Act I

In Act One, John Hale has just arrived in Salem. He was summoned by Parris to investigate the seemingly supernatural ailment of his daughter Betty. Hale is very confident about of his abilities and maintains an air of superiority over the others. He is confident in his education, noting that his books are “weighted with authority.”
John Hale is most likely feeling very smug at this point, because the people of Salem wouldn’t know what to do without him and he knows it. They do not have the proper training in demonology or in a college like he does. He does not know it himself, but at this point in the play he is very naïve and has no idea about what will be coming to pass. He thinks that it will be simple to cure the afflicted children and then be on his way. When the accusations start flowing, he starts to believe that there is something supernatural happening in Salem. He seems to be very excited at this fact, most likely not having seen many cases like this in his lifetime.