The Politics of the Crucible In Salem, during the era of the witch trials, everyone is either politically motivated to believe that the wild antics of the girls are the work of the devil, or they are so gullible that they think no child could ever playfully disregard the holiness of the Church. These are the two main reasons why girls accuse people of witchcraft at first, and then new reasons are introduced. After the first victims of the girls' clever joke arrive, two new reasons to continue accusing people. The new reason most girls continue to blame people is that if they don't, it would be the girls' fault, not Satan's, that the "witches" died. One girl doesn't fit the mold of just trying to save herself, and that girl is Abigail. Abigail doesn't want to be blamed for the deaths of innocent people, but she also has her own agenda of revenge and greed that requires her to continue blaming people. On the one hand, she lusts after John Proctor and she thinks that if Elisabeth is dead, he will love her. She was also something of a henchman to Mrs. Putnam and Dr. Parris, as she eliminates Parris's enemies and frames Rebecca Nurse for Mrs. Putnam. Of course, Parris doesn't know that killing innocent people is for him, but she does it out of a somewhat obsessive sense of faith in him. Of course, the other girls aren't completely innocent, but they don't really have a choice. If they talked like Mary Williams, others would accuse them of witchcraft, just like they did Mary. In my eyes, the main reasons for the continued accusations were fear for their own lives and, in Abigail, the need for John Proctor to love her and for her to serve Parris. When the girls involved in this madness grow up, I think most of them will be normal, although a little less naive about children than the average housewife. As for Abigail, I see her committing suicide when someone else catches her playing games...