The Crucible (Summary)
By Blake Spiker & Matt Newton
The Story begins with Reverend Parris praying over her daughter, Betty Parris, who lies unconscious on her bed. The conversations between Reverend Parris and Abigail Williams, and between several girls we learn that they were engaged in weird activities in the forest. These unusual activities were lead by Tituba. Parris caught the girls and jumped from a bush scaring all of the girls. Betty had fainted and did not recover for a while. During their session Abigail had drank chicken blood to kill Elizabeth Proctor and then tells the girls that she will kill anyone who says a word about what happened. The townspeople have not a clue what the girls were doing but some say it was witchcraft.
Proctor is a farmer who has had an affair with Abigail a while ago, but now he wants to forget it.
Reverend John Hale is summoned to look upon Betty and to research the incident. He is an expert in witchcraft. He questions Abigail who accuses Tituba as being a witch. Tituba is afraid of being hanged so she confesses faith in God and accuses Goody Good and Goody Osborne of witchcraft. Betty woke up and then her and Abagail say they were bewitched and confess faith in God. They name many other people who they claim they saw with the Devil. Elizabeth Proctor asks John to go to the court and testify against Abigail and the other girls. John does not want to get involved. There is tension between Elizabeth and John since Elizabeth did not forgive John for the affair. Marry Warren was in court testifying against the townspeople and then gives Elizabeth a doll which she has made in court. John and Elizabeth are accused of witchcraft. Elizabeth was accused by Abigail for stabbing Abigail with a needle through a doll. John Proctor protests but Elizabeth is taken away in chains. Proctor wants Mary to go to court and testify against the girls.
Francis Nurse, Giles Corey, and John Proctor present their case against the girls to Deputy Governor Dansforth and Judge Hathorne. Proctor presented a petition signed by 91 people that testifyed to the good character of their wives. Corey is arrested because of contempt of the court. Proctor presents his case and a deposition by Mary Warren saying that she never saw the devil or any spirits. Abigail says that Mary is lying and she and the girls pretend to be bewitched by Mary. Proctor, frustrated at the gullibility of the court, grabs Abigail by the hair and exclaims to everyone that she is a whore confessing that he had an affair with Abigail. Elizabeth is brought in to be questioned about whether this is true. Elizabeth tells the court that John Proctor never had an affair with Abigail in order to save his name, however, this destroys Proctor’s testimony. Mary crumbles under the peer pressure and returns to Abigail’s side, accusing Proctor of being a witch. The girls pretend to be bewitched by Proctor. Proctor accuses Danforth of being afraid to reveal the truth. Dansforth acts more to keep the reputation of the court rather than for justice. Reverend Hale now sees the evil in the court and denounces the proceedings. Proctor is arrested.
Act four begins in prison where Sarah Good and Tituba wait to be hanged. They have gone insane and believe that Satan will take them both to Barbados.
There are rumors of an uprising in a nearby town. The townspeople are afraid of another riot in Salem. Hale and Parris go to visit the innocent people in the jail and beg them to make false confessions in order to save their lives. Hale thinks that the blood of the people who are being hanged is on his hands. Elizabeth tells John that she has forgiven him of his affair. John Proctor confessed that he was a witch, but would not say the others are. Proctor becomes fed up with the court and goes out to be hanged with Rebecca Nurse. Hales say that Elizabeth asked Proctor to confess, but she says that“He has his goodness now. God forbid I take it from him!”
