Study Questions
1. What is the significance of lighting described in the stage directions?

2. Who is being charged as Act Three begins?

3. What possible motive does Giles Corey offer for the accusations against his wife and others?

4. How are these charges received?

5. Why does Giles feel guilty?

6. What do Proctor and Mary Warren bring with them as -evidence?

7. How does Judge Danforth measure his worth?

8. What does Parris do when Proctor attempts to make his case?

9. What is happening to Hale at this point?

10. How is Mary’s statement that the accusations are mere pretense received?

Answers
1. The shafts of light entering the room are symbolic of goodness.

2. Martha Corey is being charged as the act begins.

3. Giles Corey accuses Thomas Putnam of attempting to acquire more land.

4. Giles Corey is thrown out of the courtroom and threatened with arrest for contempt.

5. Giles believes he has jeopardized his wife by mentioning that she reads books.

6. They bring a deposition signed by Mary that the trials are a fraud.

7. Judge Danforth measures his worth by the number of people he has jailed and sentenced to hang.

8. Parris attempts to call his Christian character into question.

9. Hale has started to believe that the truth is not being served.

10. The judges believe that the whole group is attempting to undermine the authority of the court by making charges of fraud.