John Proctor: Hero or Stooge?

The Crucible is a play/movie that sheds more light on the Salem witch trials. With a fictitious spin for entertainment of course. But at the center of this play is Abigail and John Proctor. And when accounting for the lechery that occurred between them, these 2 characters entrance you to finish the story no matter what. But at the end of the day, John isn't with Abby, Abby gets angry, Abby gets revenge, the revenge goes horribly wrong and Proctor ends up a "convicted" witch. You go a step further, and Proctor is hung for not admitting. Truth be told I honor and admire his determination to not confess to a lie. Even if it means his untimely end. He is not a witch, everyone knows it, but these things happened in Salem and they panicked. John Proctor didn't die a stooge, he died a martyr. He died for what he believed to be right. He made mistakes in his life, yes but that's what makes us human. What makes him redeemed is trying to fix the mistake he made, even if it puts himself in danger (which as we can see it did). If John Proctor actually existed and this is an accurate portrayal of what happened, then I salute you in heaven John. You represent the human capacity for conviction.