Given what she states to John and Elizabeth Proctor, she feels that she has authority given to her by the courts, and probably from God. She tells them "I am an official of the court they say", referring most likely to the judges in charge of running things. So, based on their words, she has taken her "authority" to heart, along with what she feels is God's mission. Of this she states, "I am amazed you do not see what weighty work we do...it is God's work we do...the Devil's loose in Salem, Mr. Proctor; we must discover where he's hiding!" She is most likely parroting phrases from the judges themselves, and gains new-found courage in light of her "importance" in court. She stands up to John, telling him that she'll "not stand whipping any more" and that she'll "not be ordered to bed no more." The only other glimpse that we get of Mary Warren before this is in the first Act where she is whining and shaking in her boots about the potential of being called a witch because of their dancing. Her court-appointed "authority" and self-important mission for God has given her a bit more snuff than she usually displays.
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