The four acts at a glance
| Act | Where | Time | Turning point |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Parris's house | Spring 1692 | Tituba confesses; the naming begins |
| 2 | The Proctors' house | Eight days later | Elizabeth is arrested |
| 3 | The court | Weeks later | Proctor confesses the affair; Elizabeth lies |
| 4 | Salem jail | Autumn, months later | Proctor tears up his confession |
The Crucible has four acts. Act 1 starts the panic in Parris's house, Act 2 brings it into the Proctors' home, Act 3 puts the truth on trial in court, and Act 4 ends in the jail on the morning of the hangings.
Each act is set in a single room, and each room feels smaller than the last.
Act 1: Parris's house
Betty Parris lies unmoving in bed after her father caught her, her cousin Abigail, Tituba and other girls dancing in the woods. Rumours of witchcraft fill the house. Abigail threatens the girls into keeping quiet. Alone with John Proctor, she reminds him of their affair; he tells her it is finished, and she turns bitter against his wife.
Old quarrels appear among the villagers: Proctor and Giles Corey against Parris and Thomas Putnam, with the wise Rebecca Nurse urging calm. John Hale arrives with his books on witchcraft. Under pressure, Tituba confesses and names other women, and Abigail and Betty join her, crying out more names as the act ends.
↑ Back to the topAct 2: The Proctors' home
Eight days later, John and Elizabeth eat a tense supper; she does not trust him, and he resents her coldness. Their servant Mary Warren, now an official of the court, comes home with news: thirty-nine people are under arrest, and Elizabeth's name has been mentioned. She gives Elizabeth a little rag doll she sewed in court.
Hale visits to question the household. Then officers arrive with a warrant: Abigail has collapsed with a needle in her stomach and claims Elizabeth's spirit stabbed her. They find a needle in Mary's doll and take Elizabeth away. Proctor orders Mary to tell the court the truth.
↑ Back to the topAct 3: The courtroom
Giles Corey interrupts the court to accuse Putnam of using the trials to seize land, and is arrested when he will not name his witness. Proctor presents Mary's statement that the girls are pretending. Danforth reveals Elizabeth is pregnant and will not hang soon, hoping Proctor will drop his case, but he refuses.
The girls are brought in, and Abigail stares Mary down. To break Abigail, Proctor confesses the affair. Elizabeth is called to confirm it and, not knowing he has confessed, denies it to protect him. Then the girls pretend Mary's spirit is attacking them as a bird. Mary breaks and accuses Proctor. He is arrested, and Hale denounces the proceedings and leaves the court.
↑ Back to the topAct 4: The jail
In the autumn, the jail is full, and nearby towns are in revolt against the court. Abigail has run off with Parris's money. Hale has returned to beg the condemned to confess so that they may live. Danforth will not delay, because pardoning now would admit the earlier hangings were wrong.
Elizabeth is brought to Proctor. They talk honestly for the first time, she admits her own failings, and she tells him to decide for himself. He agrees to confess and signs, but when Danforth insists the confession be posted for the town to see, he tears it up. He cannot sign away his name. He is led out to be hanged with Rebecca Nurse, and Elizabeth refuses to stop him.
↑ Back to the topMore about The Crucible
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