Demie John Proctor Case

A tragic hero is not an ordinary person; although great and highly respected, his actions bring about not only his demise, but also the downfall of those close to him.

John Proctor, a character from Arthur Miller's The Crucible, committed an act of adultery with a young girl named Abigail. This act of adultery has ruined more lives than just the ones immediately affected by John Proctors lust. John Proctors lies and adultery, in the end led to his demise, but not before he felt remorse for his acts.

John Proctor committed an act of adultery with a girl named Abigail who is seventeen. John Proctor regrets having an affair with Abigail, and realizes too late that Abigail "thinks to dance with [him] on [his] wife's grave" (1148). Even if it means destroying an entire village Abigail will stop at nothing to have John Proctor. Furthermore John Proctor's lies begin to unravel, his wife suspects that he has lied and he grows angry because of her suspicions he exclaims "I'll not have your suspicion anymore" (1124). John feels that he is continuously reassuring his wife that he is doing no wrong. John Proctor lets this single adultery act dominate his every single act.

Once he made known of his adulterous acts John Proctor realizes what he needs to do to come to terms with his guilt, which is to sacrifice himself for the greater good. John Proctor feels guilt about his adulterous act because of his lies and all the people that he has hurt from committing this single act. In his final conversation with his wife John Proctor questions who he is "God in Heaven, what is john proctor, what is John Proctor?" (1161). John Proctor also feels that by giving his life he is saving other peoples lives and doing it for the greater good. John Proctor would not sign his name to the document confessing his involvement in witchcraft and damning his soul to hell. His name