9-2+Proctors

The Proctors Your Name: Becky Visintainer

Characters: 1. John Proctor 2. Elizabeth Proctor

Choose one of the characters above and answer the following questions from their perspective.

The character I chose was: John Proctor

1. What is the problem you are faced with? My wife, Elizabeth, has been charged with witchcraft. She has been put in jail. She is also pregnant. I have to plead her case in court in hopes that she will be free.

2. Who do you think is responsible for your problem, and what is motivating them? Abigail a long with the girls and the authority are responsible for Elizabeth's predicament. Abigail started all this nonsense. She began accusing innocent people in order to excuse her excursion in the woods with her friends. Abigail is inflicting fear throughout the town, and ruining families but she is looked upon like a saint! Abigail accused Elizabeth because she wants her dead because then she thinks I will marry her! Abigail now has the other young girls accusing townspeople of witchcraft, and the authority are also under Abigail's curse. Everyone is afraid to get on the bad side of Abigail in fear that their family or themselves will be accused of being a witch. She has the entire town under her control!!

3. How are you trying to solve your problem, and are you successful? I have joined forces with Giles Cory and Francis Nurse. Together we have gotten a petition of several signatures of townsmen saying their wives are not witches and that Abigail and the girls are lying. I had to beg Danforth to even look at it! I also tried to prove Abigail is a liar by confessing to the affair we had when she worked in my house. Of course this was not successful, because the authority wanted to confirm my confession by asking Elizabeth about it. It was the first time Elizabeth ever told a lie! She thought she was saving me but she was damning herself even more!

4. Is there anything ironic or contradictory about what you know and what you say or do? I called Abigail a whore even though I was the one who had an affair with her.

5. When you have completed your questions above, go to your group’s discussion page and post a discussion about how you feel the trial is going so far. Don’t forget to use specific examples, and sign your character’s name.

6. Next, log onto another group’s discussion page and respond to a posting as your character.

Project: You must write a letter and response from Elizabeth in jail to John OR A plea of innocence written to the court from both John and Elizabeth. Both responses should be one page total.