The Crucible, written by Arthur Miller, depicts life in Salem, Massachusetts amidst the Salem witch trials. During this time period, everyday townspeople thought to be associated with witchcraft were thoroughly investigated, falsely accused and unfortunately hung based off of the unsubstantiated claims of others. Reverend John Hale, a minister summoned to Salem with the initial goal of investigating witchcraft within the town, is later cursed with inevitable feelings of remorse for the events that have transpired. Throughout The Crucible, Reverend Hale transitions from confident and respected to defeated and remorseful through his own statements, other characters’ reactions to him, and the use of stage directions.
Reverend Hale eagerly arrives in Salem with the goal of seeking out those associated with witchcraft and bringing them to justice. Hale is considered by the town, as well as himself, to be an expert on witchcraft. He is introduced in Act one where his arrival is met with praise and respect by those in the community. Since he is considered to be a “specialist” (p.33) in witchcraft, he is greeted, despite the unfortunate purpose of his trip being known, with “delight” and enthusiasm. (p.34) His reputation within the community is strong since he recently “found a witch in Beverly.” (p.14) The townspeople, aware of his credibility, trust his opinions on witchcraft and as Parris states, “abide by his judgement.” (p.38) The townspeople believe Hale to be a reasonable and sensible man, with the kind of expertise that will ultimately help save Salem from those afflicted by the Devil. Throughout the first act, Hale holds himself in high regard and is confident in his abilities to ascertain witchcraft within the community. Hale, as described by Miller, considers himself to be “allied with the best minds in Europe,” who feels “pride” in his accomplishments. (p.36) He is knowledgeable on how witchcraft works and the “precise” qualities of the Devil, (p.38) which helps to further solidify his reputation. He even, “with a tasty love of intellectual pursuit,” references his books, explaining ways in which the Devil presents himself when “stripped of all his brute disguises.” (p.39) Hale is aware that the entire community is looking to him for answers regarding if witchcraft is the cause of the upheaval within the town. He uses his books and reputation to his advantage, reassuring the townspeople that he has the knowledge necessary to expose any witches. Throughout the first act, Hale is completely in charge of the situation presented to him. While urging Betty to awaken, “the others watch breathlessly” anticipating his every move. (p.41) As the act unfolds, Hale solely begins to question Abigail and Tituba both with an urgent and direct tone. Since Hale is considered to be the leader throughout these scenes, he is commanding of the room and acts as though he is superior to the townspeople, in both morality and intelligence. His intimidating nature towards those he is questioning is rewarding as Abigail, Tituba and the girls all begin to shout out names of people they saw with the devil. Here, Hale, not the court, has the power to afflict and even encourage suspicion onto anyone he believes to be associated with the Devil, which in turn gets them into trouble with the law. Throughout Act one Reverend Hale is calm and collected, his confidence is strong and his motives are clear.
Throughout Acts two and three, Reverend Hale’s opinions, shown through the use of stage directions and dialogue, towards the court and witch trials start to shift. Hale’s hopeful attitude regarding the just nature of the court in Act 2 is contrasted by his later feelings of doubt and shock at what the court decides to believe. Hale demonstrates his trust in the court as he consoles Francis Nurse, whose wife has just been arrested saying, “the court will send her home I know it” and that “the justice of the court” will allow her to be set free. (p.71) As soon as Hale realizes that the court system is functioning solely based off of the “private vengeances” (p.114) of mainly Abigail, he “begs” the court to “stop before another is condemned.” (p.114) Throughout the last scenes of Act 3, Hale is desperate, begging the court to see Abigail for the fraud that she is. Hale now sees that the court is condemning the innocent based off of faulty evidence and personal motives, causing him to lose his previous hopeful and trusting view of the court. He begins to lose trust in the court, realizing that the system is becoming, with every false testimony, increasingly more unfair. Hale, starting to realize the error of his ways, shifts his purpose from condemning the innocent to defending the accused. Hale, once sure of his beliefs and connections to the court, is now distraught, his confidence shook. This, in turn, causes him to questions his role within the trials and begin to feel guilty for the lives he has signed away. He understands the magnitude of his decision to sign “seventy-two death warrants” without, up until this point, truly examining any evidence that has not been affected by bias. (p.99) Hale decides that he “dare not take a life without there be proof so immaculate no slightest qualm of conscience may doubt it.” (p.99) His confidence in his own, as well as the court’s abilities to distinguish witches from the innocent starts to deteriorate, causing Hale to question his earlier, now destructive choices. By the end of act 3, Reverend Hale is completely fed up with the false accusations and the chaos of the trials, causing his respect for the court to completely diminish. After realizing the almost corrupt nature of the court, Hale storms out of the courtroom exclaiming that he “denounces these proceedings” and evidently, “quits the court.” (p.120) Hale realizes that the trials are solely based off of the lies of others and no longer wants to be a part of a system that is potentially putting innocent people to death. By disassociating himself with the court, Hale is finally able to recognize and come to terms with the hypocrisy and negligence within a court that he once respected.
In the final act of The Crucible, Reverend Hale’s character completely contrasts that of the person he was when he first arrived in Salem. Hale, now experiencing the consequences of his actions, is completely defeated. After Hale returns to Salem, he is described as “steeped in sorrow, exhausted, and more direct than” ever. (p.129) He is still overwhelmed and greatly affected by the trials, feeling as though he “mistook” his own duties. Even though Hale believed he had good, godly intentions at the beginning of the play, he has now come to the realization that whatever he “touched with his great confidence,…died” and wherever he “turned the eye of faith, blood flowed up.” (p.132) His previous goal of seeking out and condemning the witches of Salem has shifted to urging the accused to sign false confessions, basically lying to save their lives. Reverend Hale’s mentality is so broken that he is willing to go against his religious values, which were once strong and rooted in trust and loyalty, to encourage the accused to lie in court, under the wrath of God, in order to salvage what pride he still has left. Hale now fully disagrees with the ways in which the court is being run. He believes that the accused “must” now be pardoned, which contradicts his previous belief that the accused should be at the mercy of the court. Hale acts “with a climactic desperation” (p.132) urging Elizabeth, with no success, to convince her husband to confess in order to save his life. He has become outspoken, his beliefs being dismissed in court. Knowing that the accused do not have much time before their execution, Hale act desperately, trying to find reason within the claims of Abigail and the girls. His quick to accuse attitude displayed is Act 1, is now replaced with feelings of uncertainty surrounding the innocence of the accused and how they should be treated. Hale feels remorse for his actions and by this point, has become overcome with guilt for the events that have transpired. He finally breaks down, exclaiming “there is blood on my head!” (p.131) expressing his guilt over the 12 people he sentenced for execution. Since Hale has now become so invested in saving the accused, specifically Proctor, if Proctor “is taken” Hale would take his death upon himself thus considering himself “his murderer.” (p.131) Hale no longer wants to condemn those of witchcraft, as he did before but sees pardoning those as an act of redemption. He hopes to relieve himself of the guilt brought on by his previous actions. In Act 4, Reverend Hale, motivated by his guilty conscience, is driven mad as shown through the use stage directions and his relationships with others.
Reverend Hale, as the play unfolds begins to question his relationship with the town and court as his guilty conscience starts to overcome him. Hale, who has come to Salem to help rid the town of witchcraft, eventually contradicts his former beliefs. Through realizing the amount of injustice present within the court, he is able to undergo a change of purpose. Through the use of stage directions, interactions with others and his own statements, Miller demonstrates how Hale although entering Salem, exited, ultimately leaves feeling remorseful and defeated.