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Notes on Drama PBQ• Identify the conflict: In any extract that you are given look for

what the key source of conflict is in the extract. AMS is a play where the conflict is never truly very far away from the scene – be aware of what it is and you have one point to start with.

• Take note of character’s movements on stage – they tell you a lot about the power relations between characters ( and how they have changed) and play a role in helping you understand the characters better. Most importantly, they help to create TENSION in the extract.

• Tension in drama is not the same as Conflict. In fact, tension is a direct result of the conflict in the extract. And the tension rises or falls as the conflict intensifies or becomes more relaxed. 2

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• Demonstrate a constant and conscious awareness of the play as a performance and remain aware of the way audience response shifts and develops throughout the extract. The audience response can vary from emotions of shock, horror, pity, puzzlement, curiousity etc.

• Always be aware of how suspense is created and sustained in the play as this is a crucial technique used to maximise audience involvement.

• Treat the extract as an unseen passage – in the sense that you must continue to point out the suspense even though you know what happens later in the play – you still need to analyse the extract for dramatic effects and look closely at the way characters interact as if your were seeing the extract for the first time – but NOT as if you are new to the text as as whole.

• Be aware of plot development. In the introduction to your PBQ response, try to show how the extract fits into the plot of the play as a whole – which point is it taken from ( exposition, rising action, climax, anagnorisis etc) and more importantly, how do that impact what happens in the extract and also what happens after the extract?

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• Comment on what is significant about the extract but also remember to comment (especially in the intro) on how this extract either anticipates/indicates later developments or is in itself, a result of something that happened in the previous scene. • Always point out significant developments or shifts in

character within the extract – For example, if Joe, who has always been bluff and self confident, now appears to be simply mirroring Ann’s speech and seems to be lacking in force, you must comment on the change in his character and show evidence in the language and stage directions. You must also highlight what the cause of this change is and how it impacts the conflict and tension within the extract.

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Introduction

• This extract details the final dramatic moments before the revelation of Larry’s letter as Kate and Ann each struggle to further their self-interest. The extract is crucial to the plot of the play as it introduces the letter which is a plot device used to move the action of the play to its conclusion. The letter also causes Kate to finally acknowledge that Joe is responsible for Larry’s death and hence signals the end of her denial. Ann’s strong will and pragmatic, self interested motives are also explored in this extract.

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Point 1: Conflict between Ann and Kate• The conflict arises as Kate resolutely holds on to

the belief that Larry in alive while Ann wants her to release Chris from the clutches of that myth. • The conflict between the two women is marked

in this extract as they finally confront each other over their respective agendas. Though it begins in silence and in their inability to “speak to each other”, it develops into a full blown argument later in the extract.

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• The conflict escalates when the silence is finally broken and the dialogue becomes a means by which the women struggle to assert their will over each other. Ann uses imperatives and commanding phrases in her speech such as “you’re going to do something for me” and “you understand me?” to establish her authority over Kate. This assertion of authority is creates both curiousity and suspense in the mind of the audience.• The certainty in Ann’s tone of voice when she commands

Kate and the collected manner in which she states her demands implies a hidden knowledge that gives her both certainty and strength and audience curiousity is piqued as we want to know the source of her confidence.

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• The audience is also slightly shocked at the commanding tone that Ann takes with Mother. So far, all the other characters have spoken to Kate with some deference and even evasion especially in regard to Larry. Even in the same extract, Kate’s command to Joe to “go in the house” is obeyed without much resistance, showing the extent of her influence. Ann’s direct and commanding speech puts her on an equal footing with Kate.• The conflict intensifies in the middle of the extract as the

women attempt to impose their will on each other. Even as Ann charges mother to “say it to him”, Kate responds with a more veiled threat, stating that the “the night [Chris] gets into [Ann’s] bed, his heart will dry up”. Kate’s irrational threats are in stark contrast to Ann’s businesslike tone and lend an ominous air to the exchange.

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• The conflict comes to a head when the letter is revealed but is also complicated by several delays which heighten the tension. When Kate first gets an inkling of what Ann might know, the “pause” in the stage direction is an emphatic one as it is the point where she begins to feel threatened by Ann.• The sending off of Joe causes the first delay

which builds on this tension as the audience is now aware that something momentous is going to happen.

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• The second delay occurs when Ann tries to explain her motivations to mother, in a rather fragmented, broken up way with incomplete lines such as “I didn’t have any idea that Joe-” and “I hoped…” which add to the sense of mystery. Ann’s sudden change from her confrontational stance earlier to an almost defensive one here, almost as if to pre-empt Kate’s reaction as seen from the use of phrases such as “first you’ve got to understand” and “I had nothing against him or you. • With each delay, conflict intensifies and culminates in the

Kate snatching the letter from Ann’s hand. At this point, the tension in the extract is at its highest point, as is the conflict between the women but the unexpected moan from Kate changes the atmosphere on stage completely.• The conflict is never resolved as Kate’s primal,

vulnerable response signals her defeat – her myth is finally broken and the truth has been revealed.

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Point 2: Ann’s Strength of Will

• Ann’s resolve to ensure that her interests are secure is presented at the very start of the extract. The recurrence of phrases such as “I want to” and “I’m not going to” suggest a clarity of purpose. • This clarity is also accompanied by an almost businesslike

statement which shows the extent of her resolve and her determination to stop Kate from controlling Chris’s future. The imperative “you’re going to do..” shows that Ann is very conscious of the power that she now exerts over the Kellers and is not hesitant to use it. When contrasted with her willingness to “do nothing about Joe” we realise that Ann is driving to a compromise with Mother in order to secure her own future.

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• Her growing sense of control intensifies in the next few lines with phrases such as “I’d like you to tell him” and “you understand me?” which suggests both her resolve as well as a growing sense of frustration with Kate. Ann’s use of the phrase “set him free” is also significant as she is the only outsider who can see the full extent of Kate’s power over the two men and the way in which it is damaging Chris’s ability to have a relationship with her.

• This sense of control reaches a climax in the last few lines of the extract when the source of Ann’s power is revealed to the audience. The letter becomes, ironically, the means by which Ann attempts manipulate Kate. Her reluctance, as seen from the many pauses in her speech, shows that she is aware of the impact that the letter will have on the lives of the Kellers. However, Ann is also unhesitant to use it as a means of last resort, if her interests are threatened, if there is really “no way to settle Larry in [Kate’s] mind”. 12

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• Such commanding statements from Ann create a sense of suspicion and mystery in this scene as the audience is led to question her confidence and fearlessness in confrontation Kate. Ann’s confidence is further emphasised when the formerly bluff Joe is now reduced to merely mirroring her demands to Kate whereas Ann seems to have a genuine source of knowledge which gives her control.

• Yet, though Ann is presented as being confident and strong willed, at the beginning, she “starts, then halts” according to the stage directions, before declaring that she is “not going to do anything about it”. This suggests that the decision to not pursue revenge on Joe is not an easy one for her to make and is also supported by Kate’s observation to Jim earlier in the scene that Ann did not come out of Larry’s room since Chris left which gives us the impression that like Chris, Ann to had retreated in order to come to a moral compromise. It is also likely that Ann was contemplating showing the letter to Kate and has finally resolved to do so as she sees no other way to break Kate’s hold over Chris even though she knows that it will break up the family.

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Point 3: Revelation of the truth

• This scene is crucial to the play because one of the key mysteries in the play is on the brink of being solved through the means of Ann’s letter. • The letter is thus an important plot device for two

reasons – firstly it reveals the truth about Larry’s death with a finality that Kate has no choice but to accept and secondly (and Ironically) it becomes the means by which Joe’s anagnorisis as well as the eventual climax and catastrophe occurs. Though the entire contents of the letter are not revealed here, the audience is made aware of its significance by the sheer rawness of Kate’s response to it as she now loses complete control over her façade of denial.

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• The means by which the suspense is built up towards the end of the extract is significant in terms its dramatic impact on the audience. Although Ann’s power over the Kellers is apparent through her language, it intensifies towards the end of the extract as it is reinforced through stage directions and the characters movements.

• The tension in the scene intensifies when Ann hints at the possibility that she may know more about Larry. When Mother “stares” at Ann for a long moment, the tension rises. The silence of the stare is an emphatic one, as it places the women on a separate level of knowledge than Joe who seems oblivious to the exchange. Suspense is thus created, and heightened even further with the departure of Joe which both women seem to desire – almost as if they know that he will not be able to handle what is to come. The power in the play now rests firmly with the two women as they now take their positions as opponents. 15

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• The exchange is charged with suspense when the revelation of the letter is further delayed by Ann’s speech, when she pauses to explain, haltingly, why she brought the letter. Even as she explains her position, the suspense reaches an even higher point as the audience is left to wonder about the contents of the letter – Ann’s line about “settling Larry in [Mother’s] mind” is what gives the first inkling of what is to come. Mother’s abrupt movement as she “snatches” the letter from Ann is closely followed by Ann’s incomplete sentence, “We wrote me just before he-”.

• The dual emotions of Ann’s Guilt and Kate’s sorrow play out on stage as Kate reads the letter – in the interim, Ann’s attempts at explaining her action of showing Kate the letter brings the suspense to a head. The tension reaches a peak as the Kate’s silence is underscored by Ann’s halting, almost incoherent (to the audience) speech. This is a momentous point in the plot of the play as Kate’s illusions come crashing down and her moan, which emerges in the midst of Ann’s ineffectual declarations, has a powerful dramatic impact Y 16

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Point 4: The shattering of Kate’s denial• The extract presents Kate’s gradual loss of power and the

eventual shattering of her denial.• Even as she verbally asserts her stand repeatedly to Ann, even

suggesting that their marriage will not be a happy one because Chris’s “heart will dry up” due to the guilt of marrying his brother’s girl, Kate is becoming increasingly affected by Ann’s firm stand that Larry is dead.

• The best instance of this is when moves to Ann and “grasps her wrists” in an attempt to physically restrain her in an act of control. The fact that she resorts to physical restraint suggests that Kate is indeed affected by Ann’s claims. This is preceded by a very interrogative line where Kate pushes Ann for answers, repeatedly asking “How did he die” in an attempt to refute Ann’s claims.

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• Kate’s myth about Larry is shattered upon the reading of the letter which conveys with ultimate finality that Larry did indeed die. It also confirms what Kate has guessed and feared all along, which is that Larry’s death is connected to Joe’s actions.

• The “long, low moan” that comes from Mother after she reads the letter is not so much a mourning for the Larry as it is for the realisation that Joe destroyed his own family.

• The faith that Kate had earlier placed in God who does not “let a son be killed by his own father” is now reversed as she finally acknowledges that it was Joe’s choices that killed her son and they all have to suffer the outcome.

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Ann’s pragmatism/ self-interest• Ann is also presented as a very self-interested woman who will

do anything to achieve her goal of getting married to Chris even if it means not pursuing the justice that she knows her father actually deserves. When she states that she will not “do anything” about Joe, she compromises on her ideals of justice and honesty and capitulates to self interest.

• However, it is possible to argue that Ann is only being pragmatic as she is ensuring her own future in an uncertain world. Miller is not wholly critical of her action as can be seen from the way he leaves an open ending on the question of her future with Chris.

• Ann is also not hard hearted even though she is resolute. We are shown that there is a lot of inner debate that she subdues before deciding to show the letter to Kate. She is fully aware of its repercussions and uses it hesitantly.

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Question

‘ In the world of the play, the present interrogates the past and the past infiltrates the present.’ Discuss.

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Key words and how they work in the question• The present interrogates the past through both the action

and the relationships in the play. The word ‘interrogate’ implies a relentless questioning and doubting and this is indeed a constant in the play – be it in the dialogue where the characters constantly express doubt or question each other in their attempts at denying the past or in the relationships, where the combined denial means that there is a concerted attempt to stop the interrogation but external elements in the form of Ann and George, ensure that the interrogation occurs.

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• To infiltrate is to stealthily and insidiously work your way into something and in the play, the past has many means of infiltrating the present – be it by way of the physical setting, the dialogue, the reminders of war and loss or even in the attempts to understand the loss of Larry. The infiltration of the past is what precipitates the climax of the play as the letter, a physical reminder of the past, becomes crucial to revealing the truth of Larry’s death and contributes to Joe’s suicide.

• The past also infiltrates the play in the form of the outsiders, Ann and George who bring with them both reminders of a lost time and also a quest for justice for past crimes.

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The influence of the past on the action of the play• At the start of the play, the crime around which the action is

centered has already taken place and set in motion a series of events that influence the present.

• The structure of the play is ‘retrospective’ in the sense that the past continually intrudes on the present and the secrets of the past are revealed all the way into the final act.

• In this sense, the past becomes a key driver of the action as it the uncovering of it in episodes that drives the plot forward.

• The whole aim of the play is to bring Keller in line with the consequences of his past actions and hence the action of the play is geared towards bringing the past into the present so that it can be confronted.

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The influence of the past on the relationships in the play• The past infiltrates the present and constantly seeks to invalidate

it. The only way that the inhabitants can deal with the past is by denying it. This active denial can be seen in all the characters, including Joe, Kate, Chris and even the community as a whole. Joe’s denial of his act makes his defensive and forces him to rewrite the past whenever he talks about it.

• So when Kate rebukes him for joking about going to prison, he defensively remarks “why? What have I got to hide?” suggesting that there is indeed something that lies concealed within. This awareness of his misdeed also shapes the way Joe views his own past – glorifying and exaggerating his return from prison as he “walked past the porches” without making making it seem like a grand return from an ordeal rather than a shameful event in his life – Joe actively seeks to rewrite the past in order to distance himself from it.

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• The past does ‘infiltrate’ the present in the play in the sense that it is never very far away because past injustices have never really been laid to rest. The foremost symbol of the past in the play is the apple tree which represents Larry and serves as a constant reminder of the unresolved mystery of his death, the guilt associated with him (for his mother and brother) and even the recent war which left the entire community damaged and longing for the idyllic past.

• The ‘infiltration’ is a subtle but constant one as Larry’s tree, though it is chopped down by Chris is a symbolic act of moving on, incites other characters to constantly refer to his memory. Almost all the characters on stage comment on the fallen tree and the difference in their attitudes tell us a lot about their varying degrees of denial, guilt and detachment.

• For example, while Joe is seemingly quite detached about the falling of the tree, stating quite casually, “Aint that awful? The wind must’ve got it last night. You heard the wind, didn’t you?”, Kate reacts in a much more extreme way, recollecting how the tree ‘snapped right in front of [her]”, her physical proximity to the tree also mirroring the significance it has in her life

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The ‘reprimanding finger’ that she holds up to Joe is also indicative of hidden tensions between the couple and when she states with anger that they “should never have planted that tree”, her emotions contrast with Joe’s acceptance of the situation to create both conflict and suspense in the play. Hence the past and the issues it brings with it, continues to infiltrate the present through the relationships of the characters.

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The infiltration of the past on the physical environment • The past casts a long shadow over the play in terms of the

physical setting, the relationships within the play and also the shared history of war that looms in the recent past.

• The house, with its poplar trees blocking out the neighbourhood is a symbol of the past. Though the house is in the present, the atmosphere of stagnation hangs over it. The poplars seem to cut it off from any interaction with the outside world, giving it an air of timelessness. The yard too is lifeless with plants past their season, embodying a lack of continuity and growth. Even the characters themselves appear unchanged as George recalls that Joe and Kate look the same as they did all those years ago.

• All these elements contribute to a very surreal atmosphere as, even visually, the lines between past and present are blurred.

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Imprisoned in the past• In one way or other, all the three Kellers are imprisoned to

their past. Their stagnation and an inability to move towards personal happiness is caused by their inability to face up to the truths of their own guilt. In this way, the past is constantly infiltrating the present, stopping them from resolving anything and keeping them locked in a state of stasis.

• The dialogue in the play is marked by evasive speeches and significant pauses where characters are in tense situations, unable to truly communicate or reach out to each other. The best example of this is mother’s inability to see that her obsession with the past is stopping Chris from moving on with his life and leading to his stagnation. 28

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• The relationships between Joe, Chris and mother are also marked by this sense of stagnation and conflict as they both are unable to fully communicate with each other. The mutual guilt that share about the past infiltrates into their present relationship and becomes a barrier to any real interaction.

• Evasion in the dialogue is present in interactions between all three characters as they struggle to relate to each other without having to open up their secrets. This evasion impacts them psychologically (especially Mother) and erodes their relationships with each other.

Keller: Well, I got an idea, but... What's the story?Chris: I'm going to ask her to marry me. {slight pause. Keller nods}Keller: Well, that's only your business, ChrisChris: You know it's not only my business.Keller: What do you want me to do? You're old enough to know your own mind. 29

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Mother: {with an accusing undertone} Why did he invite her here?Keller: Why does that bother you?Mother: She's been in New York three and a half years, why all of a sudden...?Keller: Well, maybe... maybe he just wanted to see her.Mother: Nobody comes seven hundred miles "just to see".Keller: What do you mean? He lived next door to the girl all his life, why shouldn't he want to see her again? {Mother looks at him critically} Don't look at me like that, he didn't tell me any more than he told you.Mother: {a warning and a question} He's not going to marry her.Keller: How do you know he's even thinking about it?Mother: It's got that about it.Keller: {sharply watching her reaction} Well? So what?

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The past and the memory of loss • The past is also associated with loss and sorrow for almost

all the main characters and society in general is deemed to have changed as a result of the war – its present values are different from those in the war.

• The fact that this pain is an ever present reality in the present world of the play suggests the tremendous impact that the war has had on the characters and their psyche.

• The best example of this is Kate whose dreams and hallucinations of Larry hold her prisoner to his memory. The past has infiltrated her mind and memory, not just the physical environment in the play.

• Chris too, is deeply affected by the loss of his soldiers in the war and the guilt stops him from seeking personal happiness.

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The need to reconcile with the past • In order to move on and break the stagnation imposed by

an unresolved past, the Kellers must face Joe’s actions and their own denial of it. For Chris, he needs to reconcile his idealistic past with his pragmatic present so as to move on from the shackles of survivor’s guilt.

• The ending of the play offers up a possible resolution for the characters. There is the hope that with Joe’s death, moral and social order has been restored and the characters can move on.

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Possible questions on the play

The play in general: - AMS as a play about misplaced faith- AMS as a war play or critique on war- Significance or importance of social responsibility- The play as a triumph or defeat of social values over individual

ones- Relevance of the title - AMS as domestic tragedy - AMS as a social critique

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Questions on characters• Joe as a tragic figure who makes the wrong moral choice and must

atone for his actions, as a flawed father, as a victim of society’s values, as the American everyman.

• Chris as the troubled hero of the play, his denial, his idealism, as a flawed figure who is at once idealistic and materialistic.

• Kate Keller ( her power, as a bad influence, her maternal presence in the play)

Role and significance:• George Deever ( relevance to the plot, as the representative of Steve,

seeker of justice, reminder of the impact of Joe’s actions)• Jim Bayliss ( loss of personal ideals, pragmatism, money)• Kate Keller • Larry Keller ( influence on plot development as he is the catalyst to

pushing forward the action, as the idealistic son which sacrifices himself for his father’s wrongs, the reason for the Keller family’s stagnation, Larry’s letter as a rebuke to this father for failing to act responsibility, the suicide itself as an attempt to evade responsibility)

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Thematic questions• Guilt and denial – its impact on individuals and society as a

whole.• Betrayal and faith • Father- son relationship• Corruptive influence of money/capitalist ideals• American dream

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Kate Keller’s role in the play • She serves as Joe’s confidante, the only one who knows about

his guilt and keeps quiet about it• She is the maternal centre of the play and uses her maternal

power to her advantage over almost all the characters. It is this power that enables her to keep her family in a state of stagnation for the three years since Larry’s disappearance

• She represents Miller’s questioning of the role of fate and destiny in man’s life – her unwavering (though unfounded) belief in Larry’s return casts an ominous shadow over the atmosphere of the play. Her belief in horoscopes, the visions and dreams she has of Larry are all a means of presenting this aspect of her character. In the end though, her beliefs are proven false and Miller shows us that it is human action and the repercussions of the choices that we make that shape our lives.

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• Kate plays a crucial role in the plot development as it is her unconscious slip about Joe’s health that sets in motion the peripeteia (reversal of fortune) in Joe’s life. She is also instrumental in revealing to Chris the possibility that his own father might be guilty of the deaths of the pilots and also of Larry, causing a rift in the father – son relationship.

• Kate can be called ‘powerful’ because she has the power to control and manipulate those around her. She also has the power to hold her family in stasis. As a wife and mother, Kate rules over the domestic aspect of the Keller household and we know that she runs a tight ship. But Kate does not have power over the laws of cause and effect – she tries to maintain a myth about Larry’s existence so as to keep her family together but the truth catches up with her

• Kate has even also called the ‘true villain’ in the play. There is some truth to this as she is very deliberately deceptive in her actions, much more so than Joe. Her need for control also destroys the happiness of those around her, like Chris and Ann especially when she takes the extreme step of packing Ann’s bag. Even at the end of the play, she reinforces this denial within Chris, indicating that she has not fully adopted Chris’s views on being better human beings.

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• However, Kate’s motivations are not all driven by self interest. It can be argued that Kate is driven by her loyalty to Joe and her desire to protect him and Chris ( and even the father-son relationship).

• Kate’s volatility adds a lot of variation to the tension in the play. She is at times subdued and vulnerable, evoking sympathy and pity in the audience. At other times she issues verbal threats to those around her, especially Ann, creating a sense of antagonism. At yet other times, she is movingly maternal and domestic, the image of love and sacrifice (as with George) and at yet other times, her actions are even physically violent as when she strikes Joe across the face.

• Kate is also a good parallel and complement to Joe’s character. Unlike Joe, she is more emotionally complex and her sense of guilt is a lot more apparent than in Joe. But she is also a lot like Joe, in that she too is pragmatic and places an emphasis on money and self preservation – she can hence understand Joe’s motivations and sympathise with him, placing her in the role of the middleman when the father-son relationship sours. She is able to see both perspectives and sympathises with both Joe and Chris but is unable to effect a compromise between them before it is too late.

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