Critical Analysis Of 'Settle For Half' By Arthur Miller

The depiction of timeless issues such as these is what makes the storyline of the play compelling to me.

A major theme in this play would be pain and injuries. This happens many times throughout the play and in each scene either

The first issue that is focused on throughout the play would be the racial inequality in America in the 1950’s. Although there were many Americans who were fighting to end segregation and discrimination, nothing was legally done about it until the Civil Rights Act of 1964. Troy Maxson being an African American man in his early fifties, grew up with the white man suppressing him. Troy was a Negro League star but when black men were finally allowed to play in the Major Leagues of baseball in 1947, Troy was too old to play. This left him very bitter towards life and the way he went on to raise his sons, which also ties into the generational clashes that will be discussed later on.

about hate as it is about love and the morals of society. The play is

central to the play. I am going to look at only the first act of the

Also the excessively violent actions of the characters shock the audience at times and works to show a bloody part of American history. Furthermore, the film feels as if you are thrown into history with wood constructed sets and men armed with clubs and knives. These elements work to enhance the thematic content of the play and the viewer’s intense experience of an untraditional period piece that relates a different version of American history, one darker and more anarchic. They sets, accents, and character actions all add to the authentic feel of the movie, which makes the film feel like it is a historical narrative, while also being interlinked with an individual story of vengeance that provides not only a historical account, but entertainment for the

Throughout the play there are many themes leading up to and causing the chief event.

Firstly let us consider conflict. In each act of the play, we see the overpowering desire to belong leading to a climax of conflict

The overall dramatic meaning of this play has been successfully shown by the elements of drama. The

THESIS: Fear is the primary emotion and the central motivating factor that influenced the outcome of the play as it dominated and controlled the nature of multiple characters.

7. What is the purpose of Miller’s comments and explanations throughout the play? If these were omitted, would your understanding of the play been affected? How?

The first element, thought/theme/ideas, encompasses what the play means. Although they don’t directly state any themes there are two clear meanings to this play. The first theme or meaning is you have to stand up for what you believe in or what you believe is not right. For example, Juror 8 believes the kid on trial did not murder his father while all other eleven jurors did believe so. As he talked, using hard evidence, he slowly persuaded everyone until they believed the kid was innocent although one of them was racially biased and others strongly believed what they said. Another theme is you can’t make immense decisions based on opinions or prior judgements but rather on what is genuinely true whether it affects your life.

To begin with, in this play the author unfolds family conflicts that involve its characters into a series of events that affected their lives and pushed them to unexpected ways.

Theme – the reason behind why the playwright wrote the play. “Patterns of life”, a slice of reality.

In respect to the main themes, the major theme of the play is sociological. Miller wants to show the contradiction between American democracy which approves the infinite success and happiness of the individual, and the law as well as social conventions which frustrate him. He dramatizes the individual torn between the expected and the actual ( Choudhuri 94-106).