Seminar notes for Block 5

What are good and evil :

c= crucible      YGB= young goodman brown

• Evil represented by (girls) children in the crucible

[C] People believed the word of the children, what they said was a fact. They believed children can’t lie. The girls had that power, and that power is addicting. The reputations were very important in that village.

• Power is addicting

[C] The girls had no power, they had their lives already planned out. Suddenly, they have this tremendous power and importance, for the first time in their lives. They abuse that said power.

Abby, Mr. Putnam, they have their own agendas

• Both male and female are flawed [C]

Both have their issues and flaws. But here, the judges were seen as rational. But the way they were interpreting the bible is in the way that they want. The judges are using the children to increase their reputation. They don’t want to see weak, or falling short in their expectations.

• Because of the way they interpreting the bible caused the mass chaos [C]

The logic was messed up and didn’t make sense. That skewed logic is what caused that chaos.

• The way they made their laws, the use of religion in government is not good [YGB]

Society is like the woods. You go in and you see how bad and evil it is. Young Goodman Brown wasn’t suspicious of others but he should have been. The reveal of everyone being sinners shouldn’t have been so surprising because he should have known how bad everyone is

• All the people were hypocrites, the dream shows that [YGB]

Hawthorne is saying that no one is perfect. The villagers are all christian and religious but in the dream they were with the devil. They are hypocrites.

• There is no gray area between good and evil.

There is no middle ground. The reality without the gray area, everyone is either good or bad. The binary is too strict.

• Peer pressure

Only excepted that he was evil too after seeing how everyone else is also evil. Relates to Crucible because Abigail pretended to see the devil and then the others just follow. In the woods, Abigail is the only one in trouble so she threatens the others as well.

• Human nature to be lead into evil, something unnatural

In the crucible, the beginning trails were slow but after a while, it picks up and they are accusing more and more. People saw these trials as opportunities to save themselves, to take others’ land.

-half time-

• Good and evil doesn't change but people’s views do

During the Crucible and YGB, devil is bad bad bad but now a days, it’s still kinda weird but it isn't so cut throat.

It is society’s fault to influence women into thinking that they are only there to birth children.

• Who’s fault? Abigail or uncle?

Uncle- for forcing abigail to react in such way. Uncle started it by calling Hale. Abigail before didn’t say anything about witches. But after they were given that power, she started to abuse it.

Minister jumped to conclusions. He doesn’t do anything to stop the accusations. He let the people be judged by outsiders.

Abigail- she should’ve reacted differently, she went above and beyond and caused mass chaos for her own agenda. She ended up causing so much pain for her own selfish, evil reasons. She wants to be with John and she fell into that temptation of evil and something she wasn’t supposed to have. She had that mindset where if she got rid of the wife, he has to be with her. But at the end, she caused him so much pain, and john fully believes they would meet again.

She wasn’t forced into this situation. She dug herself into a deeper and deeper hole.

Both- they were both at fault, both were abusing their powers and trying to uphold their reputation.

Telling lies because telling the truth doesn’t get you anywhere. The truth hurts them more than the lie.

Tituba is a witch? Or is she just bringing her own culture and following it.

There is no real way to accuse and prove someone of being a witch. Being a witch, participating in witchcraft is an invisible crime. Can only depend on the ‘victim’ for evidence. That’s why the children were able to cause so much damage, there’s no way to refute the evidence, or prove otherwise.

• Evil is temptation
• Good is going beyond what others think and continue to find what you believe.

Like hale at the end goes against what everyone is saying and disagrees. John Proctor is also another example. In the being, he was lying about everything (the affair, abigail). But at the end, he crosses that threshold and doesn’t hold back the truth. It’s better to stay true to your own morals and not many do that.

• At the end, Proctor is a good man who did a bad thing.

Proctor was not afraid to confess to his wrongdoings so others won’t be wrongfully accused. He gave up his own reputation to show the wickedness of abigail. He didn’t sign the confession because he knew this whole witch thing is untrue and he is going to stay with his morals even if he dies. The good outlasts the evil, it outweighs it. Signing the confession will destory him as a man and so him sacraficing himself was about his honor. People have a natural urge to protect what they believe, their loyalty and what they think (i.e family)

Proctor was mad at himself for the things he did. He needs to forgive himself.

[Talked mostly about crucible]