Crucible Character Analysis: Abigail

Scott Pero
AP English Language/Mr. George
December 16, 2009
Abigail Williams Character Analysis

Abigail Williams is a young girl who appears pure and innocent, but beneath her beautiful exterior, she is a conniving temptress.

Abigail uses her sweet, angelic visage to ensure her own goals come to fruition. One of those goals is to eliminate her competition in the pursuit of John Proctor: Proctor’s wife, Elizabeth. After one night of lechery with Proctor, Abigail believes him to be in love with her. She then stops at nothing to have her way, even resorting to witchery to kill Elizabeth and have Proctor all to herself. Abigail vehemently believes that John loves her in the same degree that she loves him, no matter what Proctor may say otherwise. She twists and turns everything around to work in her favor, either by her words or her actions: “looking about in the air, clasping her arms about her as though cold: I—I know not. A wind, a cold wind, has come” (108). Abigail leads the people on, rendering them all like puppets on a string with herself as the manipulative puppeteer.

Abigail is like a siren, the seductive bird-women of Greek mythology. Like the sirens lured sailors to their deaths with their enticing voices, Abigail lures the villagers with her siren song into believing her every word. One cannot help but believe her, falling helplessly under her spell. In the process, she is plotting against you, secretly waiting to shipwreck you upon the rocks, all for her own desires.

A modern day counterpart of Abigail is Ruby from the TV show Supernatural: Both characters bewitch the others into believing their goodness and honesty, secretly plotting against them all in the process; Abigail wanted Proctor for herself, while Ruby secretly wanted to release Lucifer from Hell.