Parris is angry at Abigail because she is beginning to exhibit a pattern of behavior that makes her seem very suspicious. First, he's heard rumors that her name is no good in the village; she was dismissed from service seven months ago, and no one has tried to hire her since. Moreover, the woman she used to work for is rumored to be staying home from church because "she will not sit so close to...
Parris is angry at Abigail because she is beginning to exhibit a pattern of behavior that makes her seem very suspicious. First, he's heard rumors that her name is no good in the village; she was dismissed from service seven months ago, and no one has tried to hire her since. Moreover, the woman she used to work for is rumored to be staying home from church because "she will not sit so close to something soiled." This is problematic because, for the people in Salem, reputation is everything.
Further, the night before, Parris found Abigail, his daughter, and other girls from the town "dancing like heathen in the forest" while his Barbadian slave, Tituba, chanted over the fire. He worries that she has "trafficked with spirits" and invited the Devil into Salem. Moreover, Betty is now very strangely ill, as is another girl in the town, and so he fears whatever might have caused her condition. Finally, he seems mostly angry with Abigail because she could be endangering his position in the town. He says that he has "many enemies," and that they will find out if there is anything questionable happening in his house and "ruin" him with it.
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