Prompt:
Discuss the ideas developed by the text creator in your chosen text about how acts of courage develop ones identity.
Heros and martyrs wield enormous power, acts of courage change all who are around them. One could argue that self sacrifice and courage as were those wrongly accused of witchcraft, in the Crucible, can alter the identities of men such as John Proctor and Reverend Hail, to bring them to acts of courage themselves.
John Proctor is a hard working farmer who lives outside of Salem, he was unfaithful to his wife with a servant girl, Abigail Williams, who is fired. Abigail later becomes the chief accuser of the court to find users of witchcraft; to get back at Goody Proctor, and to clear the way to marry John, she accuses Goody Proctor of witchcraft. John, in the attempt to clear the names of those wrongly accused of witchcraft, who would deny the false charges, confesses his lechery for and explains that Abigail accusations are false and biased. But Abigail claims to be attacked by witchcraft, and that John did it.
On the day that John would be executed, Reverend Hail. Attempts to persuade the condemned to lie and live. For the sake of his children John Proctor agrees, Which greatly excites the Judges because if a prominent member of the community broke so more are likely to. They brought him the document and eagerly ask who he saw with the devil. He denies seeing any one with the devil. John refuses to sign his name, his word is enough. But they keep pressing him which brings the line “I have given you my soul, leave me my name.” The inquire as to what this mean and John admits to lying to them and his hung. One can see how John’s courage fostered by that of the others condemned to die his courage, stubbornness and pride brought him to and act of courage of his own.
Another very important person in the Crucible is Rev Hail. Summoned to Salem to act as God’s man in the court, but after seeing the good that the accused had done in Salem, and John Proctor’s self sacrifice of his reputation in the attempt to save his wife. He leaves. And returns to try and get the good people to lie and live. He eventually admits it to the court and denounces it. An act that have sent many to the dungeon.
One can see that in the Crucible the courage of the condemned inspired others to courage which transforms one such as Proctor from in fear of the past to living his convictions, Hail from quiet observer to outspoken activist.
