Past and PresentThe Card Game and Uncle Ben

pp.27—35

Objective:

• explore the interactions between characters

• relate to the different characters in the play, to respond to their troubles and joys with sympathy and/or other emotions

The Past

• How does Miller indicate a shift to the past?

• What is the significance of the leaves and the elm trees?

• Why does Miller portray the past in this way?

• What do these time shifts suggest about Willy’s state of mind?

Read p.27—29 • What happened to Willy on his way

home earlier that day?• What does Charley, the next-door-

neighbour, offer Willy? How does Willy respond?

• What is Willy’s mood as he talks to Charley?

The Card Game—Key Elements

• Willy’s state of mind is gradually deteriorating.

• Charley is concerned and attempts to distract him with a game of cards.

• Willy, insulted and angered, refuses Charley’s offer of a job.

• Willy begins to confuse Charley with his brother Ben who recently died.

• Enraged by Willy’s lack of interest in the game, and feeling helpless, Charley leaves.

The Card Game

• Miller places this scene immediately after the audience learn that Willy once turned down the offer of another profitable opportunity and that he has since regretted his decision. This shows the audience that Willy does not make good choices.

Performance

• In groups of 3 enact the scene on p.29-31 (Uncle Ben’s entrance to the point when Charley leaves).

• Try to convey the confusion that arises as Willy talks to both Charley in the present but also to his memory of Ben in the past.

• Take note of the Stage Directions.

Scene Annotation: Directing the Scene

• Re-read through the scene, making annotations (comments) on the script that relate to:

• Stage Direction / Positioning – decide where will certain characters stand around the stage. Think carefully about relationships between characters, and how you can use positioning to show this.

• Characters’ Feelings – decide how each of the characters will feel / react to different parts of the scene. Think about how can you use tone of voice / body language / facial expressions / movement to show this.

• Audience Reaction / Understanding – decide how you will assist the audience to understand key aspects such as shifts between past / present; figments of a character’s imagination (Willy); other characters’ confusion.

Ben

• Look at the Stage Directions on p.29. In what ways is Ben opposite to Willy?

• Why does Miller blur the scene with Charley with Willy’s reminiscences about Ben?

• Comment on the dramatic impact of this scene on the audience.

Homework: Willy’s Boys

• Re-read pp.33-35 and make notes on the way that Willy is raising his boys.

• What sort of father is he?• How much has Willy’s own father

influenced the way that he is raising his own children?

• How much does Ben influence the way that Willy raises Biff and Happy?