Compare and Contrast Essay: Abigail and John Proctor in The Crucible

The general argument made by Arthur Miller in his play the crucible, about the events between February 1692 and May 1693 in the small, then colony, of Massachusetts known as Salem, these events were later to be known as the Salem witch trials, is that the compare and contrast between Abigail and John Proctor, on many different levels, reveals a larger theme in the works in Arthur Miller’s story. One example of the crucible having a larger theme in the works while comparing and contrasting is that they both try to help the people that they are with. Another example of the crucible having a larger theme in the works while comparing and contrasting is how they both have an outstanding love for the people they keep close to. The final example of the crucible having a larger theme in the works while comparing and contrasting is how at some point in the play they both hold more power than the other.

The first explanation for the thesis “The general argument made by Arthur Miller in his play the crucible is that the comparison and contrast between Abigail and John Proctor, on many different levels, reveals a larger theme in the works in Arthur Miller’s story.” is that they both try to help the people they are with. More specifically, when Abigail is in court she pulls off the act of seeing a yellow bird. This act helps the girls to try and become free. Without Abigail’s quick thinking this would have never happened. "Why do you come, yellow bird?" (Miller 81). This quote, said by Abigail, shows how Abigail “sees” a yellow bird that no one else in the courtroom can see. She then proceeds to direct the girls to follow along with him, pinning the witchcraft of Mary Warren. This is an example of how the statement they both try to help the people they are with is supported in the crucible. For John Proctor, the most evident case is when john tries his hardest to protect mary warren. This happens when he pleads to Judge Danforth to not believe Abigail’s cries and fake perception of the devil or devilish beings. “You are pulling Heaven down and raising up a whore!” (Miller 85). This quote is referring to Procter exclaiming that Judge Danforth is falling into Abigail’s web and falling for her tricks. This also shows that Proctor is showing judge Danforth he is taking the side of a sinner. This is an example of how the statement they both try to help the people they are with is supported in the crucible. Moreover, John Proctor helps the people he is with is when towards the end of the play when John tries to save himself and Rebeca’s nurse from hanging. Going so far as to almost confess to the crimes of witchcraft and have his surname plastered on the church’s door as someone who had done witchcraft. He goes this far even though Rebeca’s nurse tells him not to sign it. This is an example of how the statement they both try to help the people they are with is supported in the crucible.

The second explanation for the thesis “The general argument made by Arthur Miller in his play the crucible is that the comparison and contrast between Abigail and John Proctor, on many different levels, reveals a larger theme in the works in Arthur Miller’s story.” is how they both have an outstanding love for the people they keep close to. This is closely supported by the fact that even during the events taking place during Abigail’s witch trials Abigail is still in love with John and wants to kill Elizabeth and replace her. In fact, the reason Elizabeth is sent to trial is that she has been accused of witchcraft by no other than Abigal, and in the words of Elizabeth proctor, “SHE WANTS ME DEAD” (Miller 46) referring to Abigail wanting to kill Elizabeth and take her place. This is an example of how the statement they both have an outstanding love for the people they keep close to is supported in the crucible. John proctor expresses the same feelings about the ones he loves, the first example of this is towards the end of the book when john proctor takes the ultimate sacrifice in hanging to not soil his family name. This was not a selfish act to protect HIS name it was a selfless act to not get his family surname pinned to the church. This act protected his family from being ridiculed for possible generations. Additionally the statement they both have an outstanding love for the people they keep close to is supported in the crucible. The final example of John Proctor showing outstanding love for a person is when he confesses to being an adulterer to try to put Abigail in jail and free his wife Elizabeth Proctor. This shows outstanding love because John, in a last-ditch effort, outed himself as an adulterer to free his wife that he loves. This outing would make him look bad in front of his peers. This is an example of how the statement they both have an outstanding love for the people they keep close to is supported in the crucible.

The final explanation for the thesis “The general argument made by Arthur Miller in his play the crucible is that the comparison and contrast between Abigail and John Proctor, on many different levels, reveals a larger theme in the works in Arthur Miller’s story.” is that at least one moment in the play each character hold more power than the other. The most notable time Abigail had more power than John Proctor is when she is in the court and has the majority of the room under her supposed spell. This was a point of power for Abigail because the majority of the courtroom believed her and not John Proctor. This is an example of how the statement at least one moment in the play each character holds more power than the other is supported in the crucible. The main part of the play when John Proctor had power over Abigail was when she was the Proctor’s servant, before being released by Elizabeth Proctor. This was the main time John Proctor was in control of Abigail because he had control over her every move. This is an example of how the statement at least one moment in the play each character holds more power than the other is supported in the crucible. The final time Abigail has power over John Proctor is at the very end when he is hung. This shows Abigail has power over John Proctor because she survived the witch trials and John Proctor did not. This is an example of how the statement at least one moment in the play each character holds more power than the other is supported in the crucible.

In conclusion, the thesis “The general argument made by Arthur Miller in his play the crucible is that the comparison and contrast between Abigail and John Proctor, on many different levels, reveals a larger theme in the works in Arthur Miller’s story.” is stated multiple times throughout the essay in various ways such as how they both have outstanding love for the people they love, they help the people around them, and at one point through the play, they both help power over the other person. In my opinion, the larger theme at play that Arthur Miller was trying to display was that although Abigail and john proctor seemed like opposites in the story and disliked each other, they were actually more alike than they both knew.