By Laney Manson
Arthur Miller’s play, The Crucible explores characters whose fears of witchcraft challenge moral judgement, truth, and power. Preconventional behaviors are based on external motivators like slavery and gender roles. Conventional behaviours are based on conformity to a societal group. Finally, post conventional behaviours are based on being true to one’s personal character. Kohlberg’s theory of “Moral Precepts” captures the reasons for specific personal behaviours, allowing the audience to understand character motivations and actions in The Crucible.
There are multiple examples of preconventional characters due to the fearful atmosphere of the Salem Witch trials. Preconventional behaviour is exhibited when a person acts in a certain way to either avoid a punishment or to obtain a reward. The behaviour is not based on personal knowledge of what is right or wrong; rather, it is based on the authority of external institutions. To begin, Tituba, a minor character, displays preconventional characteristics when she is coerced to confess to practicing witchcraft after being threatened by her slave master Reverend Parris. He says to her, “You will confess yourself or I will take you out and whip you to death, Tituba.” (Act I, pg. 44). Early on, Tituba shows she is a compassionate character, caring for Betty Harris; however, because she is a slave, Tituba is also powerless to exercise her free will. She confesses to witchcraft to avoid the punishment of being whipped to death by Reverend Parris. Due to this viable threat, Tituba gives in to the external authority of her slave master. By contrast, Abigail Williams is a manipulative character who demonstrates preconventional behaviour to obtain John Proctor’s affection. Proctor’s wife, Elizabeth, notices Abigail’s behavior and tells John, “She… thinks to kill me, and then to take my place.” (Act II, pg. 61). Abigail, an unmarried orphan, views marrying John Proctor as a reward, so she frames many citizens of Salem as practitioners of witchcraft, including Elizabeth Proctor. Abigail lacks social status in Salem, so she manipulates the external patriarchal society she lives in. The final example of a preconventional character is Elizabeth Proctor. She is asked by the court if her husband, John Proctor, has ever committed lechery. Elizabeth is a devout Christian, and she believes that lying is a sin. She knows that her husband has committed the act of lechery, but to protect him, she lies and tells the judge, “No, sir.” (Act III, pg. 81). Elizabeth weighs the moral dilemma and chooses to lie to save her husband. This is an example of preconventional behaviour because while Elizabeth is a truthful and moral character, she feels powerless, bending to the external legal system. Based on the provided examples, it is evident that there are multiple examples of preconventional characters found in the text due to the fearful environment of Salem during the witch trials.
Many characters behave in a conventional manner because the Puritan culture uses fear as a way of promoting conformity in the society. Conventional behaviour is shown by those characters who conform to the societal norms because they seek protection, belonging, and group acceptance. First, Reverend Parris learns that his daughter might be possessed by witchcraft, and he does not want the townspeople to find out. He says to Thomas Putnam, “We cannot leap to witchcraft. They will howl me out of Salem for such corruption in my house.” (Act I, pg. 14). Caught in an ironic twist, Parris knows that if the people of Salem learn that the Reverend’s Christian daughter is possessed with witchcraft, they will oust him from the town, and he will lose his title and community. Reverend Parris must conform to the conventional norms he preaches. Next, Mary Warren, the housekeeper of the Proctor’s had created a poppet for sewing. When Elizabeth Proctor is charged with witchcraft for having the poppet, Mary fears telling the truth. Mary says to John nervously, “I cannot, they’ll turn on me.” (Act II, pg. 58). Mary’s internal conflict is between betraying Elizabeth or maintaining her friendship with Abigail and the other girls. Elizabeth Proctor will be charged for a crime she did not commit, but Mary does not speak the truth demonstrating how much group acceptance mean to her. Lastly, the girls of Salem treat Abigail as their leader, because she is the most assertive of the group. When Abigail pretends to be possessed by Mary Warren in the court, all the girls follow her lead, shouting “Abby, you mustn’t.” (Act III, pg. 82). The girls seek acceptance from Abigail because they don’t want to be excluded from the group. In a society where freedom is limited, the girls choose conformity over their personal morals. Due to the fear and panic surrounding Salem, many of the characters seek protection from group acceptance and conformity.
Finally multiple characters commit post conventional acts. Post conventionalism entails that the person behaves in a certain way because of their personal principles. Reward, punishment, and group acceptance are disregarded in favor of personal character and values. One such character is Reverend John Hale, who notices the corruption from the court officials. This makes him question his own personal morals. In the end, he ironically encourages Elizabeth Proctor to lie because it could save her from execution. He says to her, “God damns a liar less than he that throws his life away for pride.” (Act IV, pg. 132). Reverend Hale is a dynamic character because his discontentment with the court system inspires him to help innocent people being charged with crimes they didn’t commit. The truth guides his personal principles. Giles Corey is also charged with witchcraft, yet he refuses to confess to the crime, and he presents post conventional characteristics during his execution. Corey knows that his land will be granted to Thomas Putnam if he is found guilty of witchcraft. He fights against this false charge, “So he [stood] mute, and died Christian under the law,” and that guarantees “his sons will have the farm.” (Act IV, pg. 135). Giles Corey stands up for himself in court, and he would rather die knowing that his beloved farmland was granted to his own sons than to his town rival. His sense of justice is evident in his personal character. Lastly John Proctor confesses to false court charges, but he refuses to let the court publish his name on a document on the church door. He is unwilling to let them tarnish his good name and character, and he wants to protect his family’s honour. He begs Judge Danforth, “It is my name! … I cannot have another in my life! … I have given you my soul; now leave me my name!” (Act IV, pg. 145). Proctor displays post conventional characteristics because the punishment of death matters less to him than his family’s reputation. He has confessed to having an extramarital affair, and he accepts his fate, but he will not let his name be condemned by the town of Salem. He stands up for his family and their integrity, finally able to recognize “some shred of goodness” in his character. With the examples provided, it is proven that there are multiple characters who display post conventional behaviour.
Through Kohlberg’s “Moral Precepts,” the audience critically examines the characters’ motivations in Arthur Miller’s The Crucible. Because of the gender roles of women in the Puritan ages, women did not have legal protection or power. Further, through conformity, characters found strength in numbers. Finally, some male characters are able to maintain their personal values by sacrificing their lives. The Crucible was written in 1952 as a response to “McCarthyism” in the United States. The fear of communism led to mass hysteria and “blacklisting” of innocent people, similar to Salem during the witch trials. Today, the polarization of politics has led to conspiracy theories and blaming “others” for global problems.
