Do it Now: ‘You must understand, sir, that a person is either with this court or he must be counted against it, there be no road between. This is a sharp time, now, a precise time – we live no longer in the dusky afternoon when evil mixed itself with good and befuddled the world. Now, by God’s grace, the shining sun is up, and them that fear not light will surely praise it.’ Questions: Who is the speaker? 2) In which Act is this line spoken? What is the context or situation where this quote takes place? 3) From this quote, what do you learn about the speaker’s

Reputation and Integrity in The Crucible Year 11 English

THINK-PAIR-SHARE 1) What is the difference between reputation and integrity? 2) Why is reputation so important to the people of Salem? What happens if you lose your good reputation (before the witch-hunt)? 3) In what ways is a good reputation in the play similar to the way we think of it today? In what ways is it different?

Reputation vs Integrity in The Crucible There are many characters who are solely concerned with their reputation among their community. These include: Rev. Parris Worries he will lose his posting and social standing in Salem, and so willingly goes along with his daughter and niece’s charade The girls After being caught dancing in the woods, the girls fear for their reputations and potential branding as witches. They willingly shift the accusations onto others, in order to preserve their reputations.

The conflict of integrity and reputation is a continuous theme throughout The Crucible. Consider the following three characters. John Proctor Elizabeth Proctor Abigail Williams To what extent does each character value integrity over reputation? What evidence supports this? Write a short answer for each character.

The conflict of integrity and reputation is a continuous theme throughout The Crucible. Throughout the play John Proctor struggles with maintaining his reputation. He is ashamed of his past affair with Abigail, which he considers a moral failing. He does not wish for this affair to become public knowledge because it will taint his good name. However, he is willing to admit to the affair in order to save Elizabeth’s life, despite the huge cost to his reputation. In Act IV he also willingly sacrifices his life rather than dishonour the other accused by refusing to sign a false statement confessing to witchcraft. In the end, he chose to maintain his personal integrity. A man may think God sleeps, but God sees everything, I know it now. I beg you, sir, I beg you—see her what she is. . . . She thinks to dance with me on my wife’s grave! And well she might, for I thought of her softly. God help me, I lusted, and there is a promise in such sweat. But it is a whore’s vengeance. . . .

Other characters such as Rebecca Nurse and Giles Corey also choose personal integrity over reputation Giles Corey Refuses to name and endanger the source of his accusations against Putnam; is executed for it. Rebecca Nurse Is accused of witchcraft, and refuses to confess to save herself.

Why do you think Miller included this internal conflict in the play? Discuss this with your elbow partner for 1 minute.

Miller’s inclusion of this conflict reflects the feelings of those targeted by the House Un-American Activities Committee during the McCarthy era. Those summoned to testify had their livelihoods threatened. Many cooperated with HUAC, confirming the names of those who were suspected to be Communists. Although this ensured their own livelihood and reputation remained intact, this led to destroyed friendships and for some, an infamous legacy. The Hollywood Ten were a group of filmmakers defied HUAC by refusing to testify. They were branded as Communist sympathisers and were blacklisted in Hollywood. John Proctor represents those who refused to testify in the HUAC hearings.

READ ALOUD ACT III Page 80

Character hot-seat activity The class will be divided into 5 groups. Each group will be assigned a character. Each person in your group is going to take a turn in the ‘hot seat’ role-playing that character. To prepare for this role you must: Use the text and your notes to learn everything about your character. This includes their arc in The Crucible, their relationships with other characters, their personality traits, reactions to events and so on. Think of potential questions that may be asked of that character. For example, if you are John Proctor, you may be asked why you entered an affair with Abigail. If you are Elizabeth, it may be a question of why you lied to Judge Danforth in Act Three. Individual task: Think of at least questions you would like to each of the other four characters that are in the classroom. Think of questions that will genuinely help you with your understanding of that character (i.e. avoid questions like what is your favourite food? Ask a question like how would you react if…)

Possible questions to ask What three words would you use to describe [another character in the play]? How did you feel when….? Why did you….? Knowing how the witch trials ended, is there anything you would have done differently?

In your new groups: Assign a time-keeper. Ensure everyone in the group speaks once for at 2 minutes. When answering questions in the hot-seat, provide justification for your answer. If you learn something about a character that you were unaware of before, you may record this on your character sheet (as long it is true to the source material!)

Written response activity: Compare two characters from the play (e.g. Elizabeth and John Proctor; Parris and Hale). To what extent does their value of personal integrity differ from each other? What evidence in the text supports this? Write a 100-150 word response paragraph.

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