Susan Michelle Monroe

A Leigh
Phoenix 1 Period 3
17 November 2015

The Crucible Conflict Analysis

John Proctor and Reverend John Hale in Acts 1 and 2
John Proctor: Internal
John Proctor faces an internal conflict of guilt in Act 2. John Proctor cheated on
his wife and while his wife forgave him, she still struggled to trust him. In act 2 the
setting is John Proctors house where he is seen eating dinner with his wife. Before they
eat, He gets up, goes to her, [and] kisses her. She receives it. With a certain
disappointment, he returns to the table (50). It is evident that Elizabeth, his wife is
skeptical and hesitant to fully trust him again. Meanwhile, the guilt remains a war inside
John Proctor. When Elizabeth questions him about Abigail on page 54, his anger rises
and he takes his inner conflict out on her. Throughout this scene, sheloses all faith in
him (54) and every time she does this, he falls sad as his guilt pervades over. John
proctor continues to battle the guilt when he asked to recite the Ten Commandments. He
forgets one commandment, which is adultery. [As] though a secret has aimed his
heart, he falls disappointed in himself again. His guilt is a major internal conflict and it
eats him away throughout this scene.
John Proctor: External
John Proctor faces an external conflict when he tries to prove his innocence to
Reverend Hale. In scene two, he is examined to see if he is involved in witchcraft. Hale
has suspicion whether he is a good Christian man. Proctor says, I nailed the roof upon
the church, (53) as an example of a good Christian duty. Though seemingly not enough
evidence to prove Hales witchcraft theory wrong, he asks Proctor to recite the Ten
Commandments. After doing so, he proves his innocence until he announces that the
childrens sickness had not to do with witchcraft (68). Startled, Hale continues to
question him. This entire episode of arguing back and forth represents the emotional
external conflict which arises over the topic of Proctors faith.
Reverend Hale: Internal
An internal conflict takes place as Hale must decide between the innocent and the
guilty during the Salem Witch Trials. In the character summary on page 32-36, the
passage talks about how Hale encountered a witch in the perish, (33) making him fully
aware that there was indeed witches among them. Having this in his mind, he was more
likely to believe that someone was a witch. Towards the end of the second scene he is put
to the test to decide who is a witch, as he does throughout the book. Listening to Proctor
argue that he is a good Christian man, Hale must make that internal decision to agree or
disagree with Proctor. He agrees with Proctor, but he charges Mary Warren and Elizabeth
proctor for the cold and cruel murder of Abigail (76) and is convinced they are witches.

Susan Michelle Monroe

A Leigh
Phoenix 1 Period 3
17 November 2015
With his previous witch encounter, he already has the idea that witches are real and now
must decide between who is a witch and who is not. This internal conflict is a conflict
that would either save or penalize someone .
Hale: External
Hale must help save Betty Paris in an external conflict with society. As he arrives, many
people in the room with which Hale entered flaunter over Hale and his power. He must
rip and tear [Betty] away to free her, (17) if she is in the Devils grip. He is put to the
task with extreme responsibility to save Parris daughter. He later in the scene continues
to try to help the child by asking Abigail and Tituba questions related to the incident. This
conflict arose whenever he entered to find Betty Paris in a coma until she was awoken.