At one point, Proctor tells Hale that he believes in witches even though he does not. Would you be willing to lie and tell people you believed in something you do not in order to protect yourself? Why or why not?
Fitting in with society is an important part of anyone's life, and during the time of the Salem witch trials, it was especially crucial. Today, the only consequence of being different and believing different things than others is ridicule and the possibility of not being accepted. If my beliefs were questioned in today's society, and they were different than the majority of people, I would still most likely give my true opinion.
However, in 1692, the Puritans believed that failure to be completely devoted to the Bible meant that person must be working with the Devil. The consequences of not believing in witches, and therefore, not believing in the Bible, were suspicion of witchcraft. Upon being accused, people could either admit to being a witch, or be hanged for working with the Devil. If I were a person living in Salem in 1692 and I were asked whether or not I believed in witches, I would answer that I most definitely did. Although it would be a lie, the alternative would be that I would be accused of witchcraft, and possibly killed. I would like to believe that I am the kind of person who would be willing to tell the truth, and do my best to expose witchcraft as the scam that it is, but I know that I could not gather that courage.
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