Literary Latitude

Here is a concise introduction to Arthur Miller’s play All My Sons:

• Playwright: Arthur Miller, an American playwright, known for addressing social and ethical issues in his works.
• First Performance: Premiered on Broadway at the Coronet Theatre in New York on January 29, 1947.
• Genre: A realistic, post-World War II tragedy.
• Plot Overview: The play is centered on Joe Keller, a businessman who is implicated in a war-profiteering scandal involving defective airplane parts. These parts lead to the deaths of 21 pilots during the war.
• Major Themes: Explores themes of moral responsibility, familial obligations, guilt, the American Dream, and the consequences of individual decisions on society.
• Characters:
  • Joe Keller: A successful businessman who is morally compromised.
  • Kate Keller: Joe’s wife, in denial over the death of their son, Larry.
  • Chris Keller: Their surviving son, who grapples with his father’s ethical failures.
  • Ann Deever: Larry’s former fiancée, who holds key information about Joe’s guilt.
• Significance: All My Sons established Miller as a leading voice in American drama and reflects his critique of American capitalism and personal accountability.
• Awards: The play won the New York Drama Critics’ Circle Award in 1947.
• Influences: Inspired by a true story from an Ohio newspaper, reflecting post-war moral and ethical dilemmas.
• Legacy: All My Sons continues to be regarded as a powerful commentary on the human cost of business ethics and remains relevant in modern times.

Arthur Miller’s All My Sons follows a traditional three-act structure that adheres to classical dramatic elements, while integrating modern thematic concerns. Below is an outline of the plot structure:

Act 1: Exposition

• Setting: The play opens in the backyard of the Keller family home, located in a midwestern American town, after World War II.
• Introduction of Characters: Joe Keller, Kate Keller (also referred to as “Mother”), Chris Keller, and several neighbors are introduced, setting the family dynamic. Ann Deever, the fiancée of the deceased son Larry, is also introduced as a visitor.
• Background Information: The audience learns that Joe Keller was exonerated after a trial concerning the shipment of defective airplane parts that led to the deaths of 21 pilots during the war. His business partner, Steve Deever (Ann’s father), remains imprisoned, taking full responsibility for the incident. The tension over Larry’s mysterious disappearance in the war still haunts the family, especially Kate, who believes Larry is still alive.

Act 2: Rising Action

• Conflict Intensifies: Chris reveals his intention to marry Ann, which Kate vehemently opposes because she believes Larry will return. The act delves into the relationships within the family, revealing emotional and psychological depths, particularly Kate’s denial and Joe’s insistence that he did nothing wrong.
• Introduction of Doubt: George Deever, Ann’s brother, visits to confront the Kellers, having just visited his father in prison. This visit escalates the tension, as George now believes Joe is guilty and his father was unfairly imprisoned. Joe tries to maintain his innocence, but cracks begin to show in his story.
• Building Toward Climax: The act ends with growing suspicion that Joe may have indeed been involved in the shipment of faulty parts, though this is not explicitly confirmed yet.

Act 3: Climax and Resolution

• Revelation: The third act sees the truth finally come to light. Ann reveals a letter from Larry, written before he went missing, in which Larry admits that he knew of his father’s crime and intended to die in the war rather than return to such a compromised world. This letter serves as a devastating confirmation of Joe’s responsibility for both the deaths of the pilots and his own son’s suicide.
• Moral Reckoning: Joe, faced with the full impact of his actions, realizes that the dead pilots were indeed “all his sons,” (also meaning of the title) not just strangers, and that his actions had far-reaching consequences beyond his family. This recognition culminates in Joe’s tragic decision to take his own life, unable to live with the guilt and the destruction his actions have caused.
• Denouement: The play concludes with the family’s shattered future. Chris is left grappling with the moral implications of his father’s choices, while Kate, now forced to confront Larry’s death, is emotionally broken.

Thematic and Structural Analysis:

• Conflict: The central conflict revolves around Joe’s moral compromise, the family’s denial of the past, and the eventual confrontation with the truth.
• Climactic Revelation: The letter from Larry serves as the pivotal moment, unraveling the family’s illusions and exposing Joe’s culpability.
• Moral Catharsis: Joe’s suicide serves as the tragic resolution, providing both a personal and social critique on the consequences of selfish actions within the larger framework of the American Dream.

Timeline

The exact dates in All My Sons are not specified, but a timeline can be pieced together from the dialogue. The events occur in August 1946 in the Midwestern United States, with the main story taking place on a Sunday morning.

• Autumn 1943: Joe urges Steve to send faulty cylinder heads to the USAAF.
• Autumn 1943: After 21 pilots die in crashes, Joe and Steve are arrested.
• November 25, 1943: Larry, after learning of his father’s arrest, deliberately crashes his plane near China.
• 1944: Joe is released from prison.
• August 1946 (Sunday morning):
  • 4 a.m.: The tree planted as a memorial for Larry is blown down.
  • Ann arrives at the Keller home.
  • George completes his visit with his imprisoned father.