“A View From the Bridge” is a play by Arthur Miller. The play is set in Brooklyn, New York, in the 1950s. Eddie Carbone is a longshoreman who lives with his wife, Beatrice, and his niece, Catherine. Eddie is protective of Catherine and does not want her to marry Marco, an Italian immigrant who lives with his family.
Marco and his family are in America illegally, and Eddie is afraid that they will be deported. One night, Marco and his brother, Rodolfo, come to visit Eddie’s home. While there, Rodolfo starts to flirt with Catherine, which makes Eddie angry. He tells them to leave and threatens to call the immigration authorities if they don’t go.
Alfieri is a critical character in A view from the Bridge. He not only set the scene and environment, but he also helped engage the audience and understand the play. Arthur Miller utilized Alfieri’s characteristics to help give background information and overview of what would transpire in the play.
Alfieri is introduced in the very first scene. He talks to the audience and tells us that he is “not a lawyer anymore” and that he only works in an office. This makes him seem like a reliable story teller as he is not part of any of the action going on. He also has a lot of knowledge about law and order which helps back up his character as being able to understand what’s going on and giving a helpful overview. Alfieri also speaks in prologues before each act, which allows him to develop his relationship with the audience, making sure they are following and building tension so the play comes across more effectively.
He uses flowery language throughout A view from the Bridge for example in his first speech he talks about “the Golden Door”. This could be seen as him being welcoming to immigrants as America is known as the land of opportunity. He also uses this language later on in the play when he is talking about Marco and Rodolfo going to find work; he says “I see them sometimes, going down to the Golden Door… looking for work, any kind of work”. This time it could be interpreted as him being sad that they have to leave their home and go away to make a living like so many others have had to do.
Alfieri often breaks the fourth wall which is when a character in a play acknowledges their existence in a play to the audience. He does this a few times throughout A view from the Bridge. A lot of the time he is talking to us directly, for example, at the start of the play he says “which is not to say that I’m unhappy with my life”. This could be interpreted in a number of ways but one way could be him trying to build a rapport with the audience so we feel like he is being truthful with us.
Another time he does this is when he is talking about Eddie’s death, he says “I stood looking down at his body where it lay and I realised that all my years of watching and waiting for justice had amounted to this: one man dead”. This shows his disappointment in the law and how it works and that even though he has spent all his life trying to uphold it, sometimes things don’t go the way they should.
Arthur Miller has used Alfieri’s character very cleverly to help the audience understand the play A view from the Bridge. He is a key character that helps move the story along as well as giving us helpful information and his speeches are important to listen to as they contain a lot of detail. His relationship with Eddie is also an interesting one as we see him grow more and more frustrated with him as the play goes on yet he still feels like he needs to help him.
The best character to do this is Alfieri, a lawyer who should be most familiar with the law, because he is unable to take a side and thus generates suspense and emotion for the audience. Because he mostly talks in a past tense, we get the impression that Alfieri is recapping the story.
“A View from the Bridge” is a play by Arthur Miller. The play is set in Brooklyn in the 1950s and tells the story of an Italian-American family. The main character, Eddie Carbone, is a longshoreman who lives with his wife Beatrice and his niece Catherine. Eddie is protective of Catherine and does not want her to marry Marco, an illegal immigrant from Italy. Marco and his brother Rodolfo come to America to find work and end up living with the Carbones. As tensions mount between Eddie and Marco, the situation comes to a head with tragic consequences.
“A View from the Bridge” is a tragedy that explores the themes of love, family, honor, justice, and betrayal. The play is considered to be one of Arthur Miller’s finest works. It has been adapted for film and television, and it continues to be performed on stage around the world.
The play begins and ends with the narrator, lawyer Alfieri, speaking directly to the audience from his office. In his opening speech, Alfieri sets up the events of the play by relating them to Brooklyn. He tells us how people there consider it unlucky to meet a lawyer or priest on the street. We’re only thought of in connection with disasters, and they’d rather not get too close.
He continues ‘I see them come to my door, as you have come, so many times before.’ From the offset we known that there is going to be some sort of disaster, which both Alfieri and the audience will be observing from a distance.
The play is set in the 1950s and follows the lives of Italian-American longshoremen. These men worked on the docks and were often employed by crime bosses to unload illegal cargo. The main character, Eddie Carbone, is one of these longshoremen. Eddie lives with his wife Beatrice and his niece Catherine.
Catherine is seventeen years old and is due to start work at a local factory soon. She is also being courted by two young men, Marco and Rodolfo. Eddie does not approve of these suitors and is determined to stop the relationship from progressing. His actions lead to disastrous consequences for all involved.
“A View From the Bridge” is a classic Arthur Miller play that explores themes of family, love, jealousy, and betrayal. It is a tragic story that will stay with you long after you’ve seen it.
