Timeline by Lindsay Heliker

1. “Hale, surprised: You permit dancing?” Pg.40

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The first moment happens before the book even starts: when the girls are found dancing in the forest by Parris. This moment is important to the plot due to the events it brings. In the town of Salem, where Puritans are and where the books take place, dancing is considered breaking the law or being unfaithful to the church. The moment also brings a lot of lies to light and introduces the first idea of witchcraft to the book. The reaction to the dancing is very telling of the prevailing attitude of the town, rather than common sense of thinking of little girls playing, the majority immediately think the devil is involved.

2. “Susanna: Aye, sir, he have been searchin’ his books since he left you, sir. But he bid me tell you, that you might look to un-natural things for the cause of it.”

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Parris’ daughter becomes unconscious after the girls are caught dancing. This moment is significant in the play because it brought the doctor who introduces the idea of unnatural causes being involved to the other characters. Many of the frightened townspeople immediately latch on and the longer she pretends the more people are convinced. Young Betty’s “sickness” also introduces the importance of reputation and social standing particularly to Parris. Finally, it foreshadows the length the girls are willing to commit to in order to avoid punishment.

3. “Abigail: Don’t lie! To Hale: She comes to me while I sleep; she's always making me dream corruptions!“ Pg.48

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Abigail, blaming Tituba, starts the blame game, and shows how she is an easy target since she was singing a song from Barbados. This is significant as it shows the pattern of blaming people who are a little different in order to get what they want and instill fear. Tituba perpetuates the pattern by also claiming Sarah Osborne and Sarah Good as witches. She is significant as she is the first to be blamed, the first to confess, and the first to blame others.

4. “Elizabeth, delicately: Adultery, John.” Pg. 71

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5. “Cheever: Why - He draws out a long needle from the poppet - is a needle! Herrick, Herrick, it is a needle!” Page 78

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6. “Proctor: You’re coming to the court with me, Mary. You will tell it in the court.”

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7. “PROCTOR: Aye, sir. She swears now that she never saw Satan; nor any spirit, vague or clear, that Satan may have sent to hurt her. And she declares her friends are lying now.”

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In court, Proctor and Mary Warren go and he announces that he wants to free his wife. They believe that he is trying to defy the church and he must be guilty because “he plows on Sunday.” We then find out that Elizabeth is claiming to be pregnant. He also mentions a deposition signed by 91 landowners testifying to the good character of Elizabeth, Martha and Rebecca. Mary Warren attempts to claim she made the poppet and that the girls were pretending, the church is shocked. The importance of this scene is that the Church is unable to accept the truth given by Mary Warren and the signed deposition because they have gone too far with the witchcraft trials and already put people to death.

8. Elizabeth: Oh, God! Pg. 116

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John Proctor confesses to the court his affair with Abigail in an attempt to save Elizabeth. Abigail denies it. The judge calls for Elizabeth and the Judge asks why Abigail was fired; she downplays it saying that she lost her temper, thinking John fancied her, but that he did not cheat on her. This is significant because it shows that Elizabeth wants to protect John, his reputation, and his name. She generally does not want any negative effects to go towards John, this is in contrast to most of the play in which she is unforgiving and angry with John for the affair.

9. “MARY WARREN, pointing at Proctor: You're the Devil's man!” Pg.121

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In this scene, Abigail and the girls turn on Mary claiming that she is sending her spirit at them in the form of a bird. This causes confusion and further hysteria. When Proctor tries to touch Mary Warren and try to get her to calm down, she pulls away from him and claims that he is “the devil’s man,” that he is consorting with the devil, has signed the devil’s book, and has joined the evil army. This scene is significant because it shows the absolute power of Abigail and her web of lies. Mary Warren had to take back her truth to save herself.

10. “Danforth: They are both gone”

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At the start of Act 4, Danforth reports that Abigail and Mercy have vanished after robbing him. The scene also shows Hale, who has returned to Salem, as regretful and wanting to fix his mistakes with the remaining prisoners and survivors of the Witch trials. This scene is significant because it shows how guilty Abigail and Mercy truly were, and exposes them to the town. For Reverend Hale, the scene shows that he is regretful and that he has learned that things were wrong and how sideways the event was. The combination of the girls leaving and Hale’s remorse, shows how much power Abigail had over the town and the court.

11. “PROCTOR, with a cry of his whole soul: Because it is my name! Because I cannot have another in my life! Because I lie and sign myself to lies! Because I am not worth the dust on the feet of them that hang! How may I live without my name? I have given you my soul; leave me my name!”

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Signs but takes it back to save his reputation

12. “Danforth: Hang them high over the town! Who weeps for these, weeps for corruption!” Pg. 146

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