What are some reasons why John Proctor is both a good man and a bad man?

John does not look like such a good man in the midst of his argument with his wife, Elizabeth, in act 2.  First, we learn that he was not truthful when he first spoke with her about his conversation with Abigail.  Elizabeth says, "John, you are not open with me.  You saw her with a crowd, you said."  Then, rather than accept responsibility for the falsehood and apologize, John actually yells at her, saying, "No...

John does not look like such a good man in the midst of his argument with his wife, Elizabeth, in act 2.  First, we learn that he was not truthful when he first spoke with her about his conversation with Abigail.  Elizabeth says, "John, you are not open with me.  You saw her with a crowd, you said."  Then, rather than accept responsibility for the falsehood and apologize, John actually yells at her, saying, "No more!  I should have roared you down when first you told me your suspicion.  But I wilted, and, like a Christian, I confessed.  Confessed!"  In other words, John now tells his wife that he should not have confessed to his affair with Abigail when she confronted him about it; he should have shouted her down instead.  Then, to top it all off, when Elizabeth tells him that he really should go and tell the court what Abigail said about the girls' activities being only "sport," he wavers, allowing the trials to continue. He waits until after his wife is accused to be honest about his conversation and relationship with the girl.  These choices could make it seem as though John is a bad man.

However, John does eventually go to court, and he does eventually confess to his relationship with Abigail, potentially sacrificing his good name and reputation within the community in order to save his wife and friends.  Then, in act 4, John bravely tears up his written confession, choosing instead to retain his integrity and honor, as well as his loyalty to those friends who have already died or will die with him.  One of the biggest weights on his conscience is that he feels he has "sold" his friends with his confession.  He says, "I blacken all of them when this is nailed to the church the very day they hang for silence."  He knows that his confession will make the trials appear more legitimate and that it might cast doubt on his friends' innocence if he lies about his own. (He says that he is guilty of witchcraft when, in fact, he is not.)  John's better qualities win out to the extent that he says that he now "see[s] some shred of goodness" in himself.  He realizes that his own goodness outweighs any bad choices he has made.