John Proctor is a authoritative tragic hero because he contains the component of tragic flaw, is able to deliver himself, possesses many baronial features, and of class, suffers a tragic decease. John Proctor was a adult male of great aristocracy and was extremely revered to in the Puritan community. Proctor ‘s fatal defect was his excessive pride, and that easy tied a series of unfortunate events which finally made John Proctor succumb to his decease. One portion of a true tragic hero is that their decease is so tragic. And for an even more powerful consequence, his decease was besides dry. Having an dry tragic decease gives a stronger significance to the character of John Proctor. Another necessary portion of the tragic hero is that he or she redeems themselves one time recognizing their error by perpetrating a baronial title.
A baronial individual believes in a system of righteousness and does non merely assist himself, but instead helps others all around him. John Proctor believed in “ nobleman ” moralss such as when Hale interviewed him for piousness. “ I like it non that Mr. Parris should put his manus upon my babe. I see no visible radiation of God in that adult male. I ‘ll non hide it ” ( Miller 65 ) . John knew what adult male Reverend Parris truly was and refused to hold his kid be baptized by him. A nobleman knows the difference between what ‘s ethical and what ‘s non, so John asserted his ego righteousness. When Elizabeth was taken to imprison, Proctor infuriatingly questioned Mary Warren. He urgently yelled at her to state the truth and in that despair he told her, “ My married woman will ne’er decease for me! I will convey your backbones into your oral cavity but that goodness will non decease for me ” ( Miller 80 ) ! Proctor stood up for his married woman and was purpose on protecting her at all costs. Specifically talking, he was screening her name from being blackened in the community. Now it ‘d take a true Lord to stand up to person with authorization in the Puritan universe. This sort of gallantry better emphasizes his aristocracy despite non even being born into a baronial household.
In The Crucible by Arthur Miller, John Proctor ‘s chief fatal defect was his overpowering hubris that made him yield to his decease. As spoken by John Proctor, “ Because it is my name! Because I can non hold another in my life! Because I lie and sign myself to lies! Because I am non worthy the dust on the pess of them that hangaˆ¦leave me my name ” ( Miller 143 ) . Pride plays an interesting function in the life of John Proctor in The Crucible. During the tests, Proctor refused to attest against Abigail in order to forestall his name from being blackened. He cares much for his name and being a baronial character it is easy to understand the battle he is traveling through. John day-to-day rewards an internal, infernal, war between his scruples and pride. His hubristic mentality is what chiefly caused his ruin. And that ‘s what the kernel of a true tragic hero is. A individual who rises and falls because of their ain ignorant defect, that ‘s the true significance of a tragic hero.
In Act IV Hale urged everybody to squeal to their wickedness in order to salvage their lives. While speaking to Elizabeth he uttered, “ It may good be God damns a prevaricator less than he that who throws his life off for pride ” ( Miller 132 ) . He was seeking to acquire Proctor to squeal his prevarication and salvage his life. John Proctor is throwing his life off for pride because he does non possess the bravery to uncover his secret wickedness until the really terminal. God can non forgive a adult male who dies for pride, yet he can forgive a prevaricator. Therefore, Proctor should squeal to witchcraft. However, Proctor can non make this because ( mentioning to the other quotation mark ) , it ca n’t melanize his name. He ‘ll stop up uncovering his wickedness and it will be the terminal of his name. Pride is one of the seven lifelessly sins that a Puritan could ne’er perpetrate. At the very terminal of the drama, Proctor is sent to decease, and Hale implores, “ Woman, plead with him! Woman! It is pride, it is amour propre. Be his assistant! -what profit him to shed blood? Shall the dust congratulations him? ( Miller 145 ) ! Hale yells these words at Elizabeth Proctor, because he was beging her to convert John to plead guilty. But disdainful Proctor chose to decease alternatively with his award intact. This emphasizes that Proctor has overpowering pride, and non even with the fright of decease will he make bold seek to allow travel of it. As spoken by literary expert Brett Bigbie, “ This chase of a worthy purpose can be seen as Proctor ‘s tragic flaw ” , Proctor so had obsessional pride and he sacrificed him self for cleansing his psyche. The full drama began and ended with his defect.
What makes a tragic decease truly tragic is that the hero ‘s decease is dry and that he or she is responsible for it. Literary critic and analyst Santosh Bhatia, The ultimate tragic sarcasm is that Proctor is non convicted for the wickedness he really commits, and confesses openly in tribunal ; he is executed for a wickedness he ne’er commits, viz. witchery ” ( Bhatia 63 ) . This was a brilliant observation of John Proctor. Arthur Miller decidedly intended to demo this type of tragic sarcasm. Harmonizing to the authoritative Aristotelean tragic hero, the adult male must run into a tragic decease. Proctor meets a decease non merely tragic, but besides dry. Bhatia parallels the thought sarcasm and calamity with The Crucible. Now being executed for something a individual ne’er did can be considered really tragic. John Proctor was executed for “ perpetrating ” witchery ; his existent wickedness was his pride and lecherousness for Abigail. A decease like this can genuinely be called tragic. A Lord from a high ranking society dies in a really atrocious manner. Similar to the narrative of Othello, by Shakespeare Othello excessively, met a tragic, yet dry decease. His trust of Iago finally began the film editing of his twine of destiny. Comparable to John Proctor, the start of his disdainful ways besides ended up in his ruin. Brett Bigbie does a sound occupation on explicating duty of decease in The Crucible. “ The pride of Proctor finally leads him to his ain death ” ( Bigbie 1 ) . So as portion of the tragic hero goes, Proctor was responsible for his ain decease. And cognizing this, he kept it a secret therefore binding into the confession and finally his ain decease. Proctor ‘s fate was written by his ain custodies.
Before a tragic hero dies he or she ever comes to an epiphany and holding realized this, the hero redeems himself by making a baronial title. The biggest title done by Proctor was most likely when he admitted to lechery, “ ” God assist me I lusted, and there is a promise in such perspiration. But it is a prostitute ‘s retribution ” ( Miller 110 ) . This is so his baronial title which finally began his salvation. By eventually giving in to his emotions, he purified his organic structure, head and psyche from the agonizing devil inside of him. Redemption of a tragic hero does non come easy. In fact, most of the clip, when the hero redeems himself, he or she dies tragically shortly after. The same thing happened to John Proctor when he mustered up the bravery to excel his trepidation. The concrete support of his salvation emphasizes Proctor ‘s tantrum as a tragic hero. Another fulfilling signifier of salvation is when Proctor tore up the written confession, “ Proctor tears the paper and crumples it ” ( Miller 144 ) . A tragic hero must deliver himself with the completion of a baronial title, and that ‘s what Proctor successfully has done. Proctor realized that the sign language of the contract would ensue in the darkening of his friends ‘ names so he passionately denounced the tribunal and tore the paper confession. So Proctor sacrificed himself for his trueness and unity. At the terminal of drama when Proctor moved to the gallows, Reverend Hale begs Elizabeth to convey John back, nevertheless she rebutted with, “ He hold his goodness now, God forbid I take it from him ” ( Miller 145 ) ! John has now volitionally offered to decease and she believes that he did the right thing. “ He has his goodness now ” , she says significance that he is now back on the side of God. He redeemed himself. Harmonizing to Santosh, Proctor went to decease uprightly. Despite being tormented daily by his scruples, Proctor chose to decease with his award intact. “ He prefers to decease than populate a life with no award ” ( Bhatia 63 ) . He confronting his devil is a true way that a tragic hero would take.
John Proctor absolutely fits the cast of a tragic hero because he harbors all the qualities of a tragic hero such as tragic flaw, and is able to to the full deliver himself. John Proctor ‘s chief fatal defect was his inordinate hubris, or pride which finally sealed his destiny. As ever, tragic heroes suffer a hideous decease, nevertheless before that, John realized his error and successfully redeemed himself. When Proctor was ordered to subscribe the confession, he refused and tore the paper up with great passion and rage. This was practically his chief signifier of salvation. What is truly dry is that Proctor got executed for a offense he did non commit. His wickedness was pride and/or lecherousness but the charges on him were for witchery. John Proctor a adult male of great aristocracy and pride cleansed his psyche after he suffered a tragic decease, and became a symbol of pureness and righteousness for others to follow.
