Act IV

(Scenes 1 and 2)From start of Act to entrance of Proctor

(Scenes 3 and 4)From Entrance of Proctor to Epilogue

Act Four takes place in the Salem jail, dimly lit by moonlight seeping through the bars. The light of goodness is still present, though it has been greatly dimmed. No longer the bright sunlight of Act Three, we now see only the reflected light of the moon. While evil has managed to overpower good, as is vividly portrayed in the apparent madness of Tituba and Sarah Good, it cannot be obliterated.

Time has passed since Act Three, and it is now fall. The symbolism of the season is apparent. Fall is the time of fruition, when crops reach their fullness and are harvested. It also heralds a time of death and decay. The hysteria of the witch trials has now reached its peak and is approaching its inevitable end.

The setting of Act 4 is just about as bleak and confined as it could be. As well as the darkness of the setting, we are struck by the emptiness of the room. Here, life is stripped down to the bare minimum. The setting in Act 4 is somewhat ironic when compared to Act 3 as it is this foul and dingy prison cell where honour and integrity is found and ultimately where redemption is achieved.

Study Questions read to “in the corridor outside...”

1. What are Tituba and Sarah Good discussing as the act opens? Escaping to Barbados with the Devil

2. How does Tituba describe the devil in Barbados? A fun character, ‘pleasureman’.

3. What has happened that has made Parris so anxious? Dagger/rebellion/Abigail’s disappearance

4. What happened in Andover? A similar court investigating witchcraft was overthrown

5. Why is Parris afraid to hang John Proctor and Rebecca Nurse the next morning? It might begin a similar rebellion

6. Why is Parris more frightened to hang Proctor and Nurse than anyone else? Their standing/reputation in the village

7. Why does Parris request a postponement of the hangings? To give them time to confess

8. What does Hale request instead of postponement? Pardons

9. Why does Danforth refuse Hale’s request? Would be a sign of weakness

10. What has Hale been advising those condemned to do? Lie and confess to save their lives

11. What does Hale plead with Elizabeth to do? Convince John to confess

12. Why does Hale believe a lie would not be a sin in this case? Life is a sacred gift and God may see it as less of a sin to lie than to throw away a life

13. Why is Hale so adamant in his attempts to convince Elizabeth? He feels that if John dies he would be responsible.

HALE

Hale has now come full circle in his development. While he appeared in Salem bearing the weighty authority of his books on the devil and witchcraft, he is now there to attempt to reverse the consequences of that early behaviour. Far from examining the souls of these men and women and judging their content, he is now encouraging them to lie and save their lives. Hale is finally acting as an individual, and he attempts to persuade others to do the same. The trials had been a farce, and Hale saw no sin in telling a lie to an unjust authority to save one’s life. This action illustrates how disillusioned he is with the justice system and the church. Those who refuse to confess are actually truer to their faith than he.

“Let you not mistake your duty as I mistook my own”

Write Hale’s journal entry of that day. You should include:

  • His intentions when arriving at the jail that morning
  • His feelings about the other characters (especially the court)
  • His hope for John and Elizabeth’s discussion
  • His overall feelings about his time in Salem.