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All My Sons is a wonderful social tragic drama which explores the mind set of post war American society. Miller portrays so convincing and real characters in the play Joe Keller, Chris Keller, Katie Keller etc. to attract the mind of contemporary society towards social responsibility in spite of being only self centered or selfish. He vehemently emphasizes that there is a world out there except family and one should feel accountability towards that also. The transformation of mind and personality are very natural, where sometimes it happens on a sudden impulse sometimes it takes too much time to accept due to contemporary conditions and circumstances. The present paper of mine is a very humble effort to draw the attention towards the psychological condition of the characters portrays by Miller and their psycho analysis that has universality.

The aim of this paper is to make this planet a place where people not only think about themselves but make them aware about the outer world also, as sometimes our deeds of past compel us to take a wrong step without giving the chance of repentance, if we ignore our responsibility towards society and world.

The basic inspiration behind this paper is Arthur Miller’s play All My Sons. The play gives an idea that how, just for little benefit or profit, people become so selfish and what would be the offshoot of their trivial selfishness. This play’s characters are also very convincing and realistic. They are just like normal human being but their psychological state and repression of mind how bring drastic change in their personalities is the matter of observation. In spite of this, Cherrynapi blog and critical book of Ramji Lall on Arther Miller’s All My Sons are very helpful source of the paper.

One of the greatest playwrights of modern era, Arthur Miller was born in America in 1915; he grew up in the years of depression in America but in spite of being puzzled or restless with the circumstances he took such catastrophic condition as an opportunity. Being a self made man since the inception of his career he fought with of odds and with the same spirit he moved further in his literary career.  As he uttered once:-

“It was a good time to be growing up.”[1]    

As a playwright Miller was in the favor of social drama with some serious purpose to which he called ‘whole drama’. Almost all his dramas are in the line of such a genuine motif of his own. He authored some unforgettable dramas, which not only gave success to the author but brought some wonderful psychological change among contemporary audience and reader, like All My Sons, Death of a Salesman, The Crucible, A View from the Bridge, After the Fall etc. His dramas became the eye opener in the direction of welfare of the society and human beings. This paper of mine is concern; this is a humble effort to put the psychological aspects of memorable characters of All My Sons. The play is a tragedy on the whole where Miller has shown us how the conscious and sub- conscious mind react on some particular event, which compel the general audience to think over again and again about not only thinking for own self but there are some social responsibilities of each and everyone in the construction of this planet suitable for living happily.

With his might pen and efforts Miller took the post war American drama/ theatre to the new heights.  Though through the medium of this tragic play Miller boldly criticizes the American society where honesty, utterance, selfishness, money mindedness are leaving behind the genuine values of friendship, love and responsibility. He talks about an atmosphere of disbelief which raises the question of trust. Joe Keller being the protagonist of tragedy shows his inclination thoroughly toward money and profit on the cost of others happiness and lives. He like an opportunist takes opportunity of earning money as he was under pressure to send defective cylinder heads to the forces in only individual interest. As he utters in the play:

“… It was mad house. Every half hour the Major calin’ for cylinder heads, they were whippin’ us with the telephone. The trucks were hauling then away hot, dame near…….All of sudden a catch comes out with a crack. That happens, that’s the business…”[2]

Joe Keller persist his ideology regarding business, profit and money further:

“…I’m in business, a man is in business; a hundred and twenty cracked, you’re out of business; you don’t know how to operate, your stuff is no good; they close you up, they tear up your contracts… what could I do, let them take forty years, let the take my life away…?”[3]

But on the same time if we concentrate about the psycho analysis of Joe Keller’s character we find him as a very caring husband and father as well, whatever is done by Keller is act of protecting his family financially, socially and in the way of providing them a mental relief and stability. Actually his unconscious mind compelled his conscious mind to act in that direction up to some extent because of safeguard of his own family and his own business as well. It was the time of instant decision and at that time there begins the conflict of conscious and sub- conscious mind.

“In psychology, repression is the unconscious exclusion of painful impulses, desires, or fears from the conscious mind (http://www.answers.com/topic/repression, accessed on December 29, 2008)”[4]

In his character study when Joe Keller finds his own self alone and realizes that he is losing everything even his own son, his dilemma over powered his mind again and with all his gesture he tried his level best to patronize the things around but he failed. In spite of being a businessman he was a father also who has lost a son already but when his younger son Chris starts protesting against him, his psychological condition becomes so pathetic. He finds himself on no man’s land. Whatever is done by him throughout his life now seems him useless; a fight starts between a practical man and ideal man. His character deals with the problem of identity, that is, his acceptance or his rejection of his own identity (image). This sudden change in the behavior of people around him shakes his self, though its matter of social and individual responsibility, as he has done everything for the welfare of his family; he finds really very tough to come out of such mental trauma.  

As a family man Keller earns facilities for the future of his family. Keller tries to convince Chris that whatever is done is done, now no one can change it and as for as his own mental (psychological) and physical condition is concern, he feels so pathetic and tiered. Keller’s deep love, feelings, agitation, mental depression and loneliness for his family reaches at its peak when he utters, after seeing everything against him in his own family, among his own people-

“I’m asking’ you. What am I, a stranger? I thought I had a family here. What happened to my family”?[ 5]

 He further torments-

“Nothin’s bigger than that. And you’re goin’ to tell him, you understand? I’m his father and he’s my son, and if there’s something bigger than that I’ll put a bullet in my head!”[6]

Not only this that Keller thinks about his own family but after being culprit by his own conduct, psychologically, he is very much aware about feelings of Steev Deever , his former business partner. That is why since the arrival of Annie he tries to convince her that she should change the way of thinking about her own father. He says her that her father was not murderer but a timid man who did something terribly wrong but in his foolishness. So anyhow her notion towards her father should be changed as he says “You’re in love now, Annie, but believe me, I’m older than you and I know- a daughter is a daughter, and a father is a father”. He says further to her that she should go to meet her father and should convince him that everyone is waiting him and Keller would give suitable place to him in his business again. He wants to give opportunity to George also. Means overall it seems as Keller repentances and tries to provide everything to Deever’s kids.

In Katie Keller psychoanalysis it is very clear that she used to live a life of dream. “Freudian views a dream as unconscious wishes to be interpreted”. (http:// wikipedia.org/wiki/dreams, accessed on December 30, 2008). Her sub-conscious mind is not going to accept the death of Larry, her elder son. She, with her husband, tries to create an imaginative world where she may live freely with an expectation that’s not going to complete. Her believe in superstition give a kind to relief to her sub conscious mind and that’s why she waits eagerly for the horoscope of Larry, as favorable  day or the fortunate day is the source of faith of Katie’s sub conscious mind. Her belief in God is another important aspect of her belief; she compares the possibility of Larry’s return with the sun, such symbols strengthen her idea as she utters:

“Because certain things have to be, and certain things can never be. Like the sun has to rise, it has to be. That’s why there’s God. Otherwise anything could happen. But ther’s God, so certain things can never happen.”[7]     

She lives a live full of superstition, outwardly, but emotionally she is living very much same life as other mothers used to live. Her love become much more intense towards Larry after his departure from her life because now she starts an imaginative world around her in her wait for her son and throughout day and night she thinks over his return. In his remembrance she has planted a tree also to live with his son even in his absentia. She dreams his son as he is crying for help and specifically on the same day when the tree blows down; this is very significance sign for her as her sub- conscious mind reminds everything related to Larry. She explores her dream-

“… Mom, Mom! I could hear him like he was in the room. Mom!...it was his voice! If I could touch him I know I could stop him, if I could only-….”[8]

Her mental condition is very critical because she is aware of her husband’s guilt but on the same time she is known to the fact that her son will now become the pray of her husband’s conduct. She becomes too confused to judge anything means either she should go against her beloved husband or she should forget offshoot of his deed. In spite of this her mental trauma increases when she came to know about the wedding desire of Chris with Annie. In her subconscious mind Annie is Larry’s girl so her mind is not going to give blessing to Chris and Annie, if they would marry. She protests against everyone even to her beloved husband; that’s why with the passage of time transform into the depression. She starts believing horoscope and favorable (fortunate) day.  She becomes the specimen of the repressed mind.  

Chris is one of the characters in the play who becomes the mouthpiece of Arther Miller. He, like other characters in the play, lives his life comfortably initially but his mind is also perplexed and there are many reasons. If analyses minutely, his depression starts with the missing news of his elder brother Larry as he was very attached to him; the belief of her mother that Larry will come back one day and that’s why he doesn’t have any right to marry Annie; lastly the past deed of his father Joe Keller in terms of sending defective cylinder heads which become the cause of death of twenty one pilots.

“Chris is also repressed by the death of Larry. He loses her mother’s attentions. His mother, who always believes that Larry is alive, becomes a sensor which caused a repression for Chris as follows:

Chris: … I’ve been thinking, y’ know? --- maybe we ought to put our minds to forgetting him?

Mother: That’s the third time you’ve said this week.

Chris: Because it’s not right; we never took up our lives again. We’re like at a railroad station waiting for a train that never comes in. (Act I, p. 290)”[9]

But in spite of all his depression and odd circumstances he loves Joe very much as when George starts alleging Joe Keller he confronts then. Further he tries his mother to convince about wedding of his own with Annie and the fact of Larry’s life but never try to hurt her as he is aware of the repression of her mind. He was also aware of psychological condition of Annie who has lost not only her love Larry in war but her father also who has been declared culprit and in goal then already.    

His behavior towards his father changed after knowing the fact of cylinder heads and his mind tortures him most like his mother that what should he do to his father? On the one hand there is social responsibility on other hand he has some debt as a son. This conflict soon finds its way when he decides to prove Joe Keller is responsible for the death of twenty one pilots not Steeve Deever. His agitation reaches its heights when Joe gives some plea in own favor that whatever is done then was the only way to protect his family’s future. He boldly opposes his father because in army he has realized the value of responsibility; Responsibility of men for men after losing all his mates in the war. He criticizes his father’s act of selfishness and self centered psychology in the words like-

“For me! Where do you live, where have you come from? ...I was dying every day and you were killing my boys and you did it for me? What the hell do you think I was thinking of, the goddam business?.......don’t you have a county? Don’t you live in the world? What the hell are you? You’re not even an animal, no animal kills his own, what are you? What must I do?”[10]

This is what about which Miller attracts the attention of contemporary American society that responsibility of men towards men must be there in the personality of citizens of a healthy nation. No country will progress thoroughly if its citizens become selfish and self centered.  Chris realizes his responsibility and injects same to Joe, his father that at last he convinced about the concept of social responsibility, as all the pilots who died in plane crash were also his own children not only Larry. At the same time the last letter of Larry to Annie plays a very crucial role in the transformation of Joe Keller, when Joe Keller comes to know about the fact that his own son Larry feels shame on his father and if he would get chance he would kill Joe. This agony about the felling of Larry towards him becomes a fatal cause of psychological depression Joe Keller. As he utters at last before confessing suicide:-

“Sure, he was my son. But I think to him they were all my sons. And I guess they were, I guess they were, I guess they were. I’ll be right down.”[11]      

So as for as All My Sons is concern it is a social drama and an eye opener for the society which gives emphasis that every individual member of this planet has individual responsibilities along with responsibilities towards society of which he is a member. All the characters of the play are very realistic and convincing by all means. There psychological conditions, mind transformation, reactions, approaches and repression of mind are very natural and obvious. The play has a well knit structure along with the universality of the play’s theme. Alan A. Stambusky remarked:-

“Aristotelian universality is evident is the theme of All My Sons. Miller writes about basic human emotions and inner drives which are common to all men; he portrays the effects of the conflicts these impulses sometimes cause and their influence over man’s sense of moral responsibility….”[12]

This planet is a wonderful place to live and people needs only touch of nature. As nature gives equal weightage to all similarly one should feel a responsibility for all except thinking about one’s own family. Though the repression of mind and psychological phases compel to do wrong but one should feel an accountability of men for men through the character study of Arthur Miller’s All My Sons.

1. Lall Ramji, Arthur Miller: All My Sons (A Critical Study), Rama Brothers Educational Publisher, 2000, pp-2. 2. Shinha B.P., Arthur Miller’s All My Sons, New Uttam Prakashan,pp-99. 3. Ibid pp-173. 4. cherrynapie.blogspot.com/2009/03/main-caharacters-in-psychological.html. 5. Shinha B.P., Arthur Miller’s All My Sons, New Uttam Prakashan,pp-181. 6. Ibid pp-185. 7. Ibid pp-73. 8. cherrynapie.blogspot.com/2009/03/main-caharacters-in-psychological.html. 9. cherrynapie.blogspot.com/2009/03/main-caharacters-in-psychological.html. 10. Shinha B.P., Arthur Miller’s All My Sons, New Uttam Prakashan,pp-175. 11. Ibid pp-199. 12. Ramji Lall, Arthur Miller All My Sons, Rama Brothers Educational Publisher ,2000, pp-90