Scene 4 reveals old animosities that later drive the action of the play. In this time period, it was not uncommon for children to die at birth or early in childhood for a number of reasons, including poor medical treatment, improper nutrition, and harsh living conditions. Even so, seven is an unusually high number of children's deaths within one family, and losing seven children, coupled with the threat to her surviving child, has left Mrs. Putnam a bitter woman. Inherently self-righteous, she believes she has been victimized and devotes all of her energy to discovering the cause of her children's deaths. Mrs. Putnam's obsession not only leads her to solicit Tituba's services in conjuring her children's spirits, but also results in jealousy toward other mothers who have not lost children. In this case, Mrs. Putnam focuses her jealousy and animosity upon Rebecca Nurse because Rebecca never lost one of her eleven children. Mrs. Putnam's anger toward Rebecca foreshadows Rebecca's arrest just before Act II, Scene 3. Mrs. Putnam may not have learned from Tituba why her children were born dead, but through the witch trials Mrs. Putnam manages to carry out her vengeance and anger by accusing Rebecca, an individual who has what she has always wanted.
Scene 4 also introduces greed and the quest for power or authority as the two other major themes of the play. Parris' argument with Proctor and Corey reveals that money causes many disputes within Salem. Tension arises when Proctor accuses Parris of concerning himself more with material gain than ministering to the inhabitants of Salem.
