Tuesday, November 10, 2015

In The Crucible, what was the posture of Abigail Williams?

We are never actually given a detailed description of the
posture of Abigail Williams, however we are given hints as to the kind of character that
she is which can help us deduce what kind of posture she would have at various points in
the play. Let us first begin by examining the description we are given of her when she
first enters in Act One. We are told that she is "a strikingly beautiful girl, and
orphan, with an endless capacity for dissembling." This reference is important because
it points towards the artificial nature of Abigail's character and the extent to which
she is, first and foremost, an actress who is able to deceive everyone with her
performance. Abigail is an opportunist, who sees the power that she can gain by "opening
herself" and exploits it to the full. We can therefore deduce that her posture in the
play would be one that was full of the importance that she has assumed, unyielding and
indignant of any challenge to it.

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