At the start we are informed that the cousins are coming over to America illegally however this doesn’t affect the family at all because morally they believe it is the right thing to do as they are being loyal and following the “code of conduct”. Eddie allows them to stay under his roof which is giving Marco and Rodolfo justice as they have been given a chance to access the American dream. Later when Eddies goes and seeks advice off Alfieri, he doesn’t mention about how Eddie broke the law at the start which suggests even a man of law believes in both types of law and that everyone deserves justice.
If the “community code of conduct” is broken it is suggested that it is worse than if you actually betray the legal system. An example of this in the play is when Vinny Bolzano “ratted out his family” and is labelled as an outcast and disgraced even by Eddie at the time. With hindsight as an audience we can look back to this event and see how irony is used as Eddie’s horror is soon reversed as he does exactly the same thing later on. Eddies reaction to the news was exaggerated compared to the other characters in the play. Arthur Miller could at this moment be foreshadowing the events that occur later, indicating to the audience that something like this might happen later on in the play. It also suggests that by Eddie meting out his own family he must have known what he was doing as he was alarmed by what Vinny did earlier on which makes Eddie appear more of a hypocrite when he later does the same thing.
Rodolfo appears in the play as single, young and multi-talented and Eddie immediately feels threatened and right from the offset there is a connection between Rodolfo and Catherine. Rodolfo admires the Americans and wants to be seen as “equal” to them and Eddie thinks that Rodolfo just wants Catherine for the” passport”. Eddie suddenly feels he can’t get Catherine’s attention like Rodolfo can and therefore immediately regrets giving the brothers their “justice”.
Eddie goes to Alfieri to pursue his”justice” however Alfieri doesn’t provide him with the answers he wants and ironically he is seeking help from the legal system even though he broke the law at the start. At this point it is suggested he may start thinking about taking the law into his own hands. Eddie’s main concerns are his reputation and his respect which ironically we know at the end he gets neither by the actions he later takes.
Throughout the play we get the impression that Eddie feels pressured by Beatrice to do the right thing. Also their relationship appears unstable as most of Eddie’s time and attention is given to Catherine as if it is a 3 person marriage. Beatrice feels neglected and it could be that Eddie is so blind towards her he doesn’t see this at all. Eddie appears obsessive and wont let Catherine go even though she wants her independent justice and to marry Rodolfo. Ultimately betraying the brothers and breaking the “code of conduct” crushes the cousin’s foreseeable 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 and death.
It can be argued that none of the characters actually ‘wins’ in the end as nobody got their “full justice”. Catherine ultimately still had feelings for Eddie, Beatrice lost her husband, Marco got deported and Rodolfo lost his brother. However relating back to what Alfieri says, : Most of the time now we settle for half and I like it better, is it better to end up with what you are given and not be too greedy like Eddie which eventually lead to his downfall? In the play breaking the “code of conduct” was fatal and in a small community it is vital. Arthur Miller obviously thought both aspects of the law are vital in the play. The characters often mistake their own desires for justice, they fail to look for a higher principle of justice separate from their own feelings, and this is what leads to conflict and the downfall of the protagonist.
