"The Crucible," written by Arthur Miller, takes place during the witch trials in Salem, which was an isolated village in Massachusetts. The society of Salem is a very patriarchal society where the men have the power of the women, and where the men run the church. The Puritans in Salem live in a theocratic society. In a theocratic society, the church has the power because all of the inhabitants live by the way of God and believe they are His messengers. Rather than God being in power, it's the fear of the devil that drives the society of Salem to follow the Christian religion very closely. Abigail Williams manipulates the residents of Salem in order to gain authority over John Proctor and God, while the men slowly lose their authority to hysteria and Abigail. While the church consistently holds power in Salem, Abigail gains power over Proctor and Reverend Samuel Parris, who manipulates the authority of the church in hopes of placing himself in a higher position. Abigail Williams uses her skills of finding John Proctor's weaknesses and flaws to mercilessly manipulate him to her own advantage to gain authority. Abigail is skillful in a way that she is able to act flirtatious towards Proctor, in hopes that he'll give into her, therefore making it easier for her to manipulate him. Abigail's first step to gaining power over Proctor was having an affair with him, which eventually led to her goal to take Elizabeth's place. In Act One, Abigail is weeping as she grasps Proctor and says, "I cannot sleep for dreamin'; I cannot dream but find you comin' through some door" (Miller 22). Abigail meaningfully tries to draw Proctor closer to him by telling how she wakes in the middle of the night to await his arrival. She doesn't dream of him but instead, prefers his presence during the middle of the night. By this, she is trying to entice Proctor into resuming their illicit affair to show to others' her authority. Proctor continues this conversation