To prove that all these people were actually guilty also played a part in lengthening the tragedy. Herrick, Cheever and Danforth, all so full of their own importance and strictness of the court - 'the law binds me....I cannot budge' - ask question after question to each victim until finally the defendant breaks down and confesses to save their own lives. Even Hale who feels for the victims towards the end, knows the strictness of the court, 'thought our hearts break, we cannot flinch, these are new times'.
In conclusion, throughout the book, everybody in Salem wanted the whole tragedy to end, but one way or another, nearly everyone within the community had a way of making the tragedy continue on longer than it needed to be.
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