The story takes place in Salem in Massachusetts in the late 1600s. Salem is under a theocratic form of government where the people live by the very strict rules of the Puritans. One night, Abigail who is Reverend Parris' niece, the Reverend's daughter, Betty, and a group of other girls are caught dancing in the woods. One of them is even running around naked, and Reverend Parris does not believe his own eyes. Rumors of witchcraft are running through Salem after Betty is found lying in her bed without moving. Her sickness is unknown, so when Mrs. Putnam tells the Reverend that her daughter Ruth has got the same symptoms as Betty, they call for Reverend John Hale, a young minister reputed to be an expert on witchcraft.
In the act, we hear about Abigail who used to have an affair with John Proctor, an older married man. Abigail is still obsessed with Mr. Proctor, and drank a charm to kill his wife. She threatens her friends that she would kill them if they told anyone about her drinking the charm. Abigail does not seem like a very friendly person, and accuses Tituba, a black slave, of getting Betty sick. Because Tituba was being accused of such a horrible action, she is given the choice to confess her relations with the devil, or she will be killed. She confesses her working for the devil, even though it is not true. As they continue questioning her, she admits that the Devil had four helpers; among them were Goody Good and Goody Osburn. Abigail starts crying out that she danced for the Devil, but that she wants to go back to Jesus. She claims that she saw Sarah Good with the Devil, and the other girls support her story naming the different people they saw with the Devil. Even Betty "wakes up" and start naming names. Hale and Parris are ecstatic that the girls seem to have been set free from the Devil.
Abigail seems to be a very important character in the play, because she is the biggest "trouble-maker" in Salem. She has got very strong opinions, and does not seem to be ashamed of telling lies. I have also got a feeling that John Proctor will be seen as a central character throughout the play.
Abigail seems to be a very important character in the play, because she is the biggest "trouble-maker" in Salem. She has got very strong opinions, and does not seem to be ashamed of telling lies. I have also got a feeling that John Proctor will be seen as a central character throughout the play.
This is a very good summery of the plot in act 1. Now, as you have finished reading the play, I would like you to study one or two of the characters in the play. Try to find out what his/her motivation might be for the way they live and relate to pther people in Salem.
SvarSlett