John Proctor is the protagonist of Arthur Miller's play The Crucible.

Reverend Hale arrives to investigate the potential threat of witchcraft in Salem. He is summoned because of his apparent expertise on witches. When he enters, he carries a stack of books on the subject, showing him to be a learned man. Eventually he comes to doubt the validity of the claims and loses his Christian morals as he trusts Proctor more than the girls; however in act 2, he stops in to the Proctor household to question John and Elizabeth on their beliefs, telling Proctor he must go to church every Sunday and uphold the Ten Commandments.

John Proctor is a farmer, and although we can see him as a smart man, he is not educated the way Hale is. Proctor scoffs at the idea of witchery from the beginning while Hale believes in it. Until the trial makes him question himself, Hale starts out as a strict, religious man. Proctor, while he believes in God, thinks it is okay to "break the rules" so to speak every once in a while, such as plowing on Sunday when his wife is sick and food is needed.

Giles Corey is an old man who says what he thinks. He is more brash than Proctor—as seen in the court when he loses his temper but Proctor tries to remain calm.