How are Rebecca Nurse and Ann Putnam different in The Crucible?

Unlike most people in Salem, Rebecca Nurse is not prepared to attribute the various ills of daily life to witchcraft. Then again, that could be because Rebecca has been incredibly lucky in that she hasn't lost a single child or grandchild, something very rare indeed in those days.

In any case, the kindly, devout Rebecca believes that it's better for people to look to themselves for the causes of their troubles instead of going around looking for witches hiding in every nook and cranny.

The contrast with Ann Putnam could not be greater. Deranged by the loss of seven children, she's come to believe that there are dark, malevolent forces at work in Salem and that witchcraft is responsible for all her suffering. Instead of believing, like Rebecca Nurse, that it's better for people to look to themselves to find out what's causing all their troubles, Ann immediately cites witchcraft as the ultimate cause of all the wickedness that has made her life so miserable.

That being the case, she becomes one of the most enthusiastic supporters of the Salem witch trials, seeing it as an opportunity to drive out from the town the evil spirits that she believes killed her babies.

In going along with all this hysteria, Ann thinks she's doing God's bidding. Yet Rebecca also thinks she's staying true to her faith in insisting on a more rational explanation for Ann's misfortunes. This infuriates Ann, who seeks answers to her troubles in the realm of the supernatural.

What is the argument between Ann Putnam and Rebecca Nurse?

Rebecca Nurse suggests that, rather than look for witches or devils to blame for their problems, the people of Salem ought to "blame [them]selves" and "go to God" for the cause of any problems they have. Mrs. Putnam, however, is offended by the unintended implication that seven of her own eight children have died as infants and that she is somehow to blame for this. When Rebecca says that the people of the village should look to their own selves as a factor in the problems they have, she unwittingly suggests that Mrs. Putnam has done something to deserve the tragedies that have befallen her family. As a result, Mrs. Putnam grows sarcastic, showing her resentment of Rebecca, when she says, "You think it God's work you should never lose a child, nor a grand-child either, and I bury all but one?" All of Rebecca's children and grandchildren have lived, while Mrs. Putnam has lost almost all of her children (and now her one living child, Ruth, seems near to death as well), and Mrs. Putnam seems to interpret Rebecca's statement as an insinuation that Rebecca has done nothing punishable while Mrs. Putnam has. Mrs. Putnam's feelings are already raw from her previous losses and anxiety over Ruth, and Rebecca's piety and luck are, frankly, too much for her to handle; she obviously envies Rebecca's great luck.