You asked more than one question so I have had to edit
your question down. Please remember that you can only ask one
question.
You have asked a very interesting question that
explores the Puritanism of the play and the way in which some of the characters are so
focussed on their particular brand of religion that they are not able to look outside of
that and discover the more sensible and logical explanations for what they are
witnessing.
In a sense, this is linked to a key theme of
the play which is bigotry. Throughout the events in Salem we see the effects of
religious zeal, fear of heresy, intolerance and superstition. Reverend Hale, for
example, is so proud of his knowledge of witchcraft that he is quick to accept the
girls' confessions as proof of this skill. Others are more than willing to
accept supernatural reasons or "unnatural causes" for their problems. There appears to
be so much insecurity in the young colony that anyone who questions the authorities,
either religious or state, is seen to be launching an attack on the whole foundations of
society.
The character that to my mind models this kind of
un-thinking Puritan bigotry the best is Danforth. Consider how he talks to Giles Corey,
Francis Nurse and John Proctor in Act III:
But you must understand, sir, that a person is
either with this court or he must be counted against it, there be no road
between.
Sounds rather like
George Bush to me! But also, it presents us with a character who is so completely
assured that he speaks the truth and the way that he looks at the world is the correct
one - no matter what evidence presents itself.
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