Hale's Turning Point

Act III begins with Giles accusing Putnam of trying to get more land. Giles says that Putnam is getting his daughter to accuse others of witchcraft so that he can take their land. Hale is called in to help get to the bottom of it. In Hale's mind, he knows that Putnam is an egotistical man who only wants more land and more money. He knows that Giles is telling the truth, but has no proof so he can do nothing to help. This greatly helps influnce Hale's decision later on in the play. He starts realizing more and more that what's going on is wrong and injust. Later on in the act, Abigail and her group of friends are all called in to the courtroom. They begin to pretend to have a vision of a bird attacking them. This annoys Hale greatly, because he know's that the girls are faking but the judges all believe in the girl's act and he can do nothing to change this. Abigail ends up accusing Proctor of being the devil's man and trying to get her to join the devil's forces. Danforth, believing that she is telling the truth, orders the arrest of Proctor. This is the last straw for Hale. He knows that Abigail and her friends are only pretending about everything having to do with witchcraft. He knows that Abigail is lying about the entire thing and he can no longer take all these false accusations. Hale denounces Proctor's arrest and quits the court.