In a world where compromise is part of our daily experience, there is something to be
said for the rebel. Depending on the time, circumstances and historian, individuals who have
been found to revolt have been labeled everything from heroic revolutionary leader to mere
lunatic (albeit magnificent agitators). The actions and agendas of such rebels vary, as do the
means and modes of self expression. But one thing is certain – rebels capture our attention, if not
our collective imagination, and oftentimes strike a common chord found within the human spirit.
There is a certain element of excitement and dread attached to the idea of rebelling against the
status quos regardless of a given agenda. One of the more compelling heroes of revolt in recent
literary and theatrical history is Arthur Miller. Arthur Miller is arguably the most celebrated
playwright of the past half century and has secured a well earned place in the history of
playwrights of revolt.
Arthur Miller’s moderately humble beings as a child growing up in the shadow of New
York City did little to anticipate his eventual rise as a literary giant. Miller’s family was
“unequivocally middle-class and Jewish (Bigsby, page viii).” There were no notable experiences
that shaped him or propelled him in a particular direction. But Miller did have a desire to attend
the University of Michigan and when he was initially denied admission he went to work to
reverse the university’s decision. Miller gained employment to personally cover his tuition and
“wrote a letter to the president of the university and asked for a chance to prove his merit
(Bigsby, page viii).” He was eventually accepted and successfully earned a Bachelor of Arts
degre...
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plays. Miller was married three times (most notably to Marilyn Monroe), was active in liberal
movements, stood up against the House of Un-American Activities Committee and even
endeavored to write an adaptation of Henrik Ibsen’s An Enemy of the People. From Joe Keller to
Willy Loman, John Proctor to Dr. Stockman, Miller championed the common-man’s struggle to
revolt against the world’s standards and their resolve, if not to live then to die on their own
terms. He asked hard questions, gave unpopular answers and articulated revolt in a way that
continues to stir generations.
Works Cited
An Enemy of the People, 1950, Henrik Ibsen, Adapted by Arthur Miller, Penguin Plays
The Crucible, Arthur Miller, 1952, Dramatists Play Service, Inc
The Portable Arthur Miller, 1971, Edited by Christopher Bigsby, Penguin Classic, Inc.
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Show MoreRaymond Rogers, David Krause, and Kristina Curry Rogers found significant evidence that the carnivorous dinosaur, Majungatholus atopus, was also a cannibal (Krause et al 2003). The dinosaur remains of the Majungatholus atopus were dated in the late Cretaceous Period from 65 to 70 million years ago. The Majungatholus atopus inhabited the plains of the northwestern Madagascar and bones and teeth continue to be found throughout the Maevarno Formation and within the channel-belt deposits of the Anembalemba Member. The Majungatholus is commonly found, along with other vertebra taxa in ‘bonebeds’ in the Madagascar area, which is probably the reason this dinosaur is still preserved. The trio discovered teeth marks in many bones of the ribs, ilium, and precaudal axial skeleton co...
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John struggled with the whole idea of rocketry. Because it was such a foreign science at the time, John could not see how it could take Homer out of Coalwood. Elsie accepted Homer’s passion and drive to learn rocketry and this put a strain on Elsie and John’s relationship. This is seen at the end of the movie when Elsie threatened to leave John and the Hickam family system if John did not help Homer build a new rocket. It appears throughout the movie that John had the most power, or the ability of an individual family member to influence others, in the family, but Elsie showed a tremendous amount of power when she gave John the ultimatum (lecture). In this instance, Elsie aligned or created a subsystem with Homer to gain power, in order to influence John (lecture). When Homer decided to get involved in rocketry, he disrupted the equilibrium in the Hickam family system because he tried to change the goals or feedback of the Hickam family (lecture). Homer received negative feedback from his father when he tried to change because the change was denied and John tried to get Homer to forget rocketry and work in the coal mine
The desire for power and authority has always been a part of the human nature. Today’s society most often use power to dominate one another and fulfill one’s personal intentions, which can affect other people in many ways. Having power and authority is truly gratifying but it is terrifying if abused and used for selfish acts. The play, The Crucible, by Arthur Miller is an example to illustrate the consequences of abuse of power. The characters Abigail Williams, Deputy Governor Danforth and Reverend Parris use their power over society by manipulating people and using their authority to fulfill their personal intentions, like material gain, vengeance, maintaining social status and reputation, and attention, which eventually lead into a mass hysteria.
...ct even though he was genuinely unable to visualize the public consequences of what for him was a private act. From an ethical standpoint he feels like he did nothing wrong, for "it is not that he cannot tell right from wrong but that his cast of mind cannot admit that he, personally, has any viable connection with his world, his universe, or his society" (Bloom, Modern Critical Interpretations: Arthur Miller's All My Sons 104). He believes that "family is the most important thing and that what is done in the name of family has its own justification" (Bloom, Modern Critical Interpretations: Arthur Miller's All My Sons 28). "I did it for you, it was a chance and I took it for you. I'm sixty-one years old, when would I have another chance to make something for you?...For you, a business for you!" (Bloom, Modern Critical Interpretations: Arthur Miller's All My Sons 65).
In Arthur Miller’s The Crucible, we are positioned to see belonging as paradoxical, in that the positive, human quality of belonging inevitably carries with it the negative and dangerous corollary of exclusion. By belonging, we are automatically excluding others and excluding ourselves from other groups. The Crucible achieves this complex presentation of belonging through a variety of interconnected techniques which will be explored in this essay. These techniques may be categorized into four main groups: conflict, characterisation, heightened language and juxtaposition; conflict being the foremost.
The debate of whether dinosaurs were cold blooded or warm blooded has been ongoing since the beginning of the century. At the turn of the century scientists believed that dinosaurs had long limbs and were fairly slim, supporting the idea of a cold blooded reptile. Recently, however, the bone structure, number or predators to prey, and limb position have suggested a warm blooded species. In addition, the recent discovery of a fossilized dinosaur heart has supported the idea that dinosaurs were a warm blooded species. In this essay, I am going to give supporting evidence of dinosaurs being both warm and cold blooded. I will provide background information on the dinosaur that was discovered and what information it provides scientists.
In the story The Crucible, the plot and structure add meaning to the play. Arthur Miller does this by connecting the events of the Red Scare to the Salem Witch Trials. He does this by making the comparisons of how easily it is to trust false things, jump to conclusions too quickly, and believe irrational fears.
Arthur Miller’s success first began with his Broadway play, All My Sons, in 1947. This award winning play “Struck a note that was to become familiar in Miller’s work: the need for moral responsibility in families and society”. (Anderson 1212) Later, his production Death of a Salesman left him the group of America’s top playwrights....
Nilsen, Helge. "Marxism and the Early Plays of Aurthur Miller." Literature and Its Writers. Eds. Ann Charters and Samuel Charters. Boston, MA: Bedford/St. Martin's, 2001. 2037-2041.
Arthur Miller, the world-renowned playwright widely regarded as a pioneer of American drama, recounted his experiences with the anti-Communist hysteria of the 1940s and 1950s and the creation of "The Crucible" in a lecture Monday afternoon.
In his early life Arthur Miller’s father was a well-renowned and respected businessman. The family was well off and owned, along with their main house, a summerhouse in Queens. Along with 400 employees, the family also had a hired a chauffeur, however, as a result of his father’s business loss in 1928 the family was forced to move to Brooklyn. Here Miller was raised for the rest of his youth, and he spent a great deal of time amongst those that had once been prosperous, but were forced out onto the streets as a result of the 1929 stock market crash, which was one element that aided in the Great Depression. Seeing the affects of the dirty thirties, the failures that people would eventually blame upon themselves, Miller was able to use such
Avery, Joe. "Arthur Miller Biography." Bio.com. A&E Networks Television, 22 Feb. 2010. Web. 27 Apr. 2014.
3. Martin, Robert A. Introduction. Arthur Miller, New Perspectives. Ed. Robert A. Martin. New Jersey:Prentice Hall Inc. 1982.