Initially, Proctor is hopeful that Mr. Hale will have as much common sense as he has heard. In Act One, as he leaves the Parris household, Proctor says, "I've heard you to be a sensible man, Mr. Hale. I hope you'll leave some of it in Salem." Proctor has high hopes that Hale will bring his wisdom and rationality to the town which is fraught with suspicion and superstition.
However, Proctor's opinion of Hale changes...
Initially, Proctor is hopeful that Mr. Hale will have as much common sense as he has heard. In Act One, as he leaves the Parris household, Proctor says, "I've heard you to be a sensible man, Mr. Hale. I hope you'll leave some of it in Salem." Proctor has high hopes that Hale will bring his wisdom and rationality to the town which is fraught with suspicion and superstition.
However, Proctor's opinion of Hale changes in Act Two, when Hale comes to the Proctors' home to question John and his wife. Hale is somewhat suspicious of Proctor because he hasn't been to church regularly, his youngest son is not christened, and he cannot list all the commandments. After the marshal arrives to arrest Elizabeth and Hale defends the court's proceedings, Proctor calls him a "broken minister" and he orders the minister "Out of [his] sight," calling him a "coward" because he is unwilling to stand up in the face of this corrupt court. Their relationship at this point is pretty bad. Proctor thinks Hale is weak and untrustworthy, a party to the court's corruption through his cowardice.
In Act Three, Hale finally tries to stick up for Proctor in court, encouraging Danforth to allow Proctor to return with a lawyer, defending Proctor when his wife lies to protect his reputation and when Mary Warren turns against him. However, at this point, Proctor's opinion of Hale cannot really be redeemed. Hale seems to be trying to do the right thing, but it seems to be a case of too-little-too-late. Hale eventually quits the court, leaving the Proctors to fester in jail and Salem to descend even further into corruption.
In Act Four, Hale returns to Salem to counsel the condemned to confess (and lie) in order to save their own lives. Though Proctor is tempted to do this and almost does, he eventually decides against it, a decision Hale cannot support or understand. Therefore, the relationship between Proctor and Hale is never good -- it rests only on John's hope in the very beginning -- but once John is let down by Hale in Act Two, there is simply no way to redeem it. Both are good men, both make mistakes, and both act according to their consciences in the end. They are very similar, but they are never really able to discover their similarities.
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