Crucible Post 1

In The Crucible, Act One, the ownership of power over the town of Salem changes dramatically. As the novel begins, it becomes apparent to the reader that Reverend Parris holds the power. He is head of the church in Salem, and in this time period, when religion is viewed as just about the most important thing in life, his power is very great. Over the course of the first act, the power holds strong in Parris' hold, but at the very end, the authority he has over the town is shown to be very limited. Abigail Putnam and Betty Parris are shown to hold power over even him; Reverend Parris. After Tituba is accused of being a witch and confesses, Mr. Hale asks her for names of other witches in the town. After naming Goody Good and Goody Osburn, the children begin calling out names of the people that they claim they saw with the devil. Abigail said, "I danced for the Devil; I saw him; I wrote in his book; I go back to Jesus; I kiss His hand. I saw Sarah Good with the Devil! I saw Goody Osburn with the Devil! I saw Bridget Bishop with the Devil!" (Miller 48) The words of accusation Abigail spoke in this quote, and the continued list of names she and Betty give show that they are standing up to claim power. People in Salem in 1692 believed strongly in religion, and therefore, they thought that a good Christian would not lie. Therefore, the names given by Abigail and Betty are seen for the most part as fact, even without proof.

This change in power is crucial to the plot, because it is so unusual for a child to have power. In Salem in this time period, children were second-class citizens. At the beginning of the novel, it was said about Parris that, "He regarded them as young adults, and until this strange crisis, he, like the rest of Salem, never conceived that the children were anything but thankful for being permitted to walk straight, eyes slightly lowered, arms at the sides, and mouths shut until bidden to speak." (Miller 4) This shows that the people in the town did not think much of the children of Salem, but during this "strange crisis", which refers to the belief in - and hanging of - witches, children rose up to claim power over Salem.