Premium Essay

Judge Danforth

In:

Submitted By SBHall314
Words 596
Pages 3
Seth Hendrix
Mrs. Cunningham
English 3
15 March 2016
Danforth
Judge Danforth was a politician that believed in honor and recognition; he closely followed the rules of which he set in stone, and is a perfect archetype of the puritan society. As the governor of Massachusetts during the Salem witch trials, Judge Danforth was called, along with Judge Hawthorne, to deal justice and deal with the situation. Throughout the play he is made out to be incredibly precise and scrupulous with everything he does. Due to a perhaps pompous position of power, his attitude and demeanor come across as very stubborn. Nearing the end of the play, his mindset that any wrongdoing is punishable becomes applicable to him, and he is unwilling to consider the possibility he might have made a grave mistake. Almost ironically however, the real-life Thomas Danforth is much the opposite. Arthur Miller wrote The Crucible to criticize the McCarthy hearings and the hysteria surrounding them and he used the Salem witch trails to do so; as he saw many parallels between the two. To do this, Miller portrays Thomas Danforth, who, in real life, did not even sit on the Court of Oyer and Terminer,(Linder 1) (A group dedicated to the prosecution to those accused witches) is a bitter, scrupulous, controlling old man set on keeping order, or, what he believes to be order.
The McCarthy hearings were quite harsh and Miller needed a reciprocated leadership shown in the Crucible. (Lorcher 1) To do this, Miller bent the more level headed, genuine Thomas Danforth and transformed him into the domineering Judge we know in the crucible. While the McCarthy era and witch trails follow each other closely, they are not a perfect mesh. To add onto this, the parallels Miller draws are his and they are not made to be completely historically accurate as they are literary parallels and not historical. Both Danforth’s

Similar Documents

Premium Essay

Judge Danforth In The Crucible

...Judge Danforth has another problem which plays along with the first problem of biased decisions. Mr. Danforth will do anything to keep his reputation and credibility even if it means he has to sacrifice hundreds of lives. Mr. Danforth wouldn’t even look at Mary Warren's deposition due to him knowing she was innocent and that would mean his credibility would go down along with his reputation. Mr.Danforth wouldn’t listen to Gilley's as a result of his wife was already accused by the court which also means that he wouldn’t be able to go back on his word. With Mr.Danforth’s reputation he comes off as someone who thinks to highly of themselves. When Mr.Hale was questioning Judge Danforth of those 72 signatures Judge Danforth says “Mr. Hale, you...

Words: 382 - Pages: 2

Premium Essay

Judge Danforth In The Crucible

...Crucible transitioned into its third act, Judge Danforth, a round character, begins as a self-justified and aware judge. As the play progresses, This truth becomes an act to cover his multiplying flaws. In The Crucible, Judge Danforth had his power and authority protecting him, but let his foolishness bewitch him. This cocky and oblivious man ruled Salem’s courthouse. Originally the deputy governor of Massachusetts, Judge Danforth presumptuously took collateral control(Wikipedia). He started his tyranny with unjustly condemning 72, eventually 12 during the Salem witch trials(Miller, 1190,1222). Such unrequited power was abused by leading...

Words: 496 - Pages: 2

Premium Essay

Judge Danforth In The Crucible

...Most of the time Judge Danforth will condemn someone, when they are trying to defend themselves or others. Giles explained to Danforth, that Thomas Putnam was murdering people, for their land. When he asks him who told him this, Giles refuses to tell him, so Danforth says, “Old man if your informant tells the truth, let him come here openly like a decent man. But if he hide in anonymity, I must know why” (3.449-451). Danforth proceeds to arrest Giles, until he confesses. He is painfully interrogated and eventually killed, due to Danforth’s orders. Also, when Proctor refuses to sign the document, because it would make him look bad, Danforth says, “You will give me your honest confession, or I cannot keep you from the rope“ (4.734-737). Danforth...

Words: 504 - Pages: 3

Premium Essay

The Crucible

...a person believes in, is more important than the fear that comes with the consequences of that belief. The Crucible has many key themes, but the theme that has the broadest effect on the reader is courage. John Proctor is a great example of the courage shown. While, Abigail Williams shows immense cowardice. Throughout the Crucible many characters have to face the horrendous decision of whether to confess to have ‘been with the devil’ and lose their ‘good name’ or bee executed for that of which they did not do. John Proctor is a great example of a character with extraordinary courage. John although pressured to confess and knowing that he’ll hang, refuses to ruin his ‘good name’ and he does not fully confess to the crime. When Judge Danforth would not give up the argument with John to sign the confession, he asked, “Then explain to me, Mr. Proctor, why will you not let me have it?” (pg.1231). Proctor answered, “Because it is my name! Because I cannot have another in my life! Because I lie and sign myself to lies! I have given you my soul; leave me my name!” (pg.1232). These quotes show how strong willed John is in not having a bad reputation and how John has great courage and doesn’t lie just to live. However that John may express great courage, Abigail demonstrates extreme cowardice. Abigail Williams throughout the whole play displays a great deal of cowardice. Instead of being honest and taking the minor punishment of her petty crime, she lies and blames a slave named...

Words: 508 - Pages: 3

Premium Essay

Reverend Hale In The Crucible

...we see a different side of Hale that no one has seen before. He is now doing what is right for his friends and is not doing what he was trained to do. At first Hale is eager to tell the story of Giles and John, but as they present their evidence he realizes that innocent men are scared of this court because of the deranged judge and his rulings. He gets angry with the way the Judge Danforth is handling the trial. Hale finally breaks every moral rule that he had for himself and stood up to Judge Danforth and told him that it was crazy that he was arresting some and condemning them because they had ripped up a warrant. Hale is now defending his friends and going against everything he has ever thought to be true. Hale even told judge danforth that it was natural to tell a lie every once in awhile. In Act 4 on page 1222 the stage directions say “He is steeped in sorrow, exhausted, and more direct than he ever was”. This solidifies the accusations from act 3 that he was stepping away from his training and helping his friend and breaking his moral code. After this we see that Hale has returned to helping the court. Hale makes an effort to try and make Danforth scared by telling him that rebellion was always in the air. When asked why Hale was back in salem he said sarcastically “Why, it is all simple. I come to the Devil’s work. I come to counsel Christians they should belie themselves” (Miller 1224). Also on page 1224 we learn that Hale is not with the court and is instead there...

Words: 981 - Pages: 4

Premium Essay

The Role Of Danforth In The Crucible

...Deputy Governor Danforth: The “Savior” of Salem Village? In The Crucible, Deputy Governor Danforth plays a major role, seeing that he is the highest official that has been called in to officiate the Salem Village court. Danforth does his best to make everyone believe that he is like the “hero” of Salem Village. He acted like he could almost do no wrong, even though that is very incorrect. Danforth even keeps this attitude after the evidence is shown that the whole Salem Village Witch Trials were a sham. Danforth is not the “hero” of Salem Village, he is the destructor of Salem Village. There is much proof that shows that Danforth was not following his job of giving a fair trial to the accused people of Salem Village. Danforth has multiple...

Words: 546 - Pages: 3

Premium Essay

John Procter And Abigail Symbols In The Crucible By Arthur Miller

...The tragic story about the crucible many people were seen by the devil and doing things with the devil and later believed in God and some fake some things that had to do with witchcraft. But there were so much tragedy people kept with secrets and were hanged innocent. Some kept the truth some didn’t but at the end of the play when everything had been solved well most of everything was all lies from Abigail and later Danforth notices that the poor people were hanged into this mess they were innocent and then realize he’s maybe the bad one. John Procter and Abigail symbols were both similar but not has bad as Abigail because it was all her mess and brought people into this situation and all this mess that had been caused had every body’s mistakes they had done....

Words: 714 - Pages: 3

Premium Essay

Examples Of Paranoia In The Crucible

...first resisting, agreed to submit artists' names to the House Committee for "clearing" before employing them. This unleashed a veritable holy terror among actors, directors, and others, from Party members to those who had the merest brush with a front organization" (W.I.W.T.C 2). This statement unveils to us that the uprising of turmoil (communism) led to making accusations of subversion without proper regard for evidence and the hunting of communists. This goes hand in hand with the village's hunt of witchcraft among them which led to Danforth's sentencing of false "witches" to death in order to appease the villagers. For example, Danforth states "You misunderstand, sir; I cannot pardon these when twelve are already hanged for the same crime. It is not just" (T.C 531) Although this quote is small, it provides a huge statement in regards to Danforth being wrong and killing innocent people without actual hard evidence. In the end, these two come together by the article discussing the "hunt" for communists and the false claims and the play featuring the villagers "hunting" for witches and falsely indicting them. In conclusion, the acts of desperation, moments of paranoia, and fear of communism consistently and unerringly emerge in "Why I Wrote The Crucible" and The Crucible in order to bring attention to these potential calamitous topics. ...

Words: 808 - Pages: 4

Premium Essay

Anything Matters

...when John Proctor will not “lie and sign [him]self to lies” and hangs innocently. Finally, it shows how dark Judge Danforth’s lies are when he says “I cannot pardon these when twelve are already hanged for the same crime. It is not just” (p. 80). The Crucible shows how it is a human tendency to lie and not have much integrity. Greed is the second most important theme in The Crucible and is apparent through many of the main character’s motives. For instance, Abigail shows greed and jealousy when she tells John Proctor “I marvel how such a strong man may let such a sickly wife be” (p. 14), which shows how she is jealous of Proctor’s wife and is greedy in trying to get Proctor. In addition, greed is revealed in Parris when he asks, “where is my wood?” (p.16) and when he says I am paid little” (p.17). Furthermore, Putnam and Proctor fight over a “tract of land” (p. 18) and Putnam starts accusing innocent people of witchcraft in order to gain their land, which shows how greed only makes people do evil. Miller shows how greed is a instinctive trait in humans in his play The Crucible. Respect is the last theme that is important in The Crucible. Everything in the town in Salem is about reputation. For instance, having a good reputation like Rebecca makes it less likely that one would be accused of witchcraft. Despite being accused, people tried to convince the Judge that she was innocent. Moreover, respect and reputation is apparent in the ending scene where...

Words: 424 - Pages: 2

Free Essay

Company Law

...Fact of the Case This suit regarding damages for breach of fiduciary duty where plaintiff claimed against the first defendant and 3 others who holding director position in Kesang Corporation Bhd ('KCB') for transfering a property owned by him to a third party without his concern. The property is an apartment in Tanjung Tuan Port Dickson which was bought from a company known as Tanjung Tuan Resort Development Sdn Bhd which then transferred to KCB and then to third parties. The plaintiff's claims against the second, third and fourth defendants have previously been withdrawn. Plaintiff claimed against the first defendant for damages for breach of fiduciary duty as a director of the plaintiff's company. The trial of the case began on 21 March 2005. While the present case of trial still ongoing, Plaintiff applied to obtain a leave of Bankruptcy to proceed against the first defendant pursuant to Bankruptcy Act 1967 on 23 January 2007 who had hear adjudged as bankrupt on 11 July 2005.The case call up for continued hearing on 30 March 2007. The first defendant counsel inform the court that he had applied to the Director General of Insolvency for sanction pursuant to s 38(1)(a) of the Bankruptcy Act to defend the action and to retain Messrs David Lingam & Co as his solicitors and Mr. David Lingam as his counsel. On 13 September 2007, Encik Zahari who represented the Director General of Insolvency and Encik Sadacharam Raman as amicus curiae applied for an adjournment for sanction...

Words: 3577 - Pages: 15

Premium Essay

• How Does Sentencing Affect the State and Federal Corrections Systems Overall

...Once a person has either pleaded guilty or has been found guilty of a crime a judge must determine a sentence that they must receive. Sentencing is imposing a criminal sanction by a judicial authority. Each year there are thousands of criminals that appear before a judge or judges to be sentenced for their crimes committed. Sentencing descriptions are primarily for felony offenses, or those that are punishable by less than one year of incarceration. Mandatory minimum sentences, three strikes laws and sentencing guidelines frequently require specific sentences, with little consideration of personal factors regarding offenders, their crimes, and victims. The state and federal court system have similar and different objectives of punishment. The state and federal corrections system are affected as a system overall. There is a correlation between determinate and indeterminate sentencing when sentencing a criminal offender in the judicial process. Indeterminate and determinate sentences are the two primary models used throughout the united states. Indeterminate sentences blend the decision by the sentencing judge and a later decision by a relesase authority to determine the actual time served. During the time of sentencing the judge sentences offenders to indeterminate sentences , with a minimum and maximum amount of time to be served. After the offender serves the minimum amount of time he or she is eligible for release by the parole board. The offender may serve the maximum sentence...

Words: 353 - Pages: 2

Premium Essay

The Constitutional Bodies in Bangladesh

...An Assignment On “The Constitutional bodies in Bangladesh” Course Name: Public Administration in Bangladesh Course Number: PA-123 Submitted to: Dr. Syeda Lasna Kabir Associate Professor, Department of Public Administration University of Dhaka. Submitted by: Mukarram Hussain 1st Year, 2nd Semester Session: 2011-2012 Roll: kj-059 Department of Public Administration University of Dhaka. Date of Submission: October 11, 2012 Introduction: Constitution is the supreme law of a country. Legislative, executive and judiciary are chief organs of the government. According to the theory of separation of power, check and balance between these organs is necessary. In democratic and constitutional system, each body can exercise its power within the boundaries set by the constitution and allows other organs to perform its work freely without interfering in others’ jurisdiction and without being interfered. To prevent the abuse of the state power, and to consolidate the rule of law, besides legislative, executive and judiciary, other constitutional organs are also envisioned in a constitution. Constitutional bodies in Bangladesh: There are some constitutional bodies in Bangladesh. Constitutional bodies are those offices or, persons their establishment, recruitment and retirement follow the rules of law of the constitution. The constitution of Bangladesh contains the provisions or articles defined the rules of establishment of those bodies and the recruitment...

Words: 4372 - Pages: 18

Free Essay

Sulc Tegal Writing Trial Brief

...Monday, Wednesday Class #38 STATE OF LOUISIANA * DOCKET #: 10-3811 Division “J” * VERSUS * 19TH JUDICIAL DISTRICT COURT * DARRYL HUNT * PARISH OF NEW ROUGE POST-TRIAL BRIEF IN SUPPORT OF THE DEFENDANT’S MOTION FOR NEW TRIAL _________________________ TABLE OF AUTHORITIES Statutes U.S. Const. amend. XIV………………………………………………………………5 LSA-C.Cr.P. Art. 797………………………………………………………………..10 Cases Batson v. Kentucky, 106 S. Ct. 1712 (1986)…………………………………………10 State v. Jones, 09-0751, (La. App. 1 Cir. 10/23/09) (unpublished)…………………..6 State v. Prejean, 09-0878, (La. App. 1 Cir. 10/27/09) (unpublished)………………..8 Books The American Heritage Dictionary of the English Language, 101 (Fourth ed., Houghton Mifflen Co. 2009)………………………………………………………....7 Periodicals 23 S.C.Jur. Jury § 30 (2010)………………………………………………………….7 Other David Schepp, BBC, Gold Teeth Are a Gold Mine, http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/business/1471097.stm (posted August 3, 2001, 4:51 p.m. GMT)…………………………………………………………………………………7 Ghetto. Merriam-Webster Online Dictionary. http://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/ghetto (accessed April 18, 2010)...........................................7 Nigger. Merriam-Webster Online Dictionary. http://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/nigger (accessed April 18, 2010)............................................

Words: 2920 - Pages: 12

Free Essay

What Diversity Means to Me...

...What Diversity means to me… Diversity to me is the balance of different cultures, races, sexes, religion, appearance, sexual orientation, disabilities, and many more things. It’s the ability to look at someone else and to realize they are different but not treat as they are. The way you look at others and judge them could be the same way others look at you and judge you and make decisions based on what they do and do not like about you. You would not want someone to do this to you or to treat you unfair so why would you do it to someone else. Diversity is a way of saying yes I know your different from me, but I accept it! I believe everyone has a God given right to be different and unique. Who’s to tell you that the way you are is not right? Maybe it is them that are out of sorts. I don’t think anyone should be judged about how they are or where they are from especially if it is not harmful to something like a job or something. For example, a horrendous and unbearable odor or perhaps filthy clothes at a professional workplace. With that being said if hurtful mishaps are not in place than why are you worried about the next person? If you have time to sit around and criticize people maybe you need to find a hobby or something to occupy your time better. You have to much free time on your hands, are you being paid to criticize? There are thousands of jobs today that discriminate on women everywhere. They don’t let the women do certain things because...

Words: 643 - Pages: 3

Premium Essay

To Kill a Mockingbird

...nothing to gain or lose by our verdict. This is why we are strong” (pg 50). Robinson creates this microcosm of the Judicial Branch through 3 characters which are Jurors 3, 8, and the foreman. These characters make up the microcosm by becoming sides of the justice system and representations of where the young man is guilty or not. Juror 3 is the side that believes the young man is guilty and opposes him which can mean that the he is more like the plaintiff or prosecutor in the justice system. On the contrary Juror 8 believes the young man is innocent which means that he is more like the defendant’s side in the justice system. The foreman is the one who calms the situation and stops a conversation from becoming too heated. He is most like the judge or bailiff that consoles both sides and communication solutions to the jurors. For example, when they could not decide who was on which side the foreman asked that they should take a vote to show where everyone stood. This helped the jurors ask the right questions to each other. It was necessary for Rose to create a microcosm because without the story could not really have clear sides and have a clear setting. When Rose...

Words: 608 - Pages: 3