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However, Rebecca is convicted of witchcraft by the court, and Hale begins to see the hysteria at work in the community, and begins to feel he is responsible. He tells the judge, "I have this morning signed away the soul of Rebecca Nurse, Your Honor. I'll not conceal it, my hand shakes yet as with a wound!" (Miller 92). He begins to see how his own actions helped create more hysteria and confusion, and he questions his faith and his conviction that the Devil exists.
By the end of the play, Hale has become disillusioned with the trials and the hysteria. He says, " I came into this village like a bridegroom to his beloved, bearing gifts of high religion; the very crowns of holy law I brought, and what I touched with my bright confidence, it died; and where I turned the eye of my great faith, blood flowed up. Beware, Goody Proctor -- cleave to no faith when faith brings blood" (Miller 122). He realizes his mistakes and his zealous ways,...
His actions have set the trials and accusations in motion, and it is too late for him to control the outcome. He tries to get the girls to confess to save their lives, but they will not. His learning and authority have failed him, and he has failed the community.
In conclusion, Reverend Hale is the cause of must of the hysteria in the community. His authoritarian attitude gives him credence in the community and convinces many residents they are surrounded by witchcraft and the workings of the devil. Hale's character shows how crisis can divide a community and create hysteria and mass confusion. The community collapses in crisis, and turns on its own members. By the time Reverend Hale realizes his mistake, it is too late. He has led the community into chaos, and removing the witches seems to be the only way to save it.
References
Miller, Arthur. The Crucible. New York: Penguin Classics, 2003.
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