Characterization
Abigail is the sneaky young niece of Reverend Parris.
Which type of characterization?
What is direct characterization (Sneaky)
The character's decisions are motivated by their feelings, personal goals, and past experiences.
What is internal motivation.
Who is called in to disprove the presence of witches in Salem?
What is Reverend Hale
Where and when is the opening scene of act two set?
What is the Proctor household, 8 days after the arrival of Reverend Hale (the occurrence of act one).
This character has very few, common traits.
What is flat character.
Characters decisions are influenced by other characters, the society or culture they live in, and historical events.
What is external motivation.
What does Abigail claim to believe about her dismissal from the Proctor household?
What is Elizabeth Proctor was hard to please. They wanted a slave, not a servant. She also goes on to say that Elizabeth was lying about her.
Why has John not come forward with his witness statement that Abigail said everything was for fun? What does Elizabeth think as the reason he won't come forward?
What is John is scared the court will not believe him and possibly turn on him too. Elizabeth thinks he's only holding back because he still has feelings for Abigail.
This character has very complex and interesting traits that might contradict each other.
What is round character.
What is Anne Putnam's motivation behind accusing Rebecca Nurse of the "supernatural" murder of her children and the type of motivation?
What is internal motivation. Anne is motivated by her feelings of jealousy or hate towards Rebecca's family. Anne lost 7 of her 8 children, while Rebecca has 11 children, and 26 grandchildren. None of Rebecca's children or grandchildren have died.
Where and when is the opening scene of the play set?
What is- Reverend Samuel Parris' house, Salem, Massachusetts, in the Spring of the year, 1692.
What does Elizabeth realize when she finds out her name has been mentioned in the court room?
What is Abigail wants her dead.
This type of character changes due to events within the story. The character may make a life altering decision, change their perspective, or gain more character traits.
What is dynamic character.
What is Tituba's motivation behind confessing to witchcraft at the end of Act 1? What type of motivation is this?
What is external motivation. Tituba denies the accusations thrown at her by Abigail. The defining moment is when Reverend Parris threatens to beat Tituba to death if she does not confess to the witchcraft. (Characters influencing a characters decisions.)
Miller often foreshadows his characterizations with a descriptive phrase in the stage directions just before a character’s first entrance. In the stage directions as Abigail enters the scene it states," a strikingly beautiful girl, an orphan, with an endless capacity for dissembling. Now she is all worry and apprehension and propriety," (2). How does his description of Abigail become true by the end of act one?
Possible answers:
Abigail shows her capacity for dissembling in her accusing Tituba of being the cause of everything that happened. She states that Tituba made them drink blood, that she comes to her in her sleep and changes her dreams, Tituba somehow makes her sleep walk and she wakes with no clothes on, and that she hears Tituba laughing and singing at night trying to tempt her into more witchcraft.
Despite Mary Warren proving that Elizabeth did not make the poppet nor own any others, Elizabeth is still taken to jail for attempted murder of Abigail. Why do they still follow through?
What is- Elizabeth angers and in her moment of anger says that Abigail is murder and she should be ripped from this world. Hearing this, they take this as another threat on Abigail's life.
Betty would be an example of this type of character. Betty falls under the preacher's daughter characterization, or stereotype. The common stereotype is that preacher's daughters are usually wild or bad. What character type if this?
What is flat character.
What is internal motivation. Mary Warren longs to be accepted by Abigail and her group of friends. This can be inferred from Act 1 when Mary enters the room during Abigail and Mercy's conversation about that night.
"Mercy, pointing and looking at Mary Warren: She means to tell, I know it.
Mary Warren: Abby, we’ve got to tell. Witchery’s a hangin’ error, a hangin’ like they done in Boston two year ago!....
Mary Warren: I never done none of it, Abby. I only looked!
Mercy, moving menacingly toward Mary: Oh, you’re a great one for lookin’, aren’t you, Mary Warren? What a grand peeping courage you have!"
Before the arrival of John Hale, what are some of the subjects for petty disagreement among John Proctor, Giles Corey, Thomas Putnam, and Samuel Parris?
Subjects of their petty disagreements include:
Giles arguing with Thomas over land and the right to timber.
Proctor and Parris arguing about how he only speaks about hell during his sermons. (He's tired of hearing that everyone's going to hell.)
Proctor and Giles argue with Parris about his desire to own the gathering house in which the minister lives. No other minister has ever asked to own the house but Parris.
Proctor and Giles argue with Parris about his complaints of his salary. Parris claims he makes less here then he did before he ever became a minister.
John tells Hale that all of this is happening because of vengeance. What possibilities does Hale suggest instead of this all happening because of vengeance. (He can't seem to believe that these young girls would falsely accuse anyone when the punishment is execution, just because of petty disagreements and revenge.)
What is- Hale asks John to help him uncover the true reason behind the evil doings in Salem. He suggests an unknown murder or old sins of the towns-people, that has brought the wrath of God down upon Salem.