Act one starts with a description of the town of Salem. The
town is ruled by religion and its people follow a strict creed. When the play
opens Reverend Parris is praying over his daughter, Betty Parris, who lies
unmoving and ill on her bed. Rumors are circulating around town of witchcraft,
so Parris sends for Reverend John Hale to see if his daughter is possessed. Parris
questions his niece, Abigail, about the night before when he caught her, Betty,
Tituba, and some other girls dancing in the forest. Abigail denies that they
were doing any witchcraft. This is when the theme of truth v lies is introduced.
We meet Mr. and Mrs. Putnam whose daughter, Ruth, has also
fallen ill. We learn that there is tension between Mr. Putnam and Parris. Mrs.
Putnam has had many miscarriages and believes it is due to witchcraft. The idea
of witches is spreading to everyone making them more susceptible to believe the
girls were visited by the Devil. We also meet John Proctor, the main character.
It is revealed that Proctor and Abigail have a romantic history. Abigail is still
in love with Proctor, but he does not want to risk losing his wife and kids.
John Hale pushes Abigail to confess to what happened in the
forest and she blames it all in Tituba. Tituba, wanting to save her life starts
to name names of other people she allegedly saw with the Devil. Abigail and Betty
also start to name names and the mass hysteria begins.
The themes of jealousy and betrayal become very apparent in
this act. I understand why so many people choose to turn in names instead of telling
the truth. I will be interested to learn more about the character of John
Proctor.
-Camryn Lesh
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