“Let either of you breathe a word, or the edge of a word, about the other things, and I will come to you in the black of some terrible night and I will bring a pointy reckoning that will shudder you. And you know I can do it, ...and I have seen some reddish work done at night, and I can make you wish you had never seen the sun go down!”(Miller, 20). Abigail’s manipulating words here can make all the girls listen and obey her commands. Abigail’s strong death threats were overt and able to make the girls keep their mouths shut. In the play The Crucible, Arthur Miller uses the theme of revenge to demonstrate how characters would try to get their retribution by doing such acts as accusing others of certain acts. These revengeful acts show their characterization and motives. For example, Abigail has an affair with John Proctor and then tries to get revenge on Elizabeth Proctor. The accusations she makes against Elizabeth show how she wants her revenge because of her feelings for Proctor. This play occurred during the Salem Witch Trials which were a series of events that resulted in hearings, and executions, of people accused of witchcraft in the towns of Salem Village. These events can be described as “mass hysteria”. Throughout the entire play, all the characters are shown to be having malicious behavior against each other and the village. In the play, Abigail, and Mr. and Mrs. Putnam are some of the characters that seek to get their revenge.
In the play, Abigail Williams tries to seek her revenge on the Proctors. At the beginning of the play, Abigail previously had an affair with John Proctor, who is now married to Elizabeth Proctor. It is known that people can commit dangerous acts when they want to get their revenge. Abigail had an insatiable lust for Proctor and she thinks that she should be in Elizabeth’s place. She falsely accuses her of stabbing her in the abdomen and keeping poppets for witchcraft. Abigail then says that Elizabeth sent a spirit to commit the wrongful act. Later, Betty reminds Abigail of her disgraceful act, which Proctor does not know about. “You did, you did! You drank a charm to kill John Proctor's wife! You drank a charm to kill Goody Proctor!”(Miller I. 113-132) This shows how Abigail committed a harmful act which was to kill someone. When Reverend Parris questions her, she nervously tells one lie to not get into trouble, and then soon realizes that she can use the accusations of the trials to her advantage. Abigail is vengeful and hates Elizabeth for sending her away from Proctor. From time to time, Abigail also threatened the other girls if they were, to tell the truth about what was happening in the forest. She threatened to kill them, if they betrayed her, which shows how her revenge is dangerous. Mary Warren says, “She’ll kill me for saying that. Abby’ll charge lechery on you,”(Miller II.427-436) This demonstrates how Abigail made sure all girls were aware of the consequences that would happen if they dared to speak the truth. Mary told the truth to Proctor, who wanted her to tell the truth in court, but Mary refused to do so because she was afraid of Abigail’s death threats. In the court, Abigail makes up the lie and protects her image which is very important to her. Although Abigail tried to get her revenge, the main motive behind her revenge was her reputation which she wanted to keep. Her whole life depends on her reputation in the village, and this is shown when Reverend Parris is interrogating her. To conclude, Abigail Williams tries to obtain her revenge on the Proctors for her reasons.
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In The Crucible, Ann Putnam is trying to get revenge on Rebecca Nurse. An act of revenge was when Ann Putnam had given birth to eight children, with only one survivor. Rebecca Nurse delivered her children and in turn, Ann believes a spell was cast on her during delivery. Ms. Putnam says, “You think it God's work you should never lose a child, nor grandchild either, and I bury all but one?”(Miller I.568-573) This begins to show Mrs. Putnam’s dislike towards Goody Nurse. Ann Putnam is scared because she is protective of her last child. This further shows how this foreshadows that Rebecca Nurse will be put on trial for the murder, witchery, and spell casting on the murdered victims. “Ann Putnam ‘Did you not bring the Black Man with you?’ Goody Nurse ‘The Lord knows I have not hurt them. I am an innocent person.’ 'There is a murderous witch among us' ‘For murder, she's charged! For the marvelous and supernatural murder of Goody Putnam's babies.”(Miller I. 246-252). She is accused and with the trials going on in the village, the court will believe any accusation, especially made by the Putnam’s because of their well-known image. Rebecca is found guilty of murder and the practice of witchcraft used on the death of the children because of Mrs. Putnam’s accusations. Rebecca Nurse's punishment was a public hanging in the middle of Salem. This happened because Ann Putnum could not accept that God would choose to take her children while allowing all of Rebecca's children to survive. So, Rebecca was accused of causing their deaths. Although Mrs. Putnam tried to get her revenge on Rebecca Nurse, her reasoning behind it was the high reputation she wanted to guard. Her husband has a well-known reputation, so she was also trying to keep hers. Mrs. Putnam’s accusation shows how she tries to get her revenge on Rebecca Nurse.
Lastly, in the play, Thomas Putnam is trying to get his revenge on Giles Corey and other villagers. A final act of revenge was committed by Thomas Putnam. Thomas accused the citizens of Salem of casting and putting spells on his daughter Ruth. He uses his daughter to accuse people whose property he covets. Once these people were found guilty of witchcraft, they were sentenced to death by hanging in the town of Salem. He took advantage of the whole witchcraft hysteria and his daughter being sick, which then caused the accused people to lose their land. He appears to be acquisitive in his ability to obtain land during his life. Mr. Putnam seeks revenge by taking the land of those who were found guilty and obtaining it for personal use. “If Jacobs hangs for a witch he forfeits up his property—that's the law! And there is none but Putnam with the coin to buy so great a piece. This man is killing his neighbors for their land!” (Miller 2. 190-194). He did this because he wanted to become a wealthy landowner in Salem. This makes him feel powerful because the more people accused, the more land he can buy. Thomas Putnam is trying to get his revenge on Giles Corey by accusation. A man told Giles that he heard Thomas Putnam say that Ruth gave Putnam a gift of land by accusing George Jacobs. Giles will not reveal the name because he doesn't want the man arrested. It is conveyed here that Giles has proof of Mr. Putnam’s greedy act, but he was unable to substantiate his claim to the court because of his status. Corey was distraught because of this, but he had to do this for the sake of his children. While this may be true, Mr. Putnam tried to get his revenge on Giles Corey and others, his purpose behind this was his reputation that he wanted to keep across the village. He is known as a wealthy landowner and he doesn’t want his image to be changed. To conclude, Mr. Putnam attempted to get his revenge on Giles Corey and other villagers through different acts.
In The Crucible, it is clear that Abigail, Mrs. Putnam, and Mr. Putnam are some of the characters who try to get revenge on the other characters for their reasons. Abigail Williams was trying to get revenge on the Proctors. Mrs. Putnam was getting revenge on Rebecca Nurse. Mr. Putnam was getting revenge on Giles Corey and the other villagers. The deep hatred and paranoia that these characters held within themselves caused them to make accusations with no actual evidence against others. Most often it is believed that revenge is a dangerous act of emotion and that getting retribution will help. Revenge is a way of gaining closure after a wrong which some may use for their issues.
MLA Citations:
- Miller, Arthur. The Crucible: A Play In Four Acts. New York: Penguin Books, 1976. Print.
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