Notes

Ms. Wismann
English 11

Study Guide Questions ACT IV The Crucible

Why has Reverend Hale returned to Salem? He does so because he feels responsible for the miscarriage of justice that led them to their current situation.
What is Reverend Hale advising the condemned to do? Hale returns to Salem to convince the condemned prisoners to confess to witchcraft.
What does Reverend Parris reveal about his niece Abigail? Parris believes the girls may have been frightened by the rumors of the rebellion in Andover against the court.
What is the condition of Salem at this point? Bad.
Why would there be a riot in Salem if John Proctor and Rebecca Nurse are hanged?
People in the town respect John Proctor and Rebecca Nurse. The townspeople do not really believe they are witches, so they may riot against the court if they are hanged.
What does Reverend Parris want Danforth to do? He wants him to postpone the hangings of John Proctor and Rebecca Nurse
What does Reverend Hale want Danforth to do?
What does Reverend Hale mean when he says,"there is blood on my head!"? Hale says this on page 131, and he means that he feels guilty for the people he sentenced to hang when he was a part of the court. He feels guilty because he now realizes Abigail is a liar and there are no witches in Salem
Why does Danforth refuse to postpone the hangings? He says that 12 people have already been hanged for witchcraft, so it will make him (Danforth) look bad if he pardons anyone now.
What do Hale and Danforth request of Elizabeth Proctor? They ask Elizabeth to speak with John and get him to confess to witchcraft.
What happened to Giles Corey? Elizabeth tells John that Giles would not answer yes or no to being a witch, so they crushed him to death with heavy stones
What is the internal conflict John Proctor faces with confessing? How does John see himself? John's internal conflict is that he believes himself to be a bad person because of the affair with Abigail. He does not think he can refuse to confess and die as Giles did because he is not a good man like Giles was.
What is Elizabeth’s proof that John is a good man? She says he is a good man because he has help off confessing (lying) for this long already
How has Elizabeth changed since we first met her? She admits that she was partly to blame for the affair because she was such a cold wife. She forgives John and shows that she still loves him
After John confesses, what does Danforth want him to do? He wants him to sign his name to the confession, so that it can be hung up for everyone in town to see.
What is John’ final decision? Why does he do this? John signs the confession, but when he finds out that it will be hung up, he tears up the paper, which means he tears up his confession.
Explain the meaning of the quote: "I am John Proctor! You will not use me!"He finally sees himself as a good man with a good name. He does not want his good name to be used to support the witch craft lie.