Preview

Character Analysis Of Reverend Hale In The Crucible By Arthur Miller

Good Essays
Open Document
Open Document
276 Words
Grammar
Grammar
Plagiarism
Plagiarism
Writing
Writing
Score
Score
Character Analysis Of Reverend Hale In The Crucible By Arthur Miller
In Arthur Millers’, The Crucible, Miller demonstrates how certain situations can change a characters opinion or point of view, with enough evidence. Reverend Hale is a prime example who experiences change from confident, to doubt and frustration of the court, and then regret of the innocent being persecuted because of his wrong accusation during the witch trial executions in the town of Salem, Massachusetts.
Coming into the Town of Salem, Massachusetts Reverend Hale illustrates a great deal of confidence with his knowledge and belief of witchcraft in Act I. Hale is known for being an expert on witch craft and as a “spiritual doctor”. Which he thinks very highly of as well when first comes to Salem. He sets his mind to persecuting the citizens

You May Also Find These Documents Helpful

  • Good Essays

    In The Crucible, a drama by Arthur Miller set in Salem, Massachusetts, in 1692, Reverend John Hale evolves from a self-confident witchcraft expert to a broken man who attempts to save lives. When Reverend Hale first arrives in Salem, he walks into the Parris’ home with an air of intelligence and great knowledge. As he situates himself in the house, he says to Mr. Parris, “… they [the books] are weighted with authority”, indicating that the books will decide whether a person is a witch or not (1.712-13). In Act I, Hale is the main person that begins the witch trials, because of the fact that he is a witchcraft expert and he gets Tituba to confess. His self-confidence, and lies from Tituba, Abigail, and Betty, leads him to think that there are…

    • 347 Words
    • 2 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    In Act 1 arrives Hale in Salem to investigate possible witchcraft with good intention and confidence to fight the devil. Hale is an expert on witchcraft. He has experiences and the required knowledge for the towns need therefore he feels self-important but on the other hand he is overconfident of fighting the devil. Reverend Hale initiates the proceedings in Salem by getting Tituba…

    • 517 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    The Crucible, a play written to criticize the Red Scare, involves a theme which focuses on how the characters change as an effect of the intensity and hysteria of the town’s witch trials. Elizabeth Proctor and Reverend Hale, two major characters in the play, experience internal changes as the play progresses due to the individual pressures of the witch trials. Elizabeth Proctor faces the test of having been accused as a witch, having her husband be accused and condemned as a witch, and trying to move past her husband’s affair with a local girl. Reverend Hale was challenged by the corruption of the ministry in Salem and encountered much adversity while doing his job, seeking out witchcraft. Both of these characters come to realize the witch trials only result in death and lies, which causes these characters to evolve.…

    • 849 Words
    • 4 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    Dynamic characters are changed by the characters and events that occur in the play or book. In The Crucible, two characters that change for the better are Reverend Hale and John Proctor. They both go on a journey of self due to the hysteria of The Salem Witch Trials. The community had fallen into mass panic over a group of girls who convicted dozens of innocent people of witchcraft. Throughout the book, they become more suspicious of the girls and take a more active role in trying to convince people that they’re lying about seeing people with the Devil. The Crucible, written by Arthur Miller, tells the story of Salem’s spiral into chaos in 1692 during The Salem Witch Trials, but instead of spiraling with the rest of the town, two characters,…

    • 313 Words
    • 2 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    “What profit him to bleed? Shall the dust praise him? Shall the worms declare his truth? (145)” Reverend Hale begs Elizabeth to convince John Proctor to convince in order for him not to be hanged. Hale does this because he sees the errors in his ways and knows that Proctor is innocent. In The Crucible by Arthur Miller, Reverend Hale’s despair, Judge Danforth’s integrity, Reverend Parris’ greed exhibit their use of authority.…

    • 836 Words
    • 4 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    “Excellency this child’s gone wild.”is a quote that was said by Reverend John Hale in the story The Crucible. This was said right before he quit the court for hanging inacents. Reverend John Hale is a which expert that was called in to salem for there which issues.Reverend John Hale goes buy Reverend Hale and he end up doubting himself and quitting the court. Reverend Hale and I are similar in personality because we both are sympathetic,self confident, and rational.…

    • 656 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    In The Crucible (1953), author, Arthur Miller brings to life many decisions that drag a respectable man to the noose. This play, based on the history of the Salem Witch Trials that occurred in Salem Massachusetts in 1692, though not completely true, does follow the basic line of events. This line of events begins with curious young girls who are caught dancing in the forest by the Puritan reverend of the community, Reverend Parris. An effort to contain the events by Reverend Parris, Parris’s niece, Abigail, and others backfired and resulted in the bringing in of Puritan priests trained in the topic of witchcraft, which quickly led to a mass hysteria of witches in the community. Once accused of being a witch, a citizen had two basic choices,…

    • 1126 Words
    • 5 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    A morally ambiguous character who I thought played a pivotal role in the Salem witch hunt was Reverend John Hale. At first, Hale was completely convinced that the witchcraft occurring in Salem was in fact reality and was determined to get rid of it whatever way possible. He was constantly researching the source of witchcraft itself and how to destroy it. He investigated Betty Parris and the Putnam’s daughter to gather clues and evidence as to why these events are happening. He also talks with Abigail Williams and Tituba and aks them if they ever recruited others to be followers of the devil. Later in the act, Hale’s confidence and determination starts to slip as he cannot find legitimate evidence as to why these events are occurring.…

    • 432 Words
    • 2 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Satisfactory Essays

    There are three characters that are the most responsible for the witch trials in Salem, which are Abigail Williams for trying to avoid punishment for dancing in the woods and for jealousy towards Elizabeth Proctor, Reverend Samuel Parris for trying to protect his good name and his daughter and niece, and Reverend John Hale for being so convinced about the devil running loose in Salem and connecting every minor flaw with witchcraft, even though he later has a change of heart. Out of these three characters only two were thinking to fool the others, Abigail and Parris. Hale, on the other hand, was just a confident man that did everything by the book and thought that was the best way to do it, something we find out when he…

    • 325 Words
    • 2 Pages
    Satisfactory Essays
  • Good Essays

    The effects that occur within a society when pressure is placed on different aspects can cause a person to conform into what the society is trying to force them into anyway. Throughout The Crucible the proof that a society can truly change who people are in a situation and make it to where the people are going against their original beliefs and morals. The importance of conforming isn’t just one that plays a role on the outside of a character but how they are changed on the inside as well that truly shows the change played on the character. Included in The Crucible are many characters that go through a struggle that leads them to changing to the expectations set for them, leading to questioning themselves, one of the main characters that this is found in would be Reverend Hale with the role he played on the executions as well as the attempt to prevent, what he once believed was fair from happening, the executions of others.…

    • 654 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    In Arthur Miller?s The Crucible, Reverend John Hale significantly transfigures from a cold, boastful scholar into a sympathetic, redemption-seeking man after realizing the injustices he had brought upon people of Salem. First described as a ?nearing forty, a tight-skinned, eager-eyed intellectual,? Reverend Hale?s overpowering pride becomes obvious as he flaunts his knowledge of past experiences in witchcraft. Hale does not view witchcraft as an emotional, human problem, as he resorts to books for answers and not his heart nor instinct. Hale?s transformation, though regarded as substantial and ethical, unfortunately occurs too late in the play to save the lives of those he had brought death upon.…

    • 580 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    Reverend John hale was a minister from Beverly and witnessed Massachusetts’ first execution of convicted witch, Margaret Jones of Charlestown in 1648. The Crucible by Arthur Miller is about a group of teen girls convicted in 1692 Salem, Massachusetts for performing spiritual rituals around a fire; Which sparked the Witchcraft trials that Reverend John Hale participated in. My character analysis is on Reverend Hale because his dedication to the witchcraft trials changed, he had confidence in John Proctor’s innocence, and he regretted signing Rebecca Nurse’s death warrant. There are many examples in The Crucible that portrays Rev. Hale’s dedication status, confidence, & regret.…

    • 614 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    Although I believe that Reverend Hale would make a good friend, his zealous nature is less than desirable. Hale often displays zealous behavior toward the witch hunt which makes him jump to swift conclusions about who is guilty of witchcraft, and who is not. This trait makes him disregard his gut instincts and first impressions. An example of Hale’s…

    • 1224 Words
    • 5 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    A crucible is a severe test as of patience or belief, a trial. Arthur Miller’s play The Crucible is a journey through the trials of many townspeople caused by suspicions of witchcraft. As the story progresses, people’s words and actions cause Reverend John Hale to change his views on whether the people prosecuted were guilty or innocent of witchcraft. As numerous events and their consequences unfold, they cause Hale to rethink his initial views on witchcraft and to be persuaded of the innocence of those convicted in Salem.…

    • 994 Words
    • 4 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    He cares too much about himself, but his goal is to fight the Devil. He has to prove to the townsmen that he is as valuable as they think he is to keep his reputation at a high level as it is. Hale has to detect a specific amount of witches to be accepted and liked, “He spent a good deal of his time pondering the invisible world, especially since he had himself encountered a witch in his parish not long before”, his reputation was nothing more than a witch-hunter (page 31). Hale goes through a character change throughout the play. At first he is a confident witch-hunter who would find afflicted victims but then he changed. He did not worry about his reputation anymore; all he wanted was to help people who were accused. His reputation means nothing to him after he sees what terrible events are occurring through Salem because of all the accusations that he was part of. Reverend Hale's faith and his belief in the individual divide…

    • 1118 Words
    • 5 Pages
    Good Essays