The Crucible Act I - Questions

Pages 1-12 Betty on bed

1.  Why has Reverend Parris sent for a doctor as the play begins?

2.  What is this doctor’s name, what advice does the doctor send back, and with whom does he send this information?

3.  List the things/actions Parris says he saw in the woods the previous night? (he saw several things)

4.  Why does Parris ask Abigail about her reputation in the town? Summarize the cause of his suspicion.

5.  Why does Abigail say she was dismissed by the Proctors?

6.  Provide textual evidence that Parris cares about his reputation above all else.

Pages 12-20: Putnams arrive; Girls are alone

7.  Briefly identify Ann Putnam and explain why she has arrived at Parris’s home.

8.  Give two examples for why Thomas Putnam is a bitter, resentful man.

9.  How do you know that Thomas Putnam doesn’t like Reverend Parris? Cite the line from page 15.

10.  Why did Mrs. Putnam contact Tituba?

11.  Who does Abigail accuse of conjuring spirits at this point?

  1. What does Betty Parris reveal about what happened in the woods that we didn’t already know?
  2. What threat does Abigail make to the other girls?

Pages 20-24: Proctor & Abby

  1. How do you know John does not wish to continue the affair he had with Abby?

Pages 24-32: Nurse, Proctor, Putnam, Corey, Parris-bitterness/old feuds

  1. What sentences in the essay about Rebecca Nurse prove that she is deeply respected in town?
  2. How is Rebecca’s opinion about Betty’s “ailments” similar to John Proctor’s?
  3. How does John Proctor feel about Reverend Parris? How do you know?
  4. What is the dispute between John Proctor and Thomas Putnam?
  5. How is Giles Corey treated by the other characters? Give 2 examples.

Pages 32-42 HALE arrives: the naming begins

  1. Read the 1st and last paragraphs of the essay about Reverend Hale on pages 32-33 & 36. What is important? What is confusing? What is unusual or interesting?
  2. What does Giles Corey reveal to Reverend Hale about his wife?
  3. List 3 important facts about Giles from the essay about him on pages 40-41.
  4. Abigail says on page 42 that she did not call the Devil. Instead, she blames it on whom?

Pages 43-48 Tituba’s confession gets out of control

  1. When questioned by Reverent Hale and Reverend Parris, Abigail throws the blame back onto Tituba. What proof does Abigail offer that Tituba is the one to blame?
  2. Identify the three ways Tituba is coerced into confessing (ethos, pathos, logos). Give specific examples
  3. Read Tituba’s confession on page 47 about what the Devil told her to do. How does this confession help to bring her back into the good graces of Reverend Parris?
  4. When Tituba says in her confession, “You work for me, Tituba and I make you free! I give you pretty dress to wear and put you way high up in the air, and you gone fly back to Barbados!” she is trying to tell Parris something that she would not be able to tell him under any other circumstances. What is she trying to tell him?
  5. Why does Abigail start accusing people on page 48?
  6. Why does Betty Parris start accusing people after Abigail?
  7. What is the significance of Goody Osburn being accused?