Who’s Who in The Crucible?

MAJOR CHARACTERS

JOHN PROCTOR ABIGAIL WILLIAMS ELIZABETH PROCTOR

A stern, but honest farmer in his 30s, who Rev. Parris’s niece. She was once the John Proctor’s wife. She is extremely
consequently faces guilt and consequences servant for the Proctor household, but virtuous, but often cold. She is said to
after having an adulterous affair with Abigail Elizabeth fired her after she discovered have never lied, and fired Abigail for
Williams. He is the PROTAGONIST in the that Abigail was having an affair with her having an affair with her husband.
play. husband. Abigail is smart, wily, a good
liar, and vindictive when crossed, making
her the ANTAGONIST in the play.

REVEREND PARRIS DEPUTY GOV. DANFORTH

The minister of Salem’s church. He is The deputy Governor of Massachusetts and the presiding judge at the trials. In his
paranoid, power-hungry, greedy, own mind he is honest and scrupulous and accepts spectral evidence in court. He is
advantageous, yet an oddly self-pitying convinced he is doing right in rooting out witchcraft.
character. Many townsfolk dislike him, so he
worries much about his reputation and
position in town.

MINOR CHARACTERS

TITUBA REVEREND JOHN HALE MARY WARREN

Rev. Parris’s slave from Barbados. She is the A young minister from Beverly reputed to One of the girls in Abigail’s group. She is
first to be accused and “confess” to witchery be an expert in witchcraft. He is called in the servant in the Proctor household and
to save herself. She is the one who led the to Salem to examine Betty, therefore a member of Abigail’s group. She is a
girls in dancing in the forest. setting the hysteria in motion. His intent timid, naïve girl who is easily influenced
in finding the occult is later regretted as and manipulated by those around her.
he tries to save the innocent people who She tries to expose the hoax that Abigail
are falsely accused of witchcraft. and the girls are pretending about
witchcraft. She eventually goes back to
Abigail and accuses John Proctor of
witchcraft.

BETTY PARRIS RUTH PUTNAM MERCY LEWIS

Rev. Parris’s 10-year-old daughter who falls The Putnams’ lone surviving child out of One of the girl’s in Abigail’s group. She
into a stupor after being caught with the other eight. Like Betty Parris, Ruth falls into a is caught dancing in the forest by Rev.
girls dancing in the forest with Tituba. Her strange stupor after Reverend Parris Parris.
illness - being “sick” - and that of Ruth catches her and the other girls dancing in
Putnam fuel the first rumors of witchcraft at the woods at night.
the start of the play.

THOMAS PUTNAM ANN PUTNAM FRANCIS NURSE

A wealthy, influential man in Salem. His Thomas Putnam’s wife. She gave birth to Rebecca Nurse’s husband. A wealthy,
manipulative and conniving nature impulse 8 children, but only Ruth survived. The influential man in Salem. Nurse is well
him to use the witch trials to increase his own other 7 babies died on the day they were respected by most people in Salem, but
wealth by accusing people of witchcraft and born, and she is convinced they were he is an enemy of Thomas Putnam and
then buying up their land. murdered by supernatural means. his wife.

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 REBECCA NURSE GILES COREY MARTHA COREY

Francis Nurse’s wife. She is a wise, An elderly but feisty farmer who is Giles Corey’s third wife. She falls into
sensible, and upright woman, held in famous for filing lawsuits. He’s the hysteria for reading strange books
tremendous regard by most of Salem. She is innocently accused of witchcraft for and her opinionated personality. She is
also a midwife. She is accused of witchcraft defending his wife, Martha, and exposing innocent.
by Ann Putnam. Putnam. He is pressed to death with
stones for refusing a plea in court.

SARAH GOOD GOODY/SARAH OSBURN JUDGE HAWTHORN

One of the first women charged with witchery Sarah Osburn, first accused by Tituba as One of the Judges presiding with Judge
by the girls, she is a homeless woman who being one of the names in the Devil’s Danforth in the trials.
confesses to witchcraft to save herself and book, was a midwife to Goody Putnam.
continues the charade with Tituba, comically Goody Putnam lost all her children but
claiming that Satan will take her and Tituba one and is looking for someone to blame
to Barbados. for it. Goody Proctor also calls her a
drunk.

EZEKIEL CHEEVER

A man from Salem who acts as clerk of the court during the witch trials. He arrests people and helps document legal proceedings
in the trials. He is upright and determined to do his duty for justice. He buys into the witchcraft accusations.

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