Alfieri’s role in the play is the narrator. He keeps the play running smoothly as well as informing the audience what is going to happen. I spotted that the setting show the distance of Alfieri from the community, by having the filing cabinets at the edge of the stage area. This shows how restricted he was to what he could do to help. Miller has created a strong persona although he is just in three scenes as a character. He is precise, adds realism, and draws us in to want to watch more of the play. Alfieri represents the law. He is physically close to the Carbone household but really, he is a distance from the people of Red hook, as they believe he brings bad luck. People ‘nod uneasily’ so really he is an outsider. I think that Miller has been clever to use Alfieri to tell us what is happening and to have an unbiased person narrating the play. When Alfieri says ‘ Catherine told me later this was the first time her and Rodolfo had been in the house alone’ this makes us want more of the play as we know something is going to happen.
The set Design at the opening of act 2 shows Rodolfo in Eddie’s chair. This suggests that he want’s to take the place of Eddie in Catherine’s life. The scene draws us in when it opens, as it is calm and domestic, but there is a contrast when Catherine questions Rodolfo for reassurance of the love she and Rodolfo share. In this scene, we gain insight into the character of Rodolfo. He is genuine as he says he would not marry Catherine if they went to Italy. He is also sensitive and proud and this scene gives a totally different insight into his character as he gets angry for the first time.
Rodolfo uses poetic imagery when he says to Catherine ‘if I take a little bird…. and she wishes to fly it would be wrong to keep her shut up’. He is trying to tell her that Eddie is handling the situation wrong and he would not act in this way. The Way they sit in this scene it shows how close they are.
The Relationship between Catherine and Rodolfo is becoming serious and the audience is aware of this because they ‘head towards the bedroom’. This shows a contrast between Eddie and Beatrice as they have a lack of communication unlike Catherine and Rodolfo. In addition, their relationship is more physical that demonstrates the trust Catherine has for Rodolfo. This scene is when Catherine turns into a woman, as she is no longer ‘a baby’ as it is a turning point for her.
When Eddie arrives he is in a drunken state that creates humour but it has us on the edge of our seats as we know who is inside the house and that something is going to happen. As Eddie does not know how to express his feelings about Catherine and Rodolfo’ s relationship, he reacts with violence and brutally. This also could be because he is under the influence of drink but it does not excuse his brutal behaviour. We can tell how angry Eddie is by his use of short commands, such as ‘get your stuff and get outta here’. This escalates in to high tension as he uses inappropriate remarks but then Eddie goes to far when he kisses Rodolfo. This is ‘to show her what he is’ and to humiliate and mock him. Eddie wants both of them to see the power he has. I believe what he did is not anything to do with power more he doesn’t feel in control so he does that to feel in control of the situation. Eddie always seems to want to be in control even after he was in the wrong, an example of this is when he says to Rodolfo ‘ watch your step submarine…. they oughta throw you back in the water but only I got pity for you’. He telling Rodolfo do not take her or I will tell immigration.
To conclude the themes in the play and character’s interaction makes it very dramatic. The inevitable was always going to happen in this play, as Eddie has too many feelings for Catherine and this play would have always turned out bad as all of the people involved had strong thoughts and Feelings. They all had there own personalities even though some of them didn’t show them till it was to late. I think the way the personalities were present it made it dramatic to watch as you never new what was going to happen next. I believe it was dramatic to watch as it had many areas me, as the audience could relate too.
