Crucible Character Flaws with Hor

    Character Flaws in The Crucible

    Arthur Miller's play, The Crucible, is filled with a variety of characters. Some characters exhibit very minor flaws, while others exhibit a plethora of flaws. However, I'd like to first present this question; what exactly is a flaw? The Cambridge Dictionary defines a flaw as "having or containing one or more faults, mistakes, or weaknesses." I will be ranking the following characters from least flawed to most flawed: Thomas Putnam, Reverend Hale, Reverend Parris, Mary Warren, John Proctor, Abigail Williams, and Judge Danforth.

   The least flawed character in The Crucible is Thomas Putnam. Though he is a snobby wealthy man who seeks more land and creates inaccurate scenarios to do so, I believe that when it comes down to flaws of character, he is the least flawed. In terms of accusations, Putnam exhibited several. However, he was more caught up in his land than anything else, and he used this extensively against John Proctor. In an author's note, it is stated that "another suggestion to explain the systematic campaign against Rebecca, and inferentially against Francis, is the land war he fought with his neighbors, one of whom was a Putnam." The keyword there is Putnam.

    Next up is Reverend Hale. Now, I know what you're thinking, Hale has to be one of the most flawed because he has "signed seventy-two death warrants." However, I consider Hale to be one of the most changed characters from the beginning of the play. Throughout the first two acts, Hale was always one of the people leading the charge with the accusations and whatnot. Heck, he's the one that basically confused Tituba as she was about to be beaten. The poor woman had two men with ill intents on either side of her but Hale made it seem as though he was on her side. Regardless, it is evident that Hale has many flaws, but not as much as Parris.

    You see, Parris is sort of like the in-between when it comes to being the least flawed or the most flawed. He is a very self-centered man, and in the first half of the play, he's very conscious about his reputation in Salem. However, like Hale, Parris does go through a change of heart in the play. We see this towards the end when he tells Danforth, "beware this man, Your Excellency, this man is mischief." He is speaking of John Proctor. Not much later, he is again speaking of John Proctor - but in a lighter sense. He says, "excellency, I would postpone these hangin's for a time." Oh Parris, what a perfect time to have a change of heart, just about thirty minutes before Proctor is due to hang.

    But what of Mary Warren? Yeah, that one girl who told Abigail that she "never done none of it" and "only looked." That was one of her first flaws. Possibly the most significant one was in her very bold conversation with John Proctor, at the height of the trials. She tells Proctor; "I'll not be ordered to bed no more, Mr. Proctor! I am eighteen and a woman, however single!" Here, she grew some major cojones (meaning she was very bold) and tried asserting her position to Proctor. Spoiler alert - it didn't work.

    Speaking of John Proctor, let's discuss his many flaws. How about we start with the single most obvious one - that he performed inappropriate acts with a minor. What a whack-job of a guy am I right? This man, much like Parris, has a serious drive for maintaining his reputation yet he sleeps with a girl that is nearly twenty years younger than him? While he's married? How sinful. This is undoubtedly the second-largest flaw in the entire play, in terms of severity. We'll get to that first one later. He goofed up big time, but at least he's aware of it. The first step to rehabilitation is self-awareness, and John Proctor is most definitely self-aware: "But I will cut off my hand before I’ll reach for you again," he tells Abigail. Smart guy.

    Abigail Williams has far more flaws than those mentioned before her. This girl has a crazed lust towards a man that is probably old enough to be her dad - not to mention that man is also bound by marriage. Granted, John Proctor did enable it to go where it went, however, Abigail should have seen the red flags that the situation instilled. With extreme envy towards Elizabeth Proctor for being the wife of John Proctor, Abigail went far enough as to drink "a charm to kill Goody Proctor" in order to get to the man of his dreams. Disgusting.

    Oh, but we are not done yet, because the man with the largest flaw has yet to be discussed; none other than Judge Danforth himself. Danforth has the blood of several innocent lives on his hands. When presented with evidence, this so-called judge practically dismissed it as 'insignificant.' It either toss it or "arrest for examination." John Proctor's list of signatures by people that said Rebecca Nurse, Martha Corey, and Elizabeth Proctor were innocent was taken as a route for questioning. This man single-handedly carried out the tragedy of the Salem Witch Trials. He had the power to finally put the girls' pretense to rest, but he didn't want to believe the adults.

    What a story. I'm sure glad it's over 'cause that whole thing was whack.