Crucible Homework

Abigail: "I saw Indians smash my dear parents' head on the pillow next to mine, and I have seen some reddish work done at night, and I can make you wish you had never seen the sun go down!" (Miller 20).

Using the quote above, it is safe and fare to infer that the actions committed by Abigail, Betty, Ruth, Tituba, Mercy, and Mary were ones that would not be accepted by the community, hence the desire for it to be kept a secret. Abigail demonstrates her anger if the secret were to ever be let out.

Mrs. Putnam: "I'd not call it sick; the Devil's touch is heavier than sick. It's death, y'know, it's death drivin' into them, forked and hoofed" (13).

In this quotation Mrs. Putnam, Ruth's mother, tells Parris that his daughter is not sick but touched by the devil (victim of witchcraft). With that being said, Mrs. Putnam is basically saying that any form of witchcraft is to be considered a sin and also that both of their daughters were participants in this act.


Questions: Was Parris already suspicious? If he wasn't, then why would he have gone to the forest?

Why do the Putnams want Parris to accept this idea of witchcraft when it is a sin?