “my wife cannot lie” – Anomaly Elizabeth is known for being a
behaviour Procter honest woman, but she’s lies in
order to protect john. This shows
“It is a natural lie to tell” how adverse circumstances can
force a human to go against their
core values.
Manipulation “You will confess yourself N/A Parris is using his power to deflect
or I will take you out and his family’s sins onto Tituba,
whip you to your death, intimidating her with torture to the
Tituba!” - Parris point where she confesses to
witchcraft.
Religion “Pontius Pilate, God will Biblical allusion John Proctors tone and language
not let you wash your hands choice utilizes biblical allusion to
of this” highlight the significance of
religion and god. This biblical
reference links guilt and sin back to
the bigger picture within their lives
which is the order of the church and
religion.
I just like this “You are pulling down a contradictory and The contrasting references between
quote heaven, and raising up a paradoxical metaphor ‘pulling’ and ‘raising’ & ‘heaven’
whore” and ‘whore’ is juxtaposition.
John Proctors “soiled” Word choice Johns self-perception of himself
guilt “fraud” causes an internal battle after his
“The magistrate that judges act of adultery, and his guilt
you sits in your own heart” - overtakes him. Elizabeth forgives
Elizabeth John and highlights his guilt is the
product of internal conflict.
Struggle of self “[Delicately] adultery john” Stage directions This shows Johns inability to
forgiveness [As though a secret arrow accept the past. The connotation
pained his heart] and language of ‘’secret” and
“pained heart” allows the audience
to connect with John Proctor as we
relate to his emotional side and
flaws within his character.

Anomalies and Paradoxes

Theme Quote Technique/purpose Analysis
Conflicting “We burn a hot fire here; it Metaphor and connotative Danforth believes that the court is
notions of truth melts down all language right as truths such as John
concealment” - Danforth Symbolism Procter’s adultery/lechery are
Foreshadowing revealed, with this being proof
Allusion enough for him that the court is
right, when the real lies by Parris
and Abigail remain hidden.
 Inconsistencies “You know yourself I must This reveals the pressure This demonstrates that nearly
between private do as I’m told” – Cheever to conform to societies everyone in Salem has private
and public worlds (act 2) values. thoughts that are at odds with strict
public conformity. This is
characteristic of repressive
societies.

Rubric language/ statements:

 When contextualised into a modern era while religion may not hold significance in the same
form, Millers exploration of this transcends time to demonstrate the consequences of
connections and the impacts that it can hold in the quality of any human experience.
 Proctors characterisation throughout demonstrates how the ability or inability to form
meaningful connections will define the outcomes of one’s life. This is deeply embedded into
each individual experience as we face the struggles and implications of relationships and
connections with others and ourselves.
 Through exploration of these connections Arthur Miller uses the medium of Drama to present
the Crucible as a relatable human experience no matter the time period or context of any
individual. The relationships and connections built highlight the ramifications of the successes
of connections and how they define the quality of our human experience.
 Individual and collective human experiences
 Human qualities and emotions
 How language is sued to shape these representations
 Insight into anomalies, paradoxes and inconsistencies in human behavior and motivations
 See the world differently, challenge assumptions, ignite new ideas or reflect personally
 Illuminated
 Context, purpose, structure, stylistic and grammatical features, and form.
 Connections between the world of the text and the current world