Examine the ideas of Manliness, Hostility and Aggression in A View From the Bridge. How are these ideas connected?

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A View From the Bridge - Arthur Miller

Examine the ideas of Manliness, Hostility and Aggression in ‘A View From the Bridge’. How are these ideas connected?

        A View From the Bridge is set in Red Hook, a slum area in Brooklyn, New York during the 1950’s. It follows the tale of an Italian American family consisting of Eddie, Beatrice and Catherine. Eddie and Beatrice are husband and wife and they look after orphaned niece Catherine. The tragic hero of this play, Eddie Carbone, works as a longshoreman (harbour labourer) in the Brooklyn Bridge docks. Catherine is still at school and is approaching adulthood, a fact that Eddie is struggling to deal with. Beatrice could be described as a typical housewife and she takes care of domestic affairs. The arrival, by means of illegal immigration, of Beatrice’s cousins Rodolfo and Marco into the household is the catalyst for Eddie’s eventual demise. The idea for this play was borne from the playwright, Arthur Miller’s, own experiences as a harbour labourer on the waterfront, a place he described as “the Wild West, a desert beyond law” and a true story that he had heard from a lawyer friend of his. Arthur Miller uses the play to explore different ideas on what constitutes masculine behaviour through the actions of his characters.

The protagonist, Eddie, has inflexible views on what represents manliness. These beliefs are the engine that drives the play to its bloody conclusion. The conflict in this play arises from the stark differences that exist between Eddie and Rodolfo’s way of behaving. Interestingly, conflict also occurs when Marco, Rodolfo’s brother, conforms to Eddie’s attitudes and consequently threatens Eddie’s status in his household and his neighbourhood.

The foundation for all of Eddie’s ideals on masculinity is respect. He places particular importance on the respect he has in his neighbourhood and household. It could be said that the weakness in Eddie’s character is that he lacks self-respect, as he shows when he goes against all his principles in “ratting” to the Immigration Bureau. At the start of the play he is clearly respected in the local area, as demonstrated by Louis (Eddie’s friend) when he says, “Eddie, you got a lotta credit comin’ to you”. This local respect is so essential to Eddie that he is willing to fight Marco, who he knows is far stronger than him, because “Marco’s got my name” and “he’s gonna give it back to me in front of this neighbourhood”. To Eddie, the defence of his honour is a duty that cannot be shirked. As the audience finds out, this has dire consequences, which leads Alfieri, the narrator, to say “it is better to settle for half”, meaning that compromise is sometimes the only way forward. Respect in one’s own household is, in Eddie’s eyes, an important requirement for anyone who considers himself or herself a man.

In the first scene, it is obvious that he dominates his household. His authority is rarely challenged; Beatrice has to plead with him to let Catherine take a job offer. Beatrice is constantly trying to please Eddie; perhaps this is because Beatrice is jealous of the way that Eddie feels for Catherine. Early on in the play Beatrice says, “I was afraid that if it don’t turn out good you’ll be mad at me”. This quote shows that Beatrice is slightly fearful of Eddie. Eddie justifies his dominance by saying “this is my house”. The protagonist also commands respect from the other female character, Catherine. He reminds his niece that “I walked hungry plenty of days in this city” for her benefit. Eddie wields his personal sacrifice like a weapon to make Catherine feel guilty so that she follows his wishes. The arrival of Marco and Rodolfo destabilises Eddie’s supremacy in the household and, in the resulting conflicts, the women begin to assert themselves and play key parts in the play.

The female characters are pivotal in this play because they, unintentionally, are the cause of all the aggression and hostility that the male characters display. This is recognised by Beatrice in the concluding part of the play when she tells Catherine “whatever happened we all done it”. Beatrice realises this because she is the only character, apart from Alfieri, who appears to have an insight into what is going to happen. Beatrice shows her insight earlier on in the play when she is the first character to understand that Eddie’s feelings for Catherine have sexual connotations, as she advises Catherine that she shouldn’t “walk around in front of him in your slip”. Beatrice sees the direction that Eddie is heading for and consequently tries to be a calming influence on Eddie, for instance, when she quietly says (as the stage directions indicate), “Eddie. Let’s go someplace else” in a futile attempt to avoid a confrontation with Marco. Beatrice is rewarded for her peacemaking endeavours by having Eddie die in her arms. Arthur Miller wrote several endings for his plays but he chose this one for the published version. Perhaps this was because Miller wanted to show that decent humane behaviour could gain some reward.

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Symbolism for sex, namely Catherine’s high heels, is used in the first scene of the play to hint at the key role that the issue will play in the performance. The high heels that Catherine wears represent a rite of passage to womanhood – men are attracted to her and she enjoys the attention. This undoubtedly irks Eddie, illustrated when he complains, “I don’t like the looks they’re giving you”. As would be typical for a teenager, Catherine rebels against Eddie and she continues to wear them. Catherine is unaware that Eddie’s complaints are not just those of an over-protective ...

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