The Resolution of selfishness and lies

“A single lie destroys a whole reputation for integrity” is a quote by Balthazar Grecian. Telling a lie is a great sin, and to cover one lie we have to tell many lies. Lie always makes the situation complicated. A play The Crucible by Arthur Miller tells about witchcraft and Abigail is one of the antagonist characters of that play. She and her friends practiced witchcraft in the forest which was a taboo in Puritan’s culture and religion. Mr. Parris, who was Abigail’s uncle and the minister of Salem village, saw their activities in the forest. However, When Mr. Parris asked from Abigail about their witchcraft, she denied the truth and she told that they only danced with Barbados songs. She lied because she knew that the penalty of witchcraft was hanging. Abigail and her friends accused many innocent people of witchcraft who never did this forbidden work. In the court, Abigail was telling lie again and again only for self defense. Moreover, when Judge Mr. Danforth asked to Mr. Parris about Abigail’s activities, he directly told lie because he was afraid of his reputation of ministry. At last, Mr. Perris, Abigail, and her friends proved in the court that those innocent and helpless people were witches. At last, police arrested that accused people, and penalized them by hanging. According to Mr. Parris and Abigail, Mr. Parris’s reputation and Abigail’s life were more important than many guiltless and helpless people. 

Similarly, another protagonist character Elisabeth, who was Mr. Proctor’s wife, also accused of witchcraft. Mr. Proctor came to the court to save his wife from accusation. In the court, during argument, he had to tell to Mr. Danforth about the relationship between him and Abigail, whatever Elisabeth didn’t know. When the Judge Mr. Danforth asked to Ms. Proctor to tell about her husband’s lechery, she lied that her husband was an honest man, and he never did bad work. As a result of her lying, Mr. Proctor couldn’t prove his evidence, and he and her wife both accused as liars and witches, and the court put them to hang. 

Our Prophet Mohammad (S) told that telling truth is the main way to be honest and to win. Telling lie is not good habit. We have seen the result of telling lie. Telling lie does not solve the problems; it makes the situation tricky. Now my question is that if Mr. Parris and Abigail did not accuse and die, could they pass their rest of the life happily? Didn’t they feel guilty for the helpless people’s death due to their selfishness and lying?