Saturday, July 5, 2014

Why did Tituba finally confess to talking to the Devil in Miller's "The Crucible"?

Tituba finally "confesses" to talking to the devil at the end of Act 1 after she is repeatedly accused of doing so.  She is subjected to a barrage of questions by Rev. Hale and Mr. Parris.  She finally confesses because perhaps she realized that to confess would save her life.  She is uneducated and superstitious, so maybe it was out of fear for her life.  Mr. Parris tells her that if she doesn't confess, he will whip her to death. then Putnam immediately says that Tituba must be hanged.  It's at that point that Tituba says, "No, no, don't hang Tituba! I tell him I don't desire to work for him, sir!"  Quite likely, she realizes that if she is going to save her own life, she has to say she spoke with the devil.  She has to go along with their accusations, but at the same time, indicate that she no longer listens to the devil and that she has tried to avoid doing the evil that the devil has tempted her with.  She tells Mr. Parris that the devil has told her many times to kill him, but she has not done so.  By making herself look as virtuous as possible, she is getting herself out of what appeared to be a hopeless situation.

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