The Crucible Deleted Scene Analysis Essay Sample

When Arthur Miller made The Crucible, he had it go through many changes, including the removal of an entire scene from the main story. The scene is still included after the end, showing that Miller believed that the scene should still be there for those who wish to read it, but the scene not being attached to the main story shows that he does not think it is essential to the understanding of the story. Act Two, Scene Two, was removed because Arthur Miller felt it had little to add to the story. It focuses on Abigail and Proctor, and the relationship between them, yet little is added to their characters that has not already been seen elsewhere. In this scene, Abigail is mainly depicted as madly in love with Proctor. She tells Proctor “Oh, John, I will make you such a wife when the world is white again! … You will be amazed to see me every day, a light of heaven in your house” (156). However, this does not add anything to Abigail’s character or her relationship with Proctor, as she already shows these feelings throughout the rest of the play. In Act One, it is stated that “Since Proctor’s entrance, Abigail has stood as though on tiptoe, absorbing his presence, wide-eyed” (22). Proctor’s character, just like Abigail’s, does not change because of the deleted scene. In the deleted scene, Proctor feels the need to Protect his wife, and is incredibly angry at Abigail for the situation she has caused. He tells her that “If you do not free my wife tomorrow, I am set and bound to ruin you” (157). He makes it clear that he will do anything to help his wife, as he also says “I will make you famous for the whore you are” (158). He is willing to do this even though it would harm his reputation by letting Salem know he cheated on his wife, because he feels that strongly about protecting his wife. Still, this scene does not add anything to the play, since he displays these same feelings many other times. In Act Three, he does exactly what he tells Abigail he will do in Act Two, telling Danforth that Abigail “Thinks to dance with me on my wife’s grave!” (116) The focus of the deleted scene is to give additional detail on Abigail and Proctor’s characters, yet no new information is provided, leading to Arthur Miller’s decision to remove the scene. 

The inclusion of the deleted scene allows people to wonder if the scene really should have been removed, but because it adds little to the development of characters or the plot, it is clear the scene does not belong along with the rest of the play. If the scene was left in, little would change regarding character development, as everything Abigail shows in the deleted scene is already seen in the previous act, and everything that Proctor shows and says he is willing to do in the deleted scene, he does immediately after, in Act Three. The plot does not change except for that Proctor’s willingness to reveal what he knows is shown slightly earlier. However, this does not affect the overall plot, as Proctor does reveal everything shortly after. Clearly, Arthur Miller made the correct decision in deleting the scene, as it adds very few important details to both it’s characters and the overall plot.