The first definition of a crucible is a vessel in which various metals are purified of contaminants. John Proctor seems to be introduced into this rampant inferno to be tested. His outward shell of vanity is burned away leaving a man of good character. A crucible is also a time period of stress upon a society. Rebecca Nurse and Elizabeth Proctor proved their moral character in their turbulent epoch. In retrospect, people such as Abigail Williams and Thomas Putnam exemplify a person's innate tendency to be greedy and selfish. Lastly, a crucible can be related to the crucifixion of Christ. He died to save other. In his death He refused to confess lie to save himself. Rebecca Nurse, Giles Corey, and John Proctor all stand in the truth regardless of the ensuing consequences.
John Proctor is a man who suits the formula for a tragic hero. He possesses both an honorable character in the face of adversity and a lust for a woman he is not married to. This is his hamartia. The peripetia of proctor comes when he denounces the courts for "pulling Heaven down and raising up a whore!" He goes from a landowner to a death row inmate. The anagnorisis comes when John realizes that his confession will be flaunted in front of the village to give credence to the court. John proctor proves that he is a tragic hero in the fact that his flaw comes back to kill him and hurt his family and innocents. Abigail Williams was his catastrophic gaffe. She led him and his close friends to their deaths. Many people's lives were ruined in the process because of her immature behavior. .