Arthur Miller as a Critic of Contemporary Social Values

Abstract:     
Arthur Miller (1915-2005) is one of the greatest American dramatists and social critics of twentieth century. His main focus is on contemporary values and themes. His plays reflect his concern for the common man. Miller’s play The Man Who Had All the Luck (1944) depicts a character who anticipates his doom. All My Sons (1947) investigates some of the assumptions of a capitalist society. His masterpiece, Death of a Salesman (1949), is about the struggles of a common man against the society. The Crucible (1953) was written when anti-communist hysteria was at its peak in America. A View from the Bridge (1955), set on the Brooklyn waterfront, formed a common moral focus on the lust of man. As soon as Miller was through with his ‘desk drawer plays,’ he began to evince interest in ideas and rational thinking. In Miller’s opinion, the serious playwright must write social drama. The major dramas of Miller are tragedies, and they represent a socio-political criticism of contemporary culture. He uses concrete symbols for the social realities of his time. Miller’s protagonists and their surroundings are in close interaction with each other. His style is penetrative: each paragraph, each sentence presents his thoughts lucidly. In his essay, “On Social Plays,” Miller argues that the complex nature of man and drama cannot be sacrificed to depict a man only as a psychological or social entity on the stage, but as a balanced concept between the two. This paper discusses how Miller’s depiction of society in his plays reveals his social concerns.

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