One Of The Natural Instincts Of Mankind

Insecurity is an innate part of human life, but it can cause people to do things that they otherwise would find horrible. One of mankind’s natural instinct is to be insecure, as people are insecure due to a fear of not knowing what will happen to them. Insecurity can lead to people making rash or harsh decisions. The fear of judgment often clouds the minds of people, making said people think in a much more narrowminded way and bringing out the worst in people: unnecessary betrayal. In The Crucible, by Arthur Miller, the town of Salem is in a chaotic and hysterical struggle, as a large portion of the town has been accused of witchcraft. Obviously, these people had not been practicing witchcraft, but in an attempt to save their own lives, almost everyone who is accused accuses someone else.

Through how Miller shows Abigail's lack of care for human life when she is accused of dancing in a ritual, and how he shows Reverend Parris’ lack of care for his own daughter’s life once Abigail is caught dancing in the woods, Miller is able to show that when people are insecure, their values are distorted and their actions become vulgar. Miller is able to convey that people’s values and actions become distorted under insecurity through how he is able to show Abigail’s sudden lack of care for human life once she had been accused. Right before the beginning of the play, Abigail was caught dancing in the woods. She doesn’t want to get in trouble, but she truly fears that her uncle, Reverend Parris, will think that she is performing a witchcraft ritual.

When she is implored to confess her crimes, she refuses and insists that there was no witchcraft involved. However, later when people from the town confront her, she says that it was Tituba who was the witch and that she forced the girls into the ritual. Abigail says that Tituba is controlling her and that Tituba “sends her spirit on [her] in church”. Abigail, when the possibility of being judged or possibly hanged makes her insecure, decides to lie and accuse one of her neighbors and friends of a crime punishable by death. She is pressured to lie by her own insecurities and is willing to allow her friend to die because of her fears of being judged. Through how Miller is able to show these vulgar actions in Abigail, he is able to show how insecurities can cause people to do truly horrible acts. Miller is also able to show the distortion of values and contamination of actions in people due to insecurity through how he conveys Abigail’s actions once she is caught lying.

Order custom essay One Of The Natural Instincts Of Mankind with free plagiarism report

450+ experts on 30 subjects Starting from 3 hours delivery

Get Essay Help

Once Tituba confesses to witchcraft and is struggling to keep her lies believable, Abigail accuses more people of witchcraft in an attempt to not be punished. She directs the attention away from her by saying that “[She] saw Sarah Good with the Devil! [She] saw Goody Osburn with the Devil! [She] saw Bridget Bishop with the Devil!”. Due to her insecurity and the immense fear of almost being caught, she is willing to direct the punishment that she would have received onto others, forcing innocent people to be punished with possible death sentences. By showing Abigail’s ruthless actions once she is close to being caught, Miller is able to convey the idea that people become crafty and are willing to hurt others to save themselves once they are insecure. Miller is able to show people’s sudden change into a more vulgar and distorted version of themselves once they are insecure through how he portrays Abigails and the actions Abigails does to ensure her survival.

Miller is also able to convey his argument, that people’s values and actions become distorted under insecurity, through how Reverend Parris reacts to his daughter being comatose and his niece being caught dancing and possibly witchcraft. Once Abigail is caught dancing in the woods, and Parris believes that she is participating in a ritual, Parris becomes extremely paranoid. He fears that he will be overthrown by a party of the town, he fears that the devil has infiltrated his house, he fears that his daughter is dying, but he mostly fears that the town will not respect him as much. When he is arguing with Abigail about her punishment, Parris scolds Abigail saying “ if you trafficked with spirits in the forest I must know it now, for surely my enemies will, and they will ruin me with it”.

Miller here is saying that he is worried about losing power and that he doesn’t care much about his family. Miller uses this dialogue from Parris to show that Parris is both extremely insecure about the current situation and having his values shifted by this insecurity. Parris, who is a holy and respected man, is unable to think about any consequences other than his own safety due to the pressure of the insecurity of being attacked by defamation. This idea, that Parris became narrow-minded once he started to feel insecure, is also shown later when Parris is looking over the consequences of the alleged witchcraft.

When talking to Betty about the consequences of her dancing in the woods, Parris says he is upset with the situation, “for now [his] ministry's at stake, [his] ministry and perhaps [her] cousin's life”. Parris’ emphasis of the possible downfall of his ministry, shown through how he repeats it, over the possible death of Betty conveys that he cares more about his ministry over his daughter. This shift of values from what a normal father would have to what Parris displays is a perfect example of Miller's argument. Miller is able to show that when people are insecure or fearful of what is going to happen, they act irrationally, disorderly, and vulgar. Miller's use of Parris, and his reactions to the idea of losing his ministry or daughter, encapsulates his argument and show that insecurity and fear cause people to do horrible things.

Don't let plagiarism ruin your grade

Run a free check or have your essay done for you

Check my essay Hire Writer