In this essay I will comparing the way that Arthur Miller looks at the themes of crime, justice and honour in both American and Italian society. I am looking at how characters’ views of the main themes change throughout the play and the ways in which these change effect the direction that the play takes.
One of the main themes that Miller looks at is the view of crime and what consists of a crime in American and Italian culture. An example of this is the story of Vinny Balzano where a young boy ‘snitched’ to the immigrations officials ‘on his own uncle’. In Italian culture this is one of the most unforgivable crimes to value the law over one’s own family and the resultant action of his exile was more self-enforced as you lose all standing …show more content…
This can be seen when the Immigration officers come for Marco and Rodolpho and Marco accuses Eddie of informing on him where he says that Eddie ‘killed my children! That one stole the food from my children!’ This shows that while Eddie technically did nothing wrong in regards to the American law he has committed one of the worst crimes imaginable to an Italian like Marco. Eddie has in Marco’s mind condemned his children to death as now he will no longer be able to work America and therefore will no longer be getting the pay that he needs to send back to his family in Italy. This removal of financial aid is a death sentence for his poor starving family in Italy as they won’t have the money to buy the food needed in order to stay alive. Moreover, it once again come back to family with Marco’s anger at Eddie being over the lives of his family and not the fact that Eddie betrayed him. For Marco as an Italian man family comes before all else and this is the main cause for his anger. The themes of familial betrayal and crime are related to Miller’s influence from the tragedies of both the Ancient Greeks and Shakespeare. In Macbeth for example the protagonist betrays his friends who is almost as close as a brother because he feels that the friend’s son is a threat to his position. This event eventually comes back to haunt Macbeth with his friend’s son being instrumental in his downfall. In the same way Eddie feels threatened by Marco’s brother and Marco comes the main instrument of Eddie’s
One of the main themes that Miller looks at is the view of crime and what consists of a crime in American and Italian culture. An example of this is the story of Vinny Balzano where a young boy ‘snitched’ to the immigrations officials ‘on his own uncle’. In Italian culture this is one of the most unforgivable crimes to value the law over one’s own family and the resultant action of his exile was more self-enforced as you lose all standing …show more content…
This can be seen when the Immigration officers come for Marco and Rodolpho and Marco accuses Eddie of informing on him where he says that Eddie ‘killed my children! That one stole the food from my children!’ This shows that while Eddie technically did nothing wrong in regards to the American law he has committed one of the worst crimes imaginable to an Italian like Marco. Eddie has in Marco’s mind condemned his children to death as now he will no longer be able to work America and therefore will no longer be getting the pay that he needs to send back to his family in Italy. This removal of financial aid is a death sentence for his poor starving family in Italy as they won’t have the money to buy the food needed in order to stay alive. Moreover, it once again come back to family with Marco’s anger at Eddie being over the lives of his family and not the fact that Eddie betrayed him. For Marco as an Italian man family comes before all else and this is the main cause for his anger. The themes of familial betrayal and crime are related to Miller’s influence from the tragedies of both the Ancient Greeks and Shakespeare. In Macbeth for example the protagonist betrays his friends who is almost as close as a brother because he feels that the friend’s son is a threat to his position. This event eventually comes back to haunt Macbeth with his friend’s son being instrumental in his downfall. In the same way Eddie feels threatened by Marco’s brother and Marco comes the main instrument of Eddie’s