Status Updates From The Crucible

After reading the scene that is removed from most editions and productions, I wonder if things would have been different if John had not met with Abigail the night before his confession and warned her what he was going to do. She had time to conspire with the other girls and plan out how to do their little synced up acting tricks. Would it have been less believable if she was caught unawares?

I’m not sure if Miller intended this but it’s hard for me to not read this as a condemnation of all institutionalized religion. Because if a belief in God can be manipulated to this extreme in order to accuse anyone of committing crime, simply by putting on a good enough theatrical act and having no proof whatsoever, then that religion creates a society where there can be no truth and no reality and no morality.

John hates himself because his wife is in danger partly because of him. If he had never strayed and done whatever he did with Abigail, she likely would have never accused Elizabeth of witchcraft. And now if he wants to expose Abigail for her lies, he’ll have to come out with his secret as well, exposing his adultery to the whole town. I wonder if he’ll really do it.

It’s crazy how poor a job Cheever does at justifying why Elizabeth should be arrested. He avoids the question when Proctor asks for proof and then he fails to give an explanation for why a poppet is a signifier of witchcraft. He’s not even trying! He knows that once the mob has set their sites on one person, they must come before the court. Miller meant it when he said civility is abandoned in these proceedings.