Why does giles corey interrupt the court proceedings

Elizabeth glances at Proctor for a clue, but Danforth demands that she look only at him while she speaks. Elizabeth claims to have gotten the mistaken notion that Proctor fancied Abigail, so she lost her temper and fired the girl without just cause. As marshal, Herrick removes Elizabeth from the room. Proctor cries out that he confessed his sin, but it is too late for Elizabeth to change her story. Hale begs Danforth to reconsider, stating that Abigail has always struck him as false.

Abigail and the girls begin screaming that Mary is sending her spirit at them. Mary pleads with them to stop, but the girls repeat her words verbatim. The room erupts into a hectic frenzy of fear, excitement, and confusion. Mary seems to become infected with the hysteria of the other girls and starts screaming too. She accuses him of consorting with the devil and pressuring her to join him in his evil ways. Hale denounces the proceedings and declares that he is quitting the court.

The desperate attempt by Giles, Proctor, and Francis to save their respective wives exposes the extent to which the trials have become about specific individuals and institutions struggling to maintain power and authority. Deputy Governor Danforth and Judge Hathorne do not want to admit publicly that they were deceived by a bunch of young women and girls, while Parris does not want the trials to end as a fraud because of the scandal of having a lying daughter and niece would end his career in Salem.

Although Proctor has not yet been formally accused of witchcraft, Danforth and Hathorne, like Hale earlier, question him about his Christian morals as though he were already on trial. They hope to find in his character even the slightest deviation from Christian doctrine because they would then be able to cast him as an enemy of religion. Once thus labeled, Proctor would have virtually no chance of anyone in God-fearing Salem intervening on his behalf. The reaction of Danforth and Hathorne to the deposition signed by ninety-one land-owning citizens further demonstrates the power of the court to invade the private lives of citizens, and indicates the extent to which the court believes in guilt by association.

In the witch trials, guilt need not be proven by hard evidence, and signing a deposition attesting to the good character of the accused is enough to put oneself under the same suspicion of guilt.

Over the protests of Francis, Danforth states that the signers should have nothing to worry about if they are innocent. The desire for privacy becomes an automatic sign of guilt. During a bout of hysteria such as the witch trials, authority, and power fall to those who can avoid questioning while forcing others to speak. By virtue of their rank, Danforth and Hathorne have the authority to cast any questions put to them as an attack on the court.

Much of Act III has to do with determining who will define innocence and guilt. Proctor makes one desperate bid for this authority by finally overcoming his desire to protect his good name, exposing his own secret sin. Unfortunately, he mistakes the proceedings for an actual search for the guilty, when, in fact, the proceedings are better described as a power struggle. He exposes his private life to scrutiny, hoping to gain some authority, but he does not realize that too many influential people have invested energy into the proceedings for him to be able to stop them now.

SparkTeach Teacher's Handbook. Why is the play called The Crucible? What is a crucible? Did the girls really see the Devil or witches? Why did Tituba confess to dancing with the Devil? Was John still in love with Abigail? What causes tension between John and Elizabeth Proctor? Why is Rebecca Nurse accused of witchcraft?

Why is Elizabeth Proctor accused of witchcraft? What happens when Mary Warren tells the court the truth about the girls acting bewitched?

Danforth responds that they must file the appropriate paperwork for the court to hear them. Nurse tells Danforth the girls are pretending. Time plays a critical role in Act III. The fascination with witchcraft that appeared in Act I, Scene 5 has quickly changed to mass paranoia.

The townspeople now regard anyone who does not conform exactly to the laws of Salem society as a potential witch. Fear and automatic suspicion replace reason. As the power of the court grows, the people of Salem live in fear. Old grudges, dislikes, and minor misdeeds can result in arrest and death — especially if the person offended is one of the children in the town, or someone who seeks more land.

As the number of arrests increases, the court shows no mercy and refuses to acknowledge the idea that the accusers may have hidden agendas. Not surprisingly, Proctor, Giles Corey, and Francis Nurse are anxious to present their evidence against Abigail and the girls. The court has just condemned Martha Corey and Rebecca Nurse, and, now that Elizabeth is in jail, Abigail has only to wait until Elizabeth's execution for her plan to be complete.

Proctor will finally be free to remarry, and Abigail can possess him. Proctor senses this and is desperate to prove that Abigail is a fraud. Danforth and Hathorne's participation in the court empowers them. The workings of the court concern them more than the actual individuals participating in the proceedings — whether voluntarily or against their will. As a result, when Nurse tells them that the girls have faked the entire witchcraft incident, the judges regard him as a dangerous individual.