The witch-hunt was not, however, a mere repression. It was also, and as importantly, a long overdue opportunity for everyone so inclined to express publicly his guilt and sins, under the cover of accusations against the victims.
– Arthur Miller
The Crucible, Act 1. In the background information at the beginning of the play, we learn how the witch-hunt turned neighbor against neighbor. The trials were a vehicle for guilty people to purge themselves of their own sins by accusing and blaming others. Such conflicts between sinner and accused had tragic consequences, as in the case of John and Elizabeth Proctor and Abigail Williams.