So, I was watching the film version of The Crucible, and two quotes from the play literally leapt out at me. These quotes may help you compose your conclusion paragraphs.
At the very end of Act II, after Elizabeth is taken away, Proctor says:
"Now Hell and Heaven grapple on our backs, and all our old pretense is ripped away--make your peace! Peace. It is a providence, and no great change; we are only what we always were, but naked now."
Proctor is directly addressing the duality of the people of Salem. In his opinion, the trials have removed "pretense," faked outer personas, and revealed the true inner feelings of the townspeople: envy, resentment, jealousy, lust, et al. In a strange way, he almost seems relieved that he can stop pretending to be a morally upright man.
Proctor is self-aware; Danforth, the "hanging judge," is decidedly not so. He too feels that the trials have removed the "pretense"; but unlike Proctor, he actually believes that there are witches in the town. In Act III, he proclaims:
"This is a sharp time, now, a precise time--we live no longer in the dusky afternoon when evil mixed itself with good and befuddled the world."
A strict Puritan, Danforth is relieved at the prospect of ending a period of duality.
I hope these help. I will continue to check my email until about 10:00 PM.
Good luck, all!
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