Marco on the other hand is a calm person and promises Alfieri not to cause any trouble.with Eddie. Marco does not like Eddie for the way he is treating Beatrice and Rodolpho. He spits in eddies face and calls him an ‘animal’. It is Marco who kills Eddie at the end of the play.
The cultural difference between Italy and America and the theme of justice and honour is what I will be looking at in detail in this section of my essay.
There are two contrasting types of justice and Alfieri who is a lawyer shows honour in the play shows the first theme of justice. He shows the legal theme of justice. I Alfieri’s first speech to Eddie about the situation with Marco he begins with ‘ I don’t quite know understand what I can do for you. Is there a question of law somewhere’. During the speech Alfieri keeps expressing the point to Eddie that nothing can be done he keeps repeating words such as ‘law’ legal/ly’ ‘proof/provable’. Whereas Eddie keeps using words such as ‘I see’ I mean’ right?’ Alfieri tells Eddie there is no way the law can help him in this situation. This shocks Eddie and forces him to take the law into his own hands and resolve the problem himself.
The other type of justice in the play is that showed by Marco at the end of the play when he kills Eddie. Marco believes that Eddie has betrayed him and his family by calling the immigration on him and Rodolpho
Marco and his comments mainly show the cultural differences. For example when talking about Eddie he says ‘in my country he would be dead now’ Marco cannot see how there can be no law against a man who ruins a family. Marco cannot adjust from his old codes of honour.
In this section I will be looking at the way Arthur miller uses stage directions throughout the play and the tragic chorus made by Alfieri.
Arthur miller uses specific stage directions throughout his play. One to add more drama and tension to certain scenes and two to revel what is beneath the surface of the characters. For example apart from the words Eddie speaks throughout the play the stage directions used also show us his looks and movements revel a man in a grip of obsession.
Alfieri plays a very important part of the play-acting as a narrator telling the story as we go on through the play. The advice he gives to both Eddie and Marco is also a key part of the play. For example if Alfieri didn’t tell Eddie that there was nothing that the law could do to help his situation he may never of considered talking the law into his own hands and therefore might not have been killed in the end. He also allows the play to move on more swiftly without him the characters would have to act out and let the audience know what has happened in the play so far but because Arthur miller wanted to make this a modern version of the Greek classic and a an essential part was that of the chorus: a group of figures who would watch the action, comment on it, and address the audience directly.
Was Eddie to blame? This is the question that most people are asking.
In a way yes his was but the other characters also played a part in his downfall. For example it would seem that Catherine was all over Eddie before Rodolpho came over to America when he arrived she forgot bout Eddie and his feelings which then made his resent Rodolpho because Eddie was jealous that Catherine had a new man in her life. Beatrice also seemed to turn her back on Eddie when her cousins arrived in the country. For example she was going to go to the wedding of Catherine and Rodolpho despite her knowing Eddies feelings and views on the marriage. I think they all played a part in eddies downfall and are all as guilty as Eddie.
In conclusion of my essay I believe that this play is very effective. I believe that it would not be as affective if the detail to the stage directions and Alfieri as the narrator were not apart of the play
The stage directions in the play have a very important part of showing the audience what is beneath the surface of many off the characters and there actions show some of the emotions that the words alone do not express.
Without Alfieri as the narrator the play would be a lot longer, as the characters would have to act out to inform the audience what time of day it is what the day is etc. but with Alfieri this is not needed as he can inform the audience of these things therefore helping the play to move on a lot quicker and smother.
Natasha Beckett
ENGLISH
11 AR/G1
