Saturday, March 21, 2015

During the crying out in The Crucible, who is accused of what and by whom?

It really depends on which act you are referring to, because there sure is a whole lot of "crying out" that occurs in the play.  So let's start with Act One.  At the very end of Act One, the first person to "cry out" against another person is Abby.  The adults are circling, accusing her of making potions and spells.  Hale has found out about the dancing, and about the frog that Abby claimed "leapt in" to the pot of its own accord.  She is afraid that she is going to be accused of being a witch.  So, she lashes out at Tituba.  She says, "Not I, Tituba" in response to their questions about whether or not they were conjuring spirits.  That gets the heat off of her back for a bit as they turn on Tituba.


Tituba is then accused of witchcraft, and told that if she doesn't confess, she is going to be whipped or hanged.  So, she takes the "easy" route, and starts to "confess" her crimes.  She admits to trafficking with the devil, and when they ask her who else she saw with Satan, she accuses Goody Osburn and Goody Good.  As soon as she does this, her accusers turn friendly, and treat her like an angel.  Abby clues in on this, and thinks, "Hey, that could work," and then too "confesses" and blames other women for making her do evil things.  Then, following Abby's lead, all of the other girls chime in, naming people.  During this initial spat of accusations, no one is directly accused of anything; the girls and Tituba just said that they saw various women "with the devil."  The reason they are accused is so that the girls can get out of getting in trouble for the dancing.


In Act Two, offstage, Martha Corey is accused of curing Walcott's pigs, making them die, and Goody Nurse is accused of the "supernatural murder of Goody Putnam's babies."  Goody Osburn is accused of witchcraft and mumbling curses.Then, Elizabeth is accused of trying to kill Abby through a voodoo doll.  In Act Three, Proctor is accused of trafficking with the devil.


That should cover most of the major accusations that are given.  I hope that helped; good luck!

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