How Does Keller Show Guilt

Guilt is the tread that fastens grief to a criminal, as if it were a button to an overcoat. As time goes on, that string is worn from stress, making it more susceptible to snap. Just like a string, all guilt has a snapping point. Joe Keller is the protagonist in Arthur Miller's play All My Sons, who is consumed by the guilt of killing innocent World War II pilots. The guilt of this tragedy is unbearable for Keller, as it drives him to insanity and ultimately compels him to commit suicide. Keller's greatest enemy is his internal demon. He struggles with the weight of cheating his once loyal partner, Herbert Deever, into 'fixing' defective plane parts and reselling them. The cracked hoods on the planes caused many pilots to crash during World …show more content…
Keller states that he is "a dead man, [he's] an old dead man, nothing's [his]" (81-82). Keller can no longer counteract the guilt of killing innocent people, and he starts to realize that he must pay for his irrevocable actions. Keller starts to get angry with himself, but takes out his emotions on Chris. Keller subconsciously yells at himself through Chris, saying, "You want me to go to jail? If you want me to go, say so! What's the matter, why won't you tell me?" (82). The guilt for the murdered pilots is slowly consuming Keller, making him believe that he must be punished for his actions. Keller is so angry with himself, his guilt is overcoming him. Keller is consumed by guilt, and claims, "sure, he was my son. But I think to him they were all my sons. And I guess they were, I guess they'd were" (83). The repetition of the idea that all of the soldiers killed were like his son's completely overwhelms Keller, making him finally understand the terrible act he committed. Keller finally accepts the fact that he is the person who killed all of those soldiers, and that he can no longer run from guilt of his