Alfieri is a narrator, observer and also a character in the play itself. The play opens with Alfieri introducing himself and the time at which the play is set, by the end of Alfieri’s first speech, the audience distinguish that there will be a tense situation leading to a ‘bloody’ conclusion, although Alfieri can sense this terrible event he is powerless to prevent the incident occurring. He opens into graphic detail about past bandits and murders and about how justice is very important to the Italians. The community is the 'gullet of New York,´ which is 'swallowing the tonnage of the world.´ This sentence is relatively ironic seeing that Red Hook is a fishing town and ‘tonnage’ is another word for cargo. Alfieri also expresses an intriguing statement, “now we settle for half.” this declaration gives the impression that in this Italian community pride and justice is fierce and that no one will settle for half of what they believe is right. Alfieri makes this statement in the past tense leaving the question did the events that Alfieri witness determine whether people settle for half. Alfieri also provides the audience with information and advice throughout the play and most of all explains the law and its boundaries. He also informs us that the law is limited and isn’t able to deal with every human problem.
Act one is where all the tension builds up which later on leads to a tragic end in act two. In act one we learn of Eddie’s abnormal feelings towards Catherine, and Beatrice’s noticeable jealously towards Catherine and Eddie’s bond. The play introduces us to a normal household, with a loving atmosphere, however this quickly changes on the arrival of Beatrice’s cousins from Italy, Marco and Rodolfo, this is also when we discover characters inner feelings. As Rodolfo rapidly falls in love with Catherine, and his genuine love is returned by her true love, Eddie’s calm loving personality disappears and he becomes indestructible and obsessive about his feelings towards Catherine, as he realises he is not her number one man in her life anymore.
At the beginning of act one Eddie is portrayed as a loving caring ‘manly man’, who is very protective of his niece Catherine as their bond was very close, however in society today we would class Eddie’s intentions towards Catherine abnormal. At the beginning of act one Eddie enters his home where Catherine is eagerly waiting for him, she shows Eddie her new skirt, which we would expect him to compliment, however Eddie shatters her excitement because her skirt symbolises her womanhood“…you are walkin’ wavy!”. Eddie is delighted with her beauty, but he doesn’t want other men looking at her, “the heads are turnin’ like windmills” This on the other hand, would be the role of her father, sadly Catherine parents died, but still we wouldn’t expect him to be so protective of her.
When Marco and Rodolfo enter the play as illegal immigrants to stay with their cousin Beatrice, the wife of Eddie, we see Catherine’s maturity blossom, as she falls in love with Rodolfo. Eddie perceives her interest in Rodolfo, this is when the atmosphere in the play changes, Eddie sees Rodolfo as a rival and he becomes increasingly jealous towards Rodolfo. Eddie invents excuses implying that Rodolfo isn’t interested in Catherine as a result of saying that he is only interested in his papers, to become a citizen. When Eddie’s plan failed, his emotions take over, which leads to increasing aggression that starts to break up the family.
Eddie doesn’t like the fact that he isn’t involved in Catherine's life as much as he would like to be anymore, "Its just I used to come home, you were always there. Now, I turn around, you're a big girl. I don't know how to talk to you." This shows that Eddie can’t bare the way Catherine is always out with Rodolfo and how he misses talking to her and being around her. When we learn that Rodolfo can cook, Eddie is the first to insult him. He says sarcastically: "Its wonderful. He sings, he cooks, he could make dresses…" By saying this Eddie is implying that Rodolfo is a homosexual. Although Rodolfo takes this as a compliment, Catherine knows exactly what he means and supports Rodolfo by saying chefs make a lot of money. This is also when Eddie realises he is losing Catherine to Rodolfo.
At the beginning of act one we clearly get the impression that Eddie likes Marco, however Marco’s politeness slowly fades after Eddie mocks that idea of Italian women being faithful, “I betcha there’s plenty surprises sometimes when those guys get back there, heh?” this clearly implies that Marco ‘could’ have a few more children when he gets back to Italy, this angers Marco as he loves his wife very much, although he doesn’t let Eddie see his fury.
In comparison to Eddie Marco is very controlled and calm. He has left a wife and three children at home, the oldest of whom has tuberculosis. He went to America so he could earn more money than he could at home. It is very clear to the audience that he loves his family a great deal, this is shown by the fact he has tears in his eyes when he first talks about them to Eddie and Beatrice. Given that he has come across to make money for his family makes the audience forget that he is an illegal immigrant and makes him become a brave, sensitive, loving husband and father.
Marco is anxious not to outstay his welcome with the Carbone family as almost his first words are “I want to tell you now, Eddie - when you say we go, we go.” He is extremely polite and also feels a sense of responsibility for Rodolfo. When Eddie is upset that Catherine and Rodolfo were out late, he warns his brother “You come home early now.” Marco tells his brother that he has done wrong because he doesn’t want to cause tension between Eddie and his brother.
Nevertheless Marco is also protective of Rodolfo. Eddie punched Rodolfo while 'teaching' him to box, which infuriated Marco. Therefore Marco calmly challenges Eddie to lift a chair above his head with one hand. The stage directions tell us the chair is raised like a weapon over Eddie's head. This is a trial of strength to show Eddie actually how strong he is, also that he will defend Rodolfo if necessary.
Several parts of the scene are symbolic. For example, Catherine puts on the record ‘Paper Doll’, after Eddie hit Rodolfo to symbolise her anger towards Eddie. After Rodolfo sings, he flatters Catherine with flirtatious confidence from the song. The word doll itself has significance because Rodolfo does in fact think that Catherine is one, as ‘doll’ also means a beautiful girl. Although a doll is fragile and often thrown away, and Rodolfo classes Catherine as a doll, he doesn’t intend to throw her away. He sings this song to get her attention, not to earn his citizenship by marriage. Despite Eddie’s attempt to poison Catherine’s mind against Rodolfo by implying that is all he wants, Catherine takes no notice as she feels his heart is pure love for her. ‘Paper Doll’ also symbolises the fact that Rodolfo is a sensitive man looking for a girl to show the same love in return. ‘Paper Doll’ can be linked to citizenship and marriage purely for the fact that they are both pieces of paper that can be thrown away like a doll can be.
Eddie wants an excuse to hit Rodolfo, considering he is enraged that Rodolfo is taking Catherine away from him. Eddie offers to take Rodolfo to a boxing match, Catherine who is somewhat shocked by Eddie's quick change of heart, as she shows this to the audience by offering to make coffee, leaving the scene for a while. As Eddie asks Rodolfo if he has ever done any boxing before he puts his cigar and whisky down, as this will make the audience aware he is going to get up. The audience are aware of Eddie and his explosive anger and we know he does not like Rodolfo, so when Eddie offers to teach Rodolfo a bit a boxing it is clear that Eddie will try to punch Rodolfo “well, come on I’ll teach you”, this line implies to the audience that Eddie is too eager to teach Rodolfo, also that he will hit Rodolfo if the occasion arises.
Although Rodolfo was hit by Eddie he calmly says that it didn’t hurt to keep the peace between them, as he didn’t want to be thrown out of the Carbone household along with his brother Marco, which will ruin Marco changes to make more money for his family back in Italy. However despite Eddie’s attempt to get back at Rodolfo, Rodolfo and Catherine dance to the record ‘Paper Doll’ which symbolises Rodolfo taking Catherine away from Eddie, which will hurt Eddie more than the punch hurt Rodolfo as it is heartbreaking for Eddie to see Catherine being taken away from him. A punch is physical pain that will heal quickly however it takes a lot longer for a broken heart to heal.
Marco is a very honourable man and believes in his tradition. Throughout the first act of the play, Marco is only referred as a flat character however his personality and his strength is truly seen at the end of the first act, when he lifts a chair above his head and makes it seem like a challenge to Eddie, as a response to Eddie for mocking Rodolfo. He is very clever because he is expressed by his actions more than by his words. He is very strong, and he is obviously aware of that, but doesn't like to show it in words, or brag about it. When Eddie was making fun of his brother Rodolfo, instead of protecting his brother by words, he chose to use his strength to get his point across to Eddie by lifting the chair above his head. Marco chooses to use strength rather than words, as he knows that Eddie isn’t very strong. The chair challenge acts as a clear warning to Eddie as it proves that Marco will defend his honour and his brothers honour if necessary, also if the law isn’t able to right a wrong in the world, he will take the law into his own hands, no matter the consequences as long as he feels he has done justice. We witness this take place at the end of the play.
In conclusion act one prepares us for the final tragic outcome in act two. Act one builds up the tension to the final event a tragic, yet surprising end to the play. Action is most important in this play. firstly addresses the audience introducing to Eddie Carbone’s story, then claims he could see each step unravelling before him and subsequently compares himself to a lawyer in Caesar's time, powerless to watch as the events of history run their bloody course. Early on into act one we rapidly learn of Eddie’s feelings towards his niece Catherine, which in society today we would find Eddie’s feelings abnormal. This unspoken attraction involving Eddie and Catherine is the cause of tension between Eddie and Beatrice. When Beatrice’s cousins Marco and Rodolfo arrive at the house they are both very gracious for the hospitality from the Carbones’. Marco tells the Carbone's that he has three children, one of whom is "sick in the chest," and a wife back home that he will be sending money to. Rodolfo, the young blonde brother, has no family and intends to stay in the country as long as possible, which Eddie later uses this knowledge to prevent Catherine and Rodolfo getting together. In the coming weeks, Rodolfo and Catherine spend a great deal of time together, which worries Eddie. Eddie believes that Rodolfo is untrustworthy and Eddie becomes jealous of the time he spends with Catherine. Eddie tells Catherine that Rodolfo just wants to marry her to become a citizen, but she does not listen, as she knows the love he feels towards her is ‘true love’. Eddie then implies that Rodolfo is a homosexual “…if you came into the house and you didn’t know who was singin’, you wouldn’t be lookin’ for a him…” Eddie says this as he also thinks that Rodolfo isn’t a manly man, he feels he has to ‘put down’ Rodolfo to make himself feel better as he is losing Catherine.
Beatrice who is more aware than ever of the attention Eddie is giving Catherine, talks to Catherine about being a woman and tells her she must grown up and make her own decisions. Beatrice encourages Catherine to get married to Rodolfo if that is what she wants to do. Beatrice also later talks to Eddie and asks “When am I gonna be a wife again, Eddie?” This implies that Eddie and Beatrice haven’t made love in a while, making Beatrice feel unloved and unwanted, as she is aware of his bizarre feelings towards Catherine.
Eddie, who is enraged by Rodolfo taking Catherine off him, visits Alfieri and asks if there is any way he can get rid of Rodolfo by law, although Alfieri assures him there is not. Alfieri tells Eddie that he needs to let Catherine go. The situation escalates and Eddie becomes increasingly jealous of Rodolfo. Eddie resents the fact that Rodolfo thinks Catherine is freer than Italian girls. Eddie needs to let out all his anger towards Rodolfo, so when the chance occurs, Eddie eagerly invites Rodolfo to a boxing match. Then Eddie asks Rodolfo if he knows how to box, which Eddie is aware that he doesn’t as Eddie classes him as a homosexual. Eddie cheerfully asks Rodolfo if he would like to learn how to do some boxing, which Rodolfo reluctantly agrees and the men begin to lightly box. Eddie encourages Rodolfo, and he tells Rodolfo he is doing well, then Eddie hits Rodolfo on the chin. Both Eddie and Rodolfo stop boxing.
Catherine puts on the record ‘Paper Doll’ which Catherine and Rodolfo dance to which symbolises the physical closeness also Catherine isn’t being taken away, she wants her independence and happiness in the world which she has found with Rodolfo. Marco, who silently watched the boxing incident, shows Eddie the danger he invites by threatening Rodolfo. Politeness does not permit Marco to say anything, and the gesture is far more effective as the audience observes the chair "raised like a weapon" over Eddie's head, symbolizing the destruction he will shortly bring on himself. As Eddie and Marco are limited as speakers, and because some matters cannot be openly discussed, ideas are often shown in gesture and action. Sometimes this is apparently minor detail, but at times it is highly symbolic, seeing that actions speak louder than words.
Marco does not need to tell Eddie that he is stronger. His actions and his brief invitation to Eddie: “ Can you life this chair?” are enough to create a very intense change, which speaks volume about the altered atmosphere and the way that the characters now connect to one another.
As Alfieri warns, no one can ever know what will be discovered, he also feels that compromise is better and that ‘now we settle for half’. Alfieri explains the boundaries to Eddie, even though in his heart he knows he will ignore what he has been said to him, he cannot take further action to prevent Eddie’s feelings leading to him taking action which will have regretful consequences. As Alfieri tells us in his first speech he is powerless as if the character's destiny is already mapped out and is a path they must inevitably take.
