FAQs
In Act 1 of 'The Crucible,' essential stage directions include Reverend Parris's opening prayer scene and Abigail Williams's accusation of Tituba for witchcraft, both setting the tone and revealing character intentions.
What knowledge did Abigail learn about Salem from John? ›
Proctor threatens to give Abigail a whipping for insulting his wife. Abigail cries that Proctor put knowledge in her heart, and she declares that he cannot ask her to forget what she has learned—namely, that all of Salem operates on pretense and lies.
How does Parris feel about his standing in the community? ›
How does Parris feel about his standing in the community? He is easily offended and insecure because he thinks the people do not respect his position.
Which best describes Rebecca's opinion of the girls' illness? ›
Reverend Parris and Mr. Putnam ask her to visit the girls and try to help them. Rebecca cautions them to think reasonably and not to assume that witchcraft is at work. Rather, she says children have their "silly seasons" and Betty's illness is just childish pretending.
How are stage directions used in The Crucible? ›
Answer and Explanation: In The Crucible, Arthur Miller employs stage directions in great detail, especially in setting the emotions and thoughts of the characters. These stage directions are specifically executed in the utterance of lines pertaining to hysteria to show how characters act towards one another.
What happens in Act 1 in The Crucible? ›
In Act 1, a minister named Parris catches his daughter Betty and his niece Abigail dancing in the forest. Other girls participate as well, along with an enslaved woman from the Barbados named Tituba. After he accuses them of witchcraft, Betty takes to her bed and appears to be unconscious.
Who did Tituba accuse? ›
She was owned by Samuel Parris, the minister of Salem Village, in the Province of Massachusetts Bay. She was pivotal in the trials because she confessed to witchcraft when examined by the authorities, giving credence to the accusations. She accused the two other women, Sarah Good and Sarah Osborne, of the same crime.
How old is John Proctor? ›
In Miller's work, Proctor is 30 and is romantically involved with 17-year-old Abigail Williams. In real life, of course, Proctor was 60, Williams was 11, and the two may have not known each other at all before the hysteria escalated.
How old is Betty in The Crucible? ›
In The Crucible, Betty Parris is Reverend Parris' only child. She is ten years old and lives with her father and her older cousin, Abigail, in the parsonage in Salem Village. Betty's mother died sometime before the action of the play.
Why is Parris scared? ›
Parris fears that his enemies will use the scandal to drive him out of his ministerial office.
Abigail Williams
Seventeen-‐year-‐old orphan whose parents were killed by Indians. She lives with her uncle, the Rev. Parris, and his daughter, Betty.
Who slaps Ruth in The Crucible? ›
In The Crucible, Mercy Lewis, who works for the Putnam family, slaps Ruth Putnam in an effort to wake her up.
Who has the least lines in The Crucible? ›
In Arthur Miller's play about the Salem witch trials, The Crucible, Ruth Putnam has no lines of dialog whatsoever and yet still manages to have a significant impact on the overall trajectory of the play.
Why does Abigail slap Betty? ›
Why does Abigail slap Betty in Act 1? She is angry when Betty reminds Abigail that she drank blood to punish Elizabeth. What does Abigail threaten to do to the girls if they admit to more than dancing? She will kill them.
Why is Hale bad in The Crucible? ›
Hale devotes himself to his faith and his work. His good intentions and sincere desire to help the afflicted motivate him. Unfortunately, Hale is also vulnerable. His zeal for discovering witchcraft allows others, particularly Abigail, to manipulate him.
What is an example of stage directions in a story? ›
Stage directions are the parts of your script around your dialogue that help describe the action, setting and characters. What is an Example of Stage Directions? 'The man deals a deck of cards' or 'Katy enters the room' are examples of stage directions. They describe the movements of the characters in the scene.
How are stage directions shown in a play? ›
Stage directions can direct the intention of a line reading—especially if a character isn't saying what they actually mean. These directions are usually written in parentheses just before dialogue.
What is the stage setting of The Crucible? ›
The Crucible by Arthur Miller takes place in the Puritan town of Salem, Massachusetts, in the year 1692. The play features several key settings throughout Salem. Scene I begins in the home of Reverend Parris, a Puritan minister who fears for his job.
What is an example of hysteria in Act 1 of The Crucible? ›
Ann Putnam makes this statement in the first act of The Crucible. Seven of her babies have died, and she is desperate to place blame on something or someone. She leaps to witchcraft, declaring that all the ailments in town, from one girl's coma to her own children's deaths, must be a sign of witchcraft.