John Proctor: Hero or Stooge?

John Proctor has had some pretty tough decisions in the play. Does he confess to his fatal flaw of adultery and prevent the problem escalating as much as it did in the story? Or does he cower away from the truth, trying to protect his name and how others view him in Salem? Eventually he tries to disclose part of the truth, but his attempt fails. No one believes his information when he names Abigail a fraud, finally he confesses to adultery in a final attempt to stop the madness. He then releases he is too late and nothing else can be done and results in his own arrest. Until this point, John Proctor isn’t much of a hero, he tries to make things right, but lacks complete honesty and is too worried about his reputation. Due to his heavy conscience and guilt, he realizes all this too late. During the witch trials, he has the option to confess of his wrongdoing and live. He makes the final decision to refuse the already written confession. This decision shows the heroic side of John Proctor. To confess would be to dishonor his fellow prisoners and has enough integrity to tell and furthermore, accept the truth. Even though he still wants to save his name, he is doing so for more personal reasons, rather than motives of public approval. Even though John Proctor didn’t make the best decisions early on, he did what he felt was right and what wouldn’t hurt others.