The Crucible: John Proctor as a Tragic Hero Essay

A tragic hero is one who falls from greatness which leads to his or her tragic downfall. To be a tragic hero he or she must fulfill all of the expectations that a tragicherowould follow. John Proctor is the tragic hero because he does fall from greatness. Proctor has many positive traits about him, such as his noble characteristics and his honorable and righteousqualities. He however also had a flaw, his affair with Abigail Williams. Also his excessive pride and stubborn actions lead Proctor to his eventual downfall.

If Proctor went to church, Hale would not be suspicious of the Proctor family. I dont go to church on Sundays, Proctor is stating that he barely go to church on Sundays. The only reason why Proctor didnt go to church is because he thought that Reverend Parris only talked about the devil and its evilness. Because of his actions it leads him to his downfall. Since Proctor did not go to church it was consider a bad man, and it was used against Proctor when he was in court.

The fact that John Proctor realized all his mistakes was another reason why he can be considered a tragichero (discover something about himself). He confessed to his wife that he had an affair with Abigail. In Act two Proctor says "..I wilted, and like a Christian I confessed, confessed!". He also confessed tothe courtthis. He realized he was wrong for what he did and apologized.

Near the end when Proctor had to sign a warrant admitting he is a witch, he ripped up the paper because he did not want his signature to be shown to people (he does not want to tarnish his good name). Proctor would rather be hanged than to confess to a lie. When Proctor says ".. because I lie and I sign my name to lies. I cannot live without my name; I have given you my soul leave me my name." (Act four). With these final words John Proctor is able to die with honor just like a tragichero.

Proctor nobility also played a vital role in his downfall. His pride would not allow him to ruin his reputation in the village and therefore allowed Abigail to continue in her plan in seeking the love of Proctor. If Proctor did not have an affair with Abigail in the first place, Abigail would not be jealous of Elizabeth Proctor; the entire witch hysteria probably would not exist. Proctor would have survived if he had not done wrong. Proctors struggles made him a tragic hero.