I will not receive a single plea for pardon or postponement. Them that will not confess will hang. Twelve are already executed; the names of these seven are given out, and the village expects to see them die this morning. Postponement now speaks a floundering on my part; reprieve or pardon must cast doubt upon the guilt of them that died till now. While I speak God’s law, I will not crack its voice with whimpering. If retaliation is your fear, know this – I should hang ten thousand that dared to rise against the law, and an ocean of salt tears could not melt the resolution of all the statues. Now draw yourselves up like men and help me, as you are bound by Heaven to do.
– Arthur Miller
The Crucible, Act 4. The unbending presiding Judge Danforth rules out any possibility of pardon or postponement in the witch trials cases. His tone is full of the power and control he exercises over the Salem court. His merciless justice is expressed in the metaphor: "an ocean of salt tears could not melt the resolution of all the statues." Danforth claims to speak for God, has ultimate power of life and death over people and is not shy to use it. After hanging twelve people already, he promises another seven hangings that day, and even boasts of hanging ten thousand if necessary. Pride and ego speak loudly in this speech, as he says postponement would show "floundering" or weakness on his part. He shows unwavering faith in his own infallibility and that of the court. He views himself as the instrument of divine justice, chosen by God to drive the Devil out of Salem and cleanse it of the evils of witchcraft. Postponement is personified in the passage as having the ability to speak.