When Proctor tells Elizabeth that he will confess, she understands that he is doing so because he wants them to go home and reestablish their family. Note that neither Proctor nor Elizabeth considers Elizabeth's situation. The court has delayed her execution until she gives birth to the child, but she is still scheduled to hang. If Proctor confesses and gains release, Elizabeth will still remain in jail. Proctor realizes that Elizabeth will not confess, but agrees to confess anyway. The play suggests, but does not confirm, two possible solutions for Elizabeth. First, she may decide that, although lying is a sin, lying to save her life and protect her family justifies the sin — especially since she already lied in the courtroom. On the other hand, perhaps the witch trials will end (as they have in Andover) and the courts will release her. Unfortunately neither one of these happens.
Scene 4 exemplifies a struggle. Proctor knows that signing the confession is lying, and this sacrifice of honor is the hardest for him to bear. His desire to remain honest and his desire to preserve his family tear him in two. Proctor believes that God will forgive him if he confesses, because, as Hale states, "life is God's most precious gift; no principle, however glorious, may justify the taking of it."
Proctor does not consider himself righteous, in fact he recoils from the idea that he is compared to individuals like Rebecca Nurse who are innocent of any wrongdoing. Of course Proctor has not practiced witchcraft; however, according to himself he is a fallen man, one who has sinned against his wife and himself.
