Conflict in 'A View from the Bridge'

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A play in which a central character experiences not only inner conflict but conflict with one or more characters is “A View from the Bridge” by Arthur Miller. I will explain the nature of both conflicts and discuss which I consider to be most important in terms of dramatic impact.

Eddie Carbone, a longshoreman, lives in Brooklyn with his wife, Beatrice, and his niece, Catherine. The play explores Eddie’s inner conflict as he battles with his feelings for his niece. At the beginning of the play, Eddie walks up to his house and sees Catherine waving to his friend from the window. She is dressed in new clothes and Eddie lectures her about her short skirt, ‘wavy walk’, and her high heels:

“I don’t like the looks they’re givin’ you in the candy store. And with them new heels…the heads are turnin’ like windmills.”

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He is very protective of his niece and does not like the amount of attention that she is getting from other boys in the community. He is concerned about her new job and finds it difficult to accept that she is no longer a child. He is not aware of his feelings for his niece and, at this point, neither is the reader. The jealousy could be a normal feeling for an uncle as he had always been the most important man in her life and now she is meeting other men. It later becomes obvious that he is in ...

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