How Jealousy Drove the Village of Salem to Murder (The Crucible Literary Analysis Essay Sample)

Ever since the beginning of time we have always experienced jealousy. No matter how big or small, jealousy has always been around. Jealousy can lead to terrible consequences. Jealousy can go as far as lying, deceit, and even murder. It is through jealousy that Arthur Miller has shown the murder of many innocents and a significant  cause of the witch  trials in his play “The Crucible”. Jealousy is the driving force in Arthur Miller’s The Crucible, leading many villagers to make false claims about others to get rid of them.

There are many moments in The Crucible where jealousy is shown, in this particular case it is romantic jealousy from Abigail, and it causes the deaths of many innocents.In this case jealousy is shown through Abigail's attraction to John and her own romantic jealousy of him and Elizabeth. Abigail shows her romantic jealousy in a conversation with John after he leaves the room of Ruth Putnam… 

“Abigail, grasping his hand before he can release her: John - I am waitin’’ for you every night.” (Miller.The Crucible.22)

Romantic jealousy is a very powerful thing in the case that most who are jealous think that the other person will always feel them to be special when that usually isn’t the case, leading them to take foolish actions and think outlandish things. In this specific instance of jealousy Cheever comes to the Proctor house to take Elizabeth to Salem. Proctor pries why and how and eventually Cheever says that he was given a warrant for her arrest, Proctor asks,  “…Proctor: Who charged her?”

Cheever: ”Why, Abigail Williams charge her”.” (Miller.The Crucible.73) 

In this quote Cheever comes to the Proctor house and arrests Elizabeth, when John asks who accused her he says that it was Abigail, this shows how Abigail is accusing Elizabeth of witchcraft purely based on her attraction to John along with her jealousy and hate of Elizabeth due to the fact that Elizabeth not only kicked her out, but is with the man who she loves in John.

Jealousy is a truly large part of the main focus of the play, specifically in this case Abigail again shows strong romantic jealousy. When Proctor is about to leave the village to return home Abigail stops him and has an important conversation with him. 

Abigail, with a bitter anger: Oh, I marvel how such a strong man may let such a sickly wife be

Proctor, angered - at himself as well: You’’ll speak nothin’’ of Elizabeth!

Abigail: She is blackening my name in the village! She is telling lies about me! .She is a cold, sniveling woman, and you bend to her! Let her turn you like a.” (Miller.The Crucible. 23-24)

Abigail attempts to turn John back to her but when he doesn’t she loses her temper and starts insulting his wife and saying many false things which shows that she has a true hatred and jealousy towards Elizabeth Proctor and her romance with John.

However, jealousy has been shown in many ways other than strictly romantic, such as jealousy between family. This is shown most strongly with Mrs. Putnam who had lost many of her children in childbirth. While in the Putnam house, Rebecca Nurse is checking on Ruth and they get into an argument about why these terrible things are happening. 

Rebecca: I cannot fathom that.

Mrs. Putnam, with a growing edge of sarcasm: But I must! You think it God’’s work you should never lose a child, nor grand-child either, and I bury all but one? There are wheels within wheels in this village, and fires within fires!” (Miller.The Crucible.28)

During this argument Mrs, Putnam refers to her lost children to Rebecca Nurse showing jealousy due to Rebecca Nurse having many children.

Reid Hany argues that reputation is the driving force in The Crucible. One example is when Abigail tells Parris why she was fired from the Proctor house…“My name is good in the Village! I will not have it said my name is soiled! Goody proctor is a gossiping liar!” (Miller 12). During this confrontation Abigail tells John that Elizabethis a liar and that she is ruining her name, and while some may see this as the fear of her reputation being ruined, it is in reality her being jealous of the fact that Elizabeth can ruin her name.. Another example shown by Reid is when Abigail and John confront each other in the woods and when John confronts her Abigail says…“God gave me strength to call them liars, and God made men to listen to me, and by God I will scrub the world clean” (Miller.The Crucible.150). During this confrontation Abigail talks about how she has all the power and refers to how men now have to listen to her, showing jealousy due to the fact that before she was never listened to or even thought of when it came to even the smallest things but now she has so much power to even decide who lives or dies.

In “The Crucible” by Arthur Miller, jealousy is the driving force of the conflicts rather than reputation. There are many examples that could be seen as reputation but are in reality, jealousy. Such as how Abigail has a vendetta against Elizabeth Proctor, some may see her anger as coming from the ruining of her reputation by Elizabeth.  But I believe that this is showing much more jealousy than reputation, when it is shown that later in the story Abigail has feelings for John, this shows how Abigail is much more motivated by jealousy rather than her own reputation.

The driving force in Arthur Miller’s “The Crucible” is jealousy, which causes many characters to make false accusations to get back at those they don’t like. Characters like Abigail Williams exemplify this with her constant false claims at those that she has even the slightest dislike of. The idea that jealousy is a driving force can be found in many things throughout the world and in all of us no matter how big or small.