In fact, it is his journey from guilt to redemption that forms the central spine of The Crucible. The emotional weight of the play rests on Proctor's quest to regain his lost self-image, his lost goodness. When we first meet John Proctor halfway through Act I, we discover a man who has become the thing he hates most in the world: a hypocrite. All it took was one shameful encounter to destroy John's most prized possession: his self-respect. To make things worse, it was also lechery (Proctor was in his thirties and Abigail was just seventeen-yuck). John made the mistake of committing adultery with her. Proctor was super ill, btw) and, before he knew it, his good life was bad, bad, bad. This saucy young housekeeper traipsed in to John's life (while Mrs. Most importantly, John Proctor respected himself.Įnter: Abigail, the play's antagonist. He took pleasure in exposing hypocrisy and was respected for it. Around town, his name was synonymous with honor and integrity. Proctor was a stand-up guy who spoke his mind. Back in the day, he had everything your average Puritan man could want: a farm to ceaselessly toil upon, three sons to discipline, and a wife to make a home with. John Proctor, The Crucible's protagonist, has some major issues. (Hi, John!) He cheats on his wife, he can't remember the entire ten commandments even though he goes to church pretty much every week, he's more stubborn than a mule, and he's angry pretty much 100% of the time. (Click the character infographic to download.) Proctor's Problem(s)

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