The Crucible Important Quotations

"I have broke charity with the woman, I have broke charity with her."

Giles to Danforth

"I will come to you in the black of some terrible night and I will bring a pointy reckoning that will shudder you.... I can make you wish you had never seen the sun go down!"

Abigail to Betty, Mercy, Mary

"Let you beware, Mr. Danforth. Think you to be so mighty that the power of Hell may not turn your wits? Beware of it!"

Abigail to Danforth

"I want to open myself!.... I want the light of God, I want the sweet love of Jesus! I dance for the Devil; I saw him, I wrote in his book; I go back to Jesus; I kiss His hand. I saw Sarah Good with the Devil! I saw Goody Osburn with the Devil! I saw Bridget Bishop with the Devil!"

Abigail to Hale

"I look for John Proctor that took me from my sleep and put knowledge in my heart! I never knew what pretense Salem was, I never knew the lying less I was taught by all these Christian women and their covenanted men! And now you bid me tear the light out of my eyes? I will not, I cannot! You loved me, John Proctor, and whatever sin it is, you love me yet!"

Abigail to John Proctor

"There be so many cows wanderin' the highroads, now their masters be 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."

Cheever to Danforth

"No, old man, you have not hurt these people if they are of good conscience. But you must understand, sir, that a person is either with this court or he must be counted against it, there be no road between. This is a sharp time, now, a precise time- we live no longer in the dusky afternoon when evil mixed itself with good and befuddled the world. Now, by God's grace, the shining sin is up, and them that fear not light sill surely praise it. I hope you will be one of those."

Danforth

"Do you take it upon yourself to determine what this court shall believe and what is shall set aside?.... This is the highest court of the supreme government of this province, do you know it?"

Danforth to Giles

"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. Postponement now speaks a floundering on my part; reprieve or pardon must cast doubt upon the quilt of them that died till now. While I speak God's law, I will not crack its voice with whimpering. If retaliation is your fear, know this- I should hand ten thousand that dared to rise against the lwa, and an ocean of salt tears could not melt the resolution of the statutes. Now draw yourselves up like men and help me, as you are bound by Heaven to do."

Danforth to Hale

"Do you know, Mr. Proctor, that the entire contention of the state in these trials is that the voice of Heaven is speaking through the children?"

Danforth to Proctor

"We burn a hot fire here; it melts down all concealment."

Danforth to Proctor

"But witchcraft is ipso facto, on its face and by its nature, an invisible crime, is not? Therefore, who may possibly be witness to it? The witch and the victim. None other. Now we cannot hope the witch will accuse herself; granted? Therefore, we must rely upon her victim- and they do testify, the children certainly do testify."

Danforth to Proctor and others

"Now then. It does not escape me that this deposition may be devised to blind us; it may well be that Marry Warren has been conquered by Satan, who sends her here to distract our sacred purpose."

Danforth to girls (Abigail, Mercy, Betty, Susanna)

"He have his goodness now. God forbid I take it from him!'

Elizabeth to Hale

"Do what you will. But let none be your judge. There be no higher judge under Heaven than Proctor is! Forgive me, forgive me, John- I never knew such goodness in the world."

Elizabeth to Proctor

"I do not judge you. The magistrate sits in your heart that judges you. I never thought you but a good man, John- only somewhat confused."

Elizabeth to Proctor

"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. I have read my heart this three month, John. I have sins of my own count. It needs a cold wife to prompt lechery"

Elizabeth to Proctor

"Excellency, it is a natural lie to tell; I beg you, stop now before another condemned! I may shut my conscience to it no more- private vengeance is working through this testimony! From the beginning this man has struck me as true."

Hale to Danforth

"Excellency, there are orphans wandering from house to house; abandoned cattle bellow on the highroads, the stink of rotting crops hangs everywhere, and no man knows when the harlots' cry will end his life- and you wonder yet if rebellion's spoke? Better you should marvel how they do not burn down your province!"

Hale to Danforth

"We cannot blink it more. There is a prodigious fear of this court in the country-"

Hale to Danforth After Giles wouldn't give up his source

"It is mistaken law that leads you to sacrifice. Life, woman, life is God' most precious gift; no principle, however glorious, may justify the taking of it.... it may well be God damns a liar less than he that throws his life away for pride."

Hale to Elizabeth

"I have seen too many frightful proofs in court- the Devil is alive in Salem, and we dare not quail to follow wherever the accusing finger points!"

Hale to Francis (in reply to Rebecca being tried in court)

"Believe me, Mr. Nurse, if Rebecca Nurse be tainted, then nothing's left to stop the whole green world from burning. Let you rest upon the justice of the court; the court will send her home, I know it."

Hale to Francis Nurse

"they are weighted with authority."

Hale to Parris

"I am a stranger here, as you know. And in my ignorance I find it hard to draw a clear opinion of them, that come accused before the court."

Hale to Proctor

"Man, remember, until an hour before the devil fell, God thought him beautiful in Heaven."

Hale to Proctor

"This is strange time, Mister. No man may longer doubt the powers of the dark are gathered in monstrous attack upon this village. There is too much evidence now to deny it."

Hale to Proctor

"No, no. Now let me instruct you. We cannot look to superstition in this. The Devil is precise; the marks of his presence are definite as stone, and I must tell you all that I shall not proceed unless you are prepared to believe me if I should find no bruise of Hell upon her."

Hale to Putnam, Parris

"I denounce these proceedings, I quit this court!"

Hale to court

"There are wheels within wheels in this village, and fires within fires!"

Mrs. Putnam to Rebecca

"It cannot be forgot, sir, that when I summoned the congregation for John Proctor's excommunication there were hardly thirty people come to hear it. That speak a discontent, I think-"

Parris

"There is news, sir, that the court- the must reckon with. My niece, sir, my niece- I believe she has vanished."

Parris

"Abigail I have fought here three long years to bend these stiff-necked people to me, and now, just now when some good respect is rising for me in the parish, you compromise my very character. I have given you a home, child, I have put clothes upon your back- now give me an upright answer. Your name in the town- it is entirely white, is it not?

Parris to Abigail

"All innocent and Christian people are happy for the courts in Salem! These people are gloomy for it."

Parris to Hale If you are truly innocent, you would agree to the Court's judgement.

"There is either obedience or the church will burn like Hell is burning!"

Parris to Proctor

"A fire, a fire is burning! I hear the boot of Lucifer, I see his filthy face! And it is my face, and yours, Danforth! For them that quail to bring men out of ignorance, as I have quailed, and as you quail now when you know in all your black hearts that this be fraud - God damns our kind especially, and we will burn, we will burn together!"

Proctor

"God is dead!"

Proctor

"I have made a bell of my honor! I have rung the doom of my good name- you will believe me, Mr. Danforth! My wife is innocent, except she knew a whore when she saw one!"

Proctor to Danforth

"She thinks to dance with me on my wife's grave! and well she might, for I thought of her softly. God help me, I lusted, and there is a promise in such sweat. But it's a whore's vengeance, and you must see it; I set myself entirely in your hands. I know you must see it now."

Proctor to Danforth

"I cannot mount the gibbet like a saint. It is a fraud. I am not that man. My honesty is broke, Elizabeth; I am no good man. Nothing's spoiled by giving them this lie that were not rotten long before."

Proctor to Elizabeth

"I'll plead no more! I see now your spirit twists around the single error of my life, and I will never tear it free!"

Proctor to Elizabeth

"No more! I should have roared you down when first you told me your suspicion. But I wilted, and, like a Christian, I confessed. Confessed! Some dream I had must have mistaken you for God that day. But you're not, you're not, and let you remember it! Let you look sometimes for the goodness inme, and judge me not."

Proctor to Elizabeth

"You will not judge me more, Elizabeth. I have good reason to think before I charge fraud on Abigail, and I will think on it. Let you look to your own improvement before you go to judge your husband anymore. I have forgot Abigail, and -"

Proctor to Elizabeth

"I do think I see some shred of goodness in John Proctor. Not enough weave a banner with, but enough to keep it from such dogs. Give them no tear! Tears pleasure them! Show honor now, show a stony heart and sink them with it!"

Proctor to Hale

"I like it not that Mr. Parris should lay his hand upon my baby. I see no light of God in that man. I'll not concel it."

Proctor to Hale

"I've heard you to be a sensible man, Mr. Hale. I hope you'll leave some of it in Salem."

Proctor to Hale

"If she is innocent! Why do you never wonder if Parris be innocent, or Abigail? Is the accuser always holy now? Were they born this morning as clean as God's fingers? I'll tell you what's walking Salem- vengeance is walking Salem. We are what we always were in Salem, but now the little crazy children are jangling the keys of the kingdom, and common vengeance rights the law! This warrant's vengeance! I'll not give my wife to vengeance!"

Proctor to Hale

"Make you peace with it! Now Hell and Heaven grapple on our backs, and all our old pretense is ripped away- make your peace!... Peace. It is a providence, and no great change; we are only what we always were, but naked now. Aye, naked! And the wind, God's icy wind, will blow!"

Proctor to Mary Warren

"I have trouble enough without I come five mile to hear him preach only hellfire and bloody damnation. Take it to heart, Mr. Parris. There are many others who stay away from church these days because you hardly ever mention God anymore."

Proctor to Parris

"I mean it solemnly, Rebecca; I like not the smell of this "authority.""

Proctor to Rebecca

"Pray, John, be calm. Mr Parris, I think you'd best send Reverend Hale back as soon as he come. This will set us all to arguin' again in the society, and we thought to have peace this year. I think we ought rely on the doctor now, and good prayer."

Rebecca to Mr. Parris

"I think she'll wake in time. Pray calm yourselves. I have eleven children, and I am twenty-six times a grandma, and I have seen them all through their silly seasons, and when it come on them they will run the Devil bowlegged keeping up with their mischief. I think she'll wake when she tires of it. A child's spirit is like a child you can never catch it by running after it; you must stand still, and, for love, it will soon itself come back."

Rebecca to Mrs. Putnam, Proctor, Mr. Putnam It is not witchcraft, it is mischief. If you humor it, gives them greater freedom to do worser things.