A Greek Tragedy also contains a chorus. In the play this part is played by Alfieri, throughout the play he watches over everything and drops hints to show that the play may end tragically. Miller uses him as an omniscient narrator. This means that he directly interacts with the audience dropping clues of Eddie’s tragic fate.
Alfieri’s quotes on many occasions hint a tragic ending “Powerless as I, having to watch it run it’s bloody course.” This shows how helpless Alfieri was, and how much he tries to tell Eddie to change and that his emotions are getting the better of him but he didn’t listen and its had ended in a “bloody course.”
Soliloquies play a huge part in the play because they sum up all the characters important morals and feelings, it also tell us stuff that can’t really be told through dialogue. He interacts with the audience using soliloquies. Alfieri’s opening soliloquy suggests the neighbourhoods dangerous.
The variety of people living there and different lies they have told to stay behind their “suspicious nods” and many years of “distrust and lies”. This quote also relates to Marco and Rodolfo after they have emigrating from Italy to America “Red Hook” to fulfil their American Dream. The other people living in the neighbourhood seem very unknown and the lies they might have told it also seems as if people living their take justice in their own hands “and Frankie Yale himself was cut precisely in half by a machine-gun on the corner of union street, two blocks away” and “no longer keep a pistol in my filing cabinet.” These quotes make the neighbourhood feel unsafe and that if anything goes wrong death is the only way for revenge. It also feels as though Alfieri no longer keeps his pistol in the fling cabinet because he needs in for protection, keeping it with himself all the time. “Red Hook” The name of the neighbourhood can be associated to torture and violence. “Red” can be associated with blood and danger and “Hook” sounds very brutal and aggressive. Alfieri describes the neighbourhood as “gullet of New York swallowing the tonnage of the world” this is said as if all outcasts, poor and not so well off people come to red hook n search for a better world where as the better off people are in the city of New York enjoying themselves. He reminds us at various intervals during the play that the ending is expected, such as near the end of Act 1: "I could see every step coming, step after step, like a dark figure walking down a hall towards a certain door."
The stage directions are important in helping us to imagine exactly what is going on. They help us picture each character’s actions and reactions toward different things in the play. They built a lot of tension throughout the play. On page 42, tension builds up after Eddie’s tries to his Rodolfo in a game of boxing. Marco instantly takes Rodolfo’s back and reminds Eddie’s whose boss which he doesn’t really like. The chair scene has very slow movements and keeps the reader eager to know what will happen next. “Eddie rubs his fists together”, “Eddie comes to the chair, kneels, grasps the leg, raises the chair one inch but it leans over to the floor. He tries again, and again fails” The small movements escalate tension of whether or not Eddie can pass the task given to him by Marco. “Beatrice pulls Eddie down into the rocker” This stage direction shows the shock on Eddie’s face and how he had needed to be seated with Beatrice’s help slowing. “Rodolfo takes Catherine’s hands and takes her in his arms to dance” The other characters in the scene feel obliged to take notice of what’s going on and change it into a less tense atmosphere, Rodolfo feels maybe dancing will may the scene feel less tense.
Alfieri, the lawyer, establishes that justice and the law are going to be important in the play in his opening soliloquy. He sets the story that he is going to tell us in the background of history, both ancient and modern.
"In Sicily, from where their fathers came, the law has not been a friendly idea since the Greeks were beaten...” The fact that Alfieri goes on to state that lawyers in ancient times, as well as he in modern times, were unable to prevent a "complaint" running a "bloody course" causes us to question the power and influence of the law. In other words, although justice is very important, often the law as it stands is incapable of delivering justice.
Alfieri believes that it is best to "settle for half": it is better to rely on written law as far as possible and accept it even when you are only 'half' satisfied. The written law may not always act in favour of justice yet it is better to follow the law than to take it into your “own hands”. In the play we see that Eddie betrays Marco and Rodolfo, there is no law to punish Eddie so Marco takes the law into his own hands, the play ends with a fight to the death. Alfieri reiterates his beliefs at the end of the play: "Most of the time now we settle for half and I like it better." Alfieri values the law more than justice; he sees that when people go against the law to assert justice it can lead to conflict and death. Alfieri tries to warn Eddie about his relationship with Catherine and argues with him to allow her to marry Rodolfo. When the law is wrong it's because it's unnatural, but in this case it is natural and a river will drown you if you buck it now. He is suggesting that it is Eddie's feelings for Catherine that are 'unnatural'. Alfieri then tries to make Marco realise who is the real 'judge' of events "You hear? Only God makes justice." Both Eddie and Marco allow their personal feelings to affect their idea of justice. We see that Alfieri is right, people are not strong enough to execute true justice, their desires and feeling always take a part. This is why it is better to rely on the law.
Honour is shown to be very important, especially to the male characters. It means far more to them than the law. To be honourable is to be respected. If you do anything dishonourable, you lose respect. That is why Marco and Eddie are so keen to protect their names and get a 'just' conclusion allowing Marco to take Eddie’s life at the end of the play. Eddie tells Beatrice, "It's an honour, B. I mean it." when they discuss the arrival of the cousins. Alfieri warns Eddie that he will lose the respect of the neighbourhood if he betrays the brothers. "You won't have a friend in the world, Eddie!" It is significant that a lawyer (whom we would expect to uphold the law) is encouraging Eddie to do something illegal by continuing to keep the brothers hidden. Marco believes the only honourable course is to punish Eddie when Eddie betrayed them both. Alfieri tries to persuade him otherwise: "To promise not to kill is not dishonourable" - but Marco's sense of honour it too strong. Marco's need for revenge is stronger than any fear about breaking a promise. This shows his strong Italian morals.
Vinny Bolzano’s parable foreshadows Eddie’s demise. It is clear that, in the eyes of Eddie and Beatrice, Vinny had done something very wrong and was justly punished. Eddie is clear that Vinny will never be seen in the neighbourhood again out of shame: "a guy do a thing like that? How's he gonna show his face?" Family comes first. To betray one's family is a crime and should be punished - Vinny gets no sympathy despite the injuries inflicted upon him: it was seen that he got what he deserved. It is ironic that Eddie does just the same thing as Vinny - 'snitch to Immigration' - to Marco and Rodolfo at the end of the play.
The end scene, in which Eddie takes his own life with his own knife,
is symbolic of the self-destructive nature that led to such an ending.
As Arthur Miller wished to write 'a modern Greek tragedy´ it is likely
that the symbolism of the dagger is Eddie’s love and anger for Catherine and the cousins, which drove him to his drastic actions and eventually death. During the confrontation earlier in the play Marco raised a chair like a weapon, symbolic of the fight yet to come. Rodolpho danced with Catherine when she had previously been attending to Eddie, symbolic of him taking her from
Eddie’s life.