COMPREHENSION
Quote / Main Idea / SummaryCheever: “There be so many cows wanderin’ the highroads, now their masters are in the jails, and much disagreement who they will belong to now. I know Mr. Parris be arguin’ with farmers all yesterday – there is great contention, sir, about the cows. Contention make him weep, sir; it were always a man that weep for contention”
Parris: “… it were another sort that hanged till now. Rebecca Nurse is no Bridget that lived three year with Bishop before she married him. John Proctor is no Isaac Ward that drank his family to ruin. …I would to God it were not so, Excellency, but these people have great weight yet in the town.”
Danforth: “Now hear me, and beguile yourselves no more. I will not receive a single plea for pardon or postponement. Them that will not confess will hang. Twelve are already executed; the names of these seven are given out, and the village expects to see them die this morning. […] While I speak God’s law, I will not crack its voice with whimpering.”
Elizabeth: “John, it come to naught that I should forgive you, if you’ll not forgive yourself. […] It is not my soul, John, it is yours. […] Only be sure of this, for I know it now: whatever you will do, it is a good man does it.”
Proctor: “Because it is my name! Because I cannot have another in my life! Because I lie and sign myself to lies! Because I am not worth the dust on the feet of them that hang! How may I live without my name? I have given you my soul; leave me my name.”
Which quote will best support the generalization that Parris has reconsidered the executions?
A) “If you desire a cup of cider, Mr. Proctor, I am sure I-“
B) “It cannot be forgot, sire, that when I summoned the congregation for John Proctor’s excommunication there were hardly thirty people come to hear it.”
C) “You cannot hang this sort. There is danger for me. I dare not step outside at night!”
D) “There be a faction here, feeding on that news, and I tell you true, sir, I fear there will be riot here.”
Why does Danforth continue with the proceedings?
A) He has no other choice
B) Doubt would be raised concerning those who have already been executed
C) It is the wish of the public
D) He is doing God’s work
Explain why Giles Corey’s land could not be taken by the court.
INTERPRETATION/ANALYSISLITERARYELEMENTSDEVICES
1) “[A] I should hang ten thousand that dared to rise against the law, and [B] an ocean of salt tears could not melt the resolution of the statutes.”
Identify the figurative language used in part A.
- Simile
- Hyperbole
- Metaphor
- Personification
What effect does the author wish to achieve in part A?
a. He wishes to alienate the audience
b. He wishes to stress the seriousness of Danforth’s statement
c. He wishes to exaggerate the willingness of Danforth to proceed
d. He is comparing the executions to the law.
Which of the following does not describe the effect of the imagery that describes the emotions of the populace?
- It shows the emotions of the population.
- It shows the cold-hearted nature of Danforth.
- It shows the severity of the emotional reaction
- It exaggerates the apathetic nature of the crowds
2) “[A] Suspicion kissed you when I did; [B] I never knew how I should say my love. It were a cold house I kept!”
Identify the figurative language in part A.
- Personification – because suspicion is given the human action of kissing
- Personification – because kissing cannot be suspicious; it is a human emotion
- Paradox – the kiss is contradictory to the human emotion of suspicion
- Metaphor – the kiss is compared to suspicion
What effect does the author strive to achieve in part B?
a. He wishes to symbolize the mood of the Proctor household.
b. He wishes to exaggerate Elizabeth’s ignorance
c. He wishes to explicitly state the role of the woman in Puritanic society
d. He wishes to exaggerate the temperature of the Proctor household.
3) Herrick enters with John Proctor. His wrists are chained. He is another man, bearded, filthy, his eyes misty as though webs had overgrown them. He halts inside the doorway his eye caught by the sight of Elizabeth. The emotion flowing between them prevents anyone from speaking for an instant.
Explain what effect the playwright would want this image to have on the audience?
4) Describe the mood at the end of Act IV using at least two forms of figurative language or literary devices.
INTERPRETATION/ANALYSISTEXTORGANIZATIONALSKILLS
Cause and Effect
Some forms of writing may be organized through cause and effect. In other words, an action occurs, and naturally, a consequence follows. Fill in the cause or effect in the chart below.
Cause / EffectGiles Corey is pressed to death by stones.
Reverend Hale prays with those about to be executed.
A dagger falls from Rev. Parris’s door.
John Proctor refuses to give names.
Tituba and Sarah Good leave for Barbados.
Cows overtake the town.
1) Contrast the fate of Proctor with that of Parris:
2) How does Giles’s last words influence Proctor?
3) During what month were more people accused than any other?
4) During what month were more people executed than any other?
5) Knowing what you know about the play, what may have caused the executions to cease in month 9?
INTERPRETATION/ANALYSISPERSUASIVETECHNIQUES
Pretend that you are Parris, Hathorn, or Danforth. Compose a journal entry that reveals your reasons for continuing the executions.
From the journal of: ______
1) How does your writing/ characterization differ from the narrative?
2) Who is the protagonist?
How might the storyline differ if the protagonist was:
- Hale:
- Rev. Parris:
- Abigail:
- Danforth:
3) Define bias:
4) Is this play biased? Why or why not?
VOCABULARY
Find at least 10 words from Act III that you may be unfamiliar with. Break down the word and find the meaning of its parts. Your word may not have a prefix, root, or suffix, that’s OK. Once you are finished breaking down the word, look up its dictionary definition and see if it all makes sense.
Word / Prefix / Meaning / Root/ Base / Meaning / Suffix / Meaning / Denotation