While reading The Crucible I noticed
several distinctive characters whose actions were driven by their True Colors,
or their assigned personality traits. As we already discussed, Doer’s are courageous,
act on a moment’s notice, and are hands on. Thinkers are logical problem solvers.
Helpers tend to be emotional, considerate of other people, and want to make
peace and avoid conflict. Planners are organizers. From reading these character traits, I was able to categorize the two main characters
of Act Two, Elizabeth and Proctor, by their actions. I deemed the character of Elizabeth as a
Helper and Mr. Proctor as a Doer.
The
first character I was able to put in a personality group was Elizabeth. Her character
really stood out to me because of her actions. Throughout Act Two, she only
wants to make peace and dislikes the corruption and fighting the town is going
through. She doesn’t like conflict, and always attempts to avoid it. For example, Elizabeth mentions Mary Warren
leaving the house despite her directions to stay, and then tells Proctor that
she let her go. Elizabeth took this action because she is a Helper, and wants
to avoid conflict with Mary Warren (Miller 52). Elizabeth also tells Proctor to
expose the issue from the day before as a fraud, and urges him to tell Ezekiel
about it (Miller 53). She again, does this because she wants peace in the town.
When talking to Proctor, I noticed she was very careful about what she said.
She doesn’t want to anger him, and on page 53, before her line, after Proctor
asks her a question, in italics it says “She
doesn’t want friction” (Miller 53). So Elizabeth is a very peaceful Helper,
and does her best to avoid all fighting. In the end of Act Two, in a final
struggle, she willingly goes with Hale after being tried for witch craft to
protect her husband Proctor from getting hurt and causing uproar (Miller 77). All
of her actions are driven by her personality group. As a unanimous Helper,
Elizabeth tries to keep herself and others from arguing with each other.
Like Elizabeth, I was also able to pick up on Proctor’s personality group. It was a hard choice, but in the end, I deemed Proctor as a Doer rather than a Thinker, Helper, or Planner. From the very beginning of Act Two there is a hint that Proctor might be a Doer. With his wife, he discusses how he was farming outside all day (Miller 49). That is a major indicator that Proctor is a Doer because farming is a very hands-on activity and occupation, and people with hands-on jobs tend to be Doers. Another thing I noticed about Proctor that revealed him as being a Doer was how he dealt with Elizabeth’s sad mood. He knew she was upset, and instead of trying to talk to her about why, he offered to buy her a cow from his friend instead to make her happy (Miller 50). Doers like to DO things for people to cheer them up rather than talk to them, so that was another indicator. I also noticed that Proctor did a lot of things on the spot, especially when angry. When Mary walked in, he immediately grabbed for his whip and meant to hurt her (Miller 55). When his wife was issued a warrant of arrest, he suddenly ripped it from the man’s hands and tore it in half without thinking (Miller 76). And finally, when his wife is taken, he vows to her that he will rescue her and challenge the courts, which is a very courageous thing to do, and a definite Doer trait (Miller 77). Proctor even tells Mary Warren that he will ruin Abigail by revealing her dishonesty to the court . He means to do this by telling them the story of their ‘affair’ in order to have them spare his wife (Miller 80). That is a very courageous thing to do and Proctor doesn’t think much on it. He seems fully prepared to march in and do just that. All of these actions of Proctor’s made me categorize him as a Doer.
Like
most say, actions speak louder than words. Elizabeth’s actions allowed me to put her in
the Helper group, and Proctor’s in the Doer
group. Elizabeth tried to avoid conflict and make peace with everyone, even
when facing false accusations, and
Proctor was courageous and did things on a moment’s notice, and even planned to
go as far as condemn himself to save his wife. These characters were strongly
driven, and they did the things they did because of the type of character they
were, and I believe that I put them in the right group.
Miller, Arthur. The Crucible. New York,
NY: Penguin, 1996. Print.
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