Eddie's Personality Changes As the Effect of His
EDDIE’S PERSONALITY CHANGES AS THE EFFECT OF HIS INCESTUOUS LOVE AS SEEN IN ARTHUR MILLER’S A VIEW FROM THE BRIDGE
AN UNDERGRADUATE THESIS
Presented as Partial Fulfillment of the Requirements for the Degree of Sarjana Sastra in English Letters
By
NILA KRISNAWATI
Student Number: 034214056
ENGLISH LETTERS STUDY PROGRAMME DEPARTMENT OF ENGLISH LETTERS FACULTY OF LETTERS SANATA DHARMA UNIVERSITY YOGYAKARTA 2009 EDDIE’S PERSONALITY CHANGES AS THE EFFECT OF HIS INCESTUOUS LOVE AS SEEN IN ARTHUR MILLER’S A VIEW FROM THE BRIDGE
AN UNDERGRADUATE THESIS
Presented as Partial Fulfillment of the Requirements for the Degree of Sarjana Sastra in English Letters
By
NILA KRISNAWATI
Student Number: 034214056
ENGLISH LETTERS STUDY PROGRAMME DEPARTMENT OF ENGLISH LETTERS FACULTY OF LETTERS SANATA DHARMA UNIVERSITY YOGYAKARTA 2009
i
Three things in life that, once gone, never come back: time, words, and opportunity.
Three things in life that may never be lost: peace, hope, and honesty.
Three things in life that are most valuable: love, self-confidence, and friends.
Three things in life that are never certain: dreams, success, and fortune.
Three things that make a person: hard work, sincerity, and commitment.
Three things in life that can destroy a person: alcohol/ drugs, pride, and anger.
v This undergraduate thesis is dedicated to My Lovely Family
vi ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS
I am amazed to know that actually there are many important things to do in this life. It is wonderful to know that from those important things we do, we will have significant things for our life. I have gained a star that I have dreamed for so long. I cannot forget all the sublime people who have already guided, helped and supported me. First, I would like to thank God for the strength, health, and love that have supported me in writing this thesis. I thank God, for always loving and blessing me even in the worst time.
Second, I would like to express my gratitude to my advisor, Dra. Th. Enny
Anggraini, M. A. who has willingly sacrificed her time to read, correct, and criticized my thesis. I am very grateful to my co-advisor, Dewi Widyastuti, S. Pd.
M. Hum. I thank her for correcting and giving suggestion for my thesis writing. I thank them for her advice, guidance, patience, understanding, and support during the process of my writing.
I also want to express my gratitude to all lecturers who have passionately taught me and share their knowledge. I thank mbak Ninik and all Sanata Dharma staff, for helping me during whole semesters.
My deepest appreciation goes to my beloved parents, Goso Sutikno and
Umiyati. I thank them for their endless support and fantastic love in understanding and fulfilling my needs. My deep thanks also go to my beloved husband, Djaka
Ade Praja Saputra, for being patient and helpful. I thank my little princess, Salwa
Febrianika Putri, for the wonderful day and great motivation. I would also thank all of my three lovely sisters, mbak Liana, mbak Selvi and Ervina.
vii I am also very grateful for Tika who is really helpful in this thesis writing.
I thank my best friends Dwi, Ika, Poppy, Reni and all of ’03 English Letters student in Sanata Dharma University. Greatest thanks also go to Kelompok 1;
Caca, Cici, Ririt, Kiki, Nino, Vero, Pandu, and Paul, for experiences we shared together.
I also thank all of my friends whose names cannot be mentioned one by one. Thank you for helping me during the process of this thesis writing. I would never have finished my study well in this University without your help, support, guidance, and advice.
Yogyakarta
Nila Krisnawati
viii TABLE OF CONTENTS
TITLE PAGE ...... i APPROVAL PAGE ...... ii ACCEPTANCE PAGE ...... iii HALAMAN PENGESAHAN ...... iv MOTTO PAGE ...... v DEDICATION PAGE ...... iv ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS ...... vii TABLE OF CONTENTS ...... ix ABSTRACT ...... xi ABSTRAK ...... xii
CHAPTER I: INTRODUCTION ...... 1 A. Background of the Study ...... 1 B. Problem Formulation ...... 5 C. Objectives of the Study ...... 5 D. Definition of Terms ...... 5
CHAPTER II: THEORETICAL REVIEW ...... 8 A. Review of Related Studies ...... 8 B. Review of Related Theories ...... 12 1. Theories of Character and Characterization ...... 12 2. Theories of Incest ...... 14 3. Theory of Personality Changes ...... 16 C. Theoretical Framework ...... 19
CHAPTER III: METHODOLOGY ...... 21 A. Object of the Study ...... 21 B. Approach of the Study ...... 22 C. Method of the Study ...... 23
CHAPTER IV: ANALYSIS ...... 25 A. The Description of the Central Character ...... 25 1. Generous...... 26 2. Loyal...... 26 3. Respectful...... 27 4. Caring Person...... 28 5. Overprotective father...... 30 B. Central Character’s Incestuous Love toward his niece ...... 33 C. Central Character’s Personality Changes as the Effect of His Incestuous Love...... 39 1. Selfish...... 40 2. Cruel...... 41
ix 3. Rude...... 46 4. Violent...... 47 5. Jealous Man...... 49
CHAPTER V: CONCLUSION ...... 51
BIBLIOGRAPHY ...... 54
APPENDICES ...... 56 Appendix 1...... 56 Appendix 2 ...... 61
x ABSTRACT
NILA KRISNAWATI. Eddie’s Personality Changes as the Effect of His Incestuous Love as Seen in Arthur Miller’s A View from the Bridge. Yogyakarta: Department of English Letters, Faculty of Letters, Sanata Dharma University, 2009.
This study deals with A View from the Bridge, a revised-play by Arthur Miller. It is based on the writer’s interest on one’s personality that changes badly as the effect of incestuous love he experienced. Everyone has his or her own way to express his or her love. In reality, love becomes an important problem that is able to change and give certain effect in one’s life. It can develop or destroy one’s life. It can make one’s life better or worse, depends on how one is facing love problem. This thesis discusses the personality changes as the effect of Eddie’s incestuous love as seen in Arthur Miller’s A View from the Bridge. The objectives of the study in this thesis are (1) To find out the characteristics of Eddie as described in the story, (2) To find out how Eddie’s incestuous love is revealed in the story, (3) To find out the changes of his personality as the effect of his incestuous love. Since this study deals with one’s personality, the psychological approach is used as the suitable approach to analyze the formulated problems as seen in the story. This thesis uses the library research method to gain the data. The primary reference is Arthur Miller’s play A View from the Bridge. The secondary references are some critics about Miller’s A View from the Bridge. The third references are some theories that are supporting in finding the analysis. This study needs the theory of character and characterization, theory of incest and the theory of personality changes. The results of this study are: firstly, the readers can see that Eddie is described as generous, loyal, respectful, caring person, and overprotective father. Secondly, we can see that Eddie experienced incestuous love; he loves his own niece, whom he raised as his own daughter. His incestuous love is revealed by his own action, manner and conversation with other characters. His characteristics, then, change after what he has been through in his life. He is obsessed to have her own niece because he has too much love for her. Then, his possessiveness leads him to act irrationally. Realizing that he cannot fulfill his desire, he transfers his frustration to be worse. As the third result, we can find that there are some changes of his personality as the effect of his incestuous love. He changes into a selfish, cruel, rude, violent and jealous man.
xi ABSTRAK
NILA KRISNAWATI. Eddie’s Personality Changes as the Effect of His Incestuous Love as Seen in Arthur Miller’s A View from the Bridge. Yogyakarta: Fakultas Sastra, Jurusan Sastra Inggris, Universitas Sanata Dharma, 2009.
Studi in berkaitan dengan A View from the Bridge, sebuah drama yang ditulis oleh Arthur Miller. Studi ini didasarkan pada ketertarikan penulis pada kepribadian seseorang yang berubah menjadi buruk yang disebabkan oleh hubungan cinta sedarah yang telah dialaminya. Setiap orang memiliki caranya sendiri untuk mengungkapkan cintanya. Pada kenyataanya, cinta menjadi masalah yang penting dan mampu merubah serta memberi dampak khusus terhadap kehidupan seseorang. Cinta dapat berkembang atau merusak hidup seseorang. Cinta bisa membuat hidup seseorang menjadi lebih baik atau buruk, tergantung kepada cara kita dalam menghadapi masalah cinta itu sendiri. Skripsi ini membahas perubahan kepribadian sebagai dampak dari hubungan cinta sedarah yang dialami oleh Eddie dalam sebuah drama A View from the Bridge karya Arthur Miller. Tujuan-tujuan dari studi ini adalah: (1) untuk mempelajari sifat-sifat Eddie sebagaimana dijelaskan dalam cerita. (2) untuk mempelajari bagaimana hubungan cinta sedarah yang dialami oleh Eddie diungkapkan dalam cerita. (3) untuk mempelajari perubahan-perubahan kepribadiannya sebagai dampak dari hubungan cinta sedarahnya. Karena studi ini berhubungan dengan kepribadian seseorang, pendekatan psikologi digunakan sebagai pendekatan yang tepat untuk menganalisis perumusan masalah. Skripsi ini menggunakan metode studi pustaka untuk mengumpulkan data-data. Referensi utama adalah drama A View from the Bridge oleh Arthur Miller. Referensi kedua mengenai beberapa kritik tentang A View from the Bridge karya Arthur Miller. Referensi ketiga adalah beberapa teori yang mendukung dalam pencarian analisa. Studi ini membutuhkan teori tokoh dan penokohan, teori incest (hubungan sedarah), dan teori perubahan kepribadian. Kesimpulan dari studi ini adalah: pertama, pembaca dapat mengetahui pelukisan watak Eddie, yaitu sebagai orang yang murah hati, setia, peduli, penuh perhatian, dan protektif. Kedua, kita dapat mengetahui bahwa Eddie mengalami cinta sedarah; dia mencintai keponakannya yang telah dibesarkan seperti anaknya sendiri. Cinta sedarahnya diungkapkan dengan tindakan and kelakuannya sendiri serta pembicaraannya dengan orang lain. Sifat-sifatnya, kemudian, berubah setelah dia mengalami semua yang telah terjadi didalam hidupnya. Die terobsesi untuk memiliki keponakannyan sendiri karena dia terlalu mencintainya. Kemudian, rasa untuk memilikinya mendorong dia untuk bertindak hal yang tidak masuk akal. Menyadari bahwa dia tidak dapat memenuhi keinginannya, dia melampiaskan keputus-asaannya dengan sesuatu yang buruk. Sebagai kesimpulan yang ketiga, dapat diketahui bahwa ada beberapa perubahan kepribadian sebagai dampak cinta sedarahnya. Dia berubah menjadi orang yang pelit, kejam, tidak sopan, bengis, dan pencemburu.
xii CHAPTER I
INTRODUCTION
A. Background of the study
Drama is a special and unique form of writing in the world of literature. It is different from other literary works of poetry, novel, or fiction. Drama has different processes in telling the story by using stage directions and dialogue to describe the environment or the characters in the story. Drama is meant to be more than language on a page. It needs not only to be read but also to be performed. Through its performance, the audiences will be helped to understand more about the story
(Vena and Nouryeh, 1996: viii).
Drama is able to demand our imaginations more than in most other forms of literature. Through drama, we can see what is explicitly said and done. And we can understand what is implied and what is unspoken. Drama conveys a story with its characters in action and conflict, its happening in time and space, the completed meaning of all that has happened. In understanding drama, we have to understand how dramatic scripts work in setting the stage, developing the characters, and advancing the story. It is also described that “most plays move forward through the resolution of conflicts that develop between characters. These conflicts create tension and become the catalysts for further physical or psychological action” (Vena and Nouryeh, 1996: viii-ix).
Plays often portray oppositions between characters or groups, each of whom have differences and uniqueness. As Murphy said in Understanding Unseen,
1 2
people’s uniqueness can be recognized in real life from “their outward appearance, by the way they dress, walk, look, gestures, and so on” (1972: 161). It shows that each person has his/her own characteristics, temperament, and behavior that always change and develop. The changes may lead them either to be a better or worse person. The changes may also give certain effects to other people around them. Basically, it depends on each individual and how they deal with many kinds of situations in daily life.
In the book Understanding Plays, drama is described as the reflection of ourselves, it leads us to discoveries and reflections about our personalities, circumstances, desires, anxieties, hopes, and dreams. It is able to show the ways in satisfying our willingness in relationships or confronting despair in death. The characters in the play have struggled to show love and affection to one another.
“Great plays confront us with life’s varieties, conveying the hope, courage, despair, compassion, violence, love hate, exploitation, and generosity experienced by all humankinds ”(Barranger, 1994:7).
As experienced by some people, love is the most serious and important problem that is able to change and give certain effects in one’s life. Love is regarded as something powerful and it emerges uniquely in each individual. For some people, love may come to them accidentally from the first encounter with others because of particular reason, like having immediate interest in one’s physical appearance or performance (Hauck, 1983:20).
Realizing it or not, people who fall in love will experience some changes in their life. They will be more motivated in doing their activities in relation to catch 3
his/her attention. People will give more attention to his/her attention and they will be more careful in his/her attitudes and behavior. When people are satisfied with the fulfillment of their desires to love and be loved, they will experience some excessive feelings such as nervous as well as excited. As the expression of their gratitude, they always give something good and sacrifice for the one they love.
However, it may turn to be worse when the practice of love doesn’t meet their expectation. This condition makes people unable to control their emotion and makes them drop mentally and physically. Then, their emotion will turn to depression, anger, anxiety, jealousy, or excessive passivity (1983:1). Love may remain worst impact like frustration that leads someone to act irrationally by committing suicide or killing other people who have broken their hearts.
The statement above supports the writer in deciding to choose the play entitled A View from the Bridge as the subject matter of this analysis. The play, which was written by one of the great literary authors, Arthur Miller, has power and substance. It tells about people who lived at the same place but with different characteristics of one another, especially the influences of the family and environment condition where the people live toward their personality and behavior. For the specific and deeper analysis, the writer chooses one of the central characters to be analyzed named Eddie Carbone. He lives in his simple flat with his wife and his niece. Learning the story of this play, it is found that Eddie really loves his niece as the woman to be possessed. In fact, she is regarded as his own daughter because they have lived together since she was a child. Eddie’s love as a man who wants to have his niece, appears when she is growing to be a mature 4
woman. It can be seen clearly in the early stage of the play, when two brothers of
Eddie’s wife are arriving in his flat. His niece falls in love with one of them and plans to marry him. After that incident, the Carbone family’s life changes forever.
Their loves and their loyalties are tested. Eddie always tries to prohibit their relationship because actually he also wants to posses his niece. Eddie does everything in order to have his niece. His action makes his relationship with other characters worse.
The writer has found an interesting point from this play. The character Eddie tries to explore the psychological sides as human being. Someone as a human being has his own personality. The personality of a person could change as it is influenced and shaped by his environment and his experiences. This play also interests the writer because the play reveals one term of abnormal behavior, that is incestuous love between father and daughter. This forbidden love, then, makes some great changes in Eddie’s life. He faces so many conflicts as the play develops. The first conflict is between him and other characters; including verbal and physical conflict. The second conflict is within himself as he grapples with his love of Catherine, his own niece. As the great impact of his love is that he loses his life, his love leads him into tragic ending that he must die in defending his love.
Moreover, by analyzing this play, we can learn how to face the world and control ourselves in the right way. We must consider how the effects are if we do something shameful and forbidden. Then, we understand that love is able to give the great and incredible effects in our life. Life can change into joyful or tragic as 5
someone’s personality develops or a relation between individuals becomes deeper or worse only because of love. In other cases, love also can be the only one which people can do to overcome their problems.
B. Problem Formulation
Considering the previous background, there are three main problems that can be formulated in the study. They are as follow:
1. What are the characteristics of Eddie?
2. How is Eddie’s incestuous love revealed in the play?
3. What are the changes of his personality as the effects of his incestuous
love as seen in the play?
C. Objectives of the Study
The analysis of the study mainly aims to answer the three questions stated in the problem formulation above. First, this study aims to know the characteristics of Eddie through his personal description, past life, speech, opinions from others, conversation of others, reactions, direct comment, thoughts, and his mannerism.
The second objective is to try to identify how Eddie’s incestuous love is revealed in the play. The third goal is to find out the effects of Eddie’s incestuous love toward his personality changes. 6
D. Definition on Terms
In analyzing this play, there are three terms that need to be clarified in order to provide an accurate analysis and clearer explanation to answer the formulated problems. These terms are:
1. Character
Abrams stated that character means the person presented in a dramatic or narrative work who is interpreted by the readers as being endowed with moral and dispositional qualities that are expected in what they say, the dialogue and by what they do in action (1981:20)
So, characters are the representatives of human being. They are described through dialogue, behavior, and though that can make them just like ordinary human being. These characters inherit human characteristics. They can be found in a performance such as drama, and in other literary works of short story or novel. They are presented not only depends on the narration of the author but also from their speech and action.
2. Incestuous love
Incestuous behavior is sexual interaction between relatives. It includes sexual contact between siblings, or between children and their parents, grandparents, uncles, or aunts ( Robert, Baur, 1983: 603). In the book Abnormal
Psychology and Modern Life, it is described that incestuous is culturally prohibited sexual relations between family members, such as a brother and sister or a parent and child (Coleman, 1976:576). Incestuous can also be defined as 7
sexual relations between close relatives for whom marriage is forbidden, most often between daughter and father or between brother and sister (Neale and
Davidson, 1996: 340-341).
While in the book of How to Love and be Loved, love is described as a powerful feeling one has for person, animals or things that has satisfied, is satisfying or will satisfy our deepest desires and needs (1983:16). In New Century
Dictionary, love means a deep and tender feeling of affection or attachment or devotion to a person or persons (1952: 982)
So, incestuous love is a powerful feeling that is culturally prohibited between family members. In this case, Eddie Carbone experiences the incestuous love for his own niece, Catherine. In the other side, Catherine loves Eddie
Carbone too, but in the relation as a father and daughter.
3. Personality Changes
According to Kalish, personality is “the dynamic organization characteristics attributes leading to behavior and distinguishing one individual from other individuals” (1973:51). It reefers to the total individual and includes “needs, motives, needs of adjusting, temperament qualities, self-concept, role behaviors, attitudes, values, and abilities” (1973:52)
Personality changes are defined as the personality pattern that can change in some areas and remain persistent in other as well. Furthermore, the change itself is not synonymous with improvement but can be either for the better or worse
(Hurlock, 1974:108). Therefore, personality changes are the changes of human behavior in dealing with the way they adjust with the world. CHAPTER II
THEORETICAL REVIEW
A. Review of Related Studies
Some of people’s lives are colored by many kinds of experiences such as love, marriage failure, broken home, drugs, ridicule, etc. Those experiences will be able to change someone to be better or worse. Those can also motivate someone in creating a good work. Not only Arthur Miller, but some of other great writers tend to use their experiences to motivate their works. As Miller has so many experiences, he also has so many works related to literature. He is famous as a playwright because of his great works. In 1947, he got some prizes for his mature full-length plays titled All My Sons and Death of a Salesman in 1949. and with his historical play The Crucible, it was thought by many critics to be more unified and superior drama. However, many critics recognized him as a potential writer and supported him to continue writing that produced better works. In his experiences, Arthur Miller got the job around the New York waterfront. Through this job, he learned much about the life of simple Americans who became the focus of many of his works. Then, he wrote A View from the Bridge as the reflection of waterfront works (Chalandra and Robets, 1968:5).
As a provisional writer, Arthur Miller wrote not only plays but also other works of writing. He wrote a novel entitled Focus in 1945, which took anti-
Semitism as its subject. He also wrote a screenplay The Misfits, which
8 9
employed his second wife Marilyn Monroe as the actress. The biographical novel also succeeded with his life story with Marilyn Monroe. This novel entitled After the Fall.
Arthur Miller can prove himself as a talented social playwright through his work in A View from the Bridge. It tells about a longshoreman, Eddie Carbone, who is driven to violate the most sacred tied of trust that binds his community by compulsion to posses his niece, Catherine. The story of the play is based on
Miller’s experience when he lived in Brooklyn. He had to enter the community for about two years to understand their accent, and also social life. Then, he represented a social theme in his play, particularly the tragedy of a common man.
The play ends with the death of Eddie Carbone which shows the unavoidable and violent end of a sick man (Reinert, 1961:16).
In the book Drama from Ibsen to Brecth, it is said that A View from the
Bridge emphasizes one personal being broken and destroyed by guilt. The crisis is related to the intense primary relationships of an insecure and partly illegal group-
Brooklyn waterfront slum, with ties back to Italy, receiving unauthorized immigrants and hiding them within its own fierce loyalties. Eddie Carbone’s breakdown are sexual and the guilt which are deeply related to love. The personal breakdown leads to a sin against this community, when in the terrors of his complicated jealousies Eddie betrays immigrants of his wife’s brothers to the external law. As usual, the center of the drama is against relationship between parents and child, and in this play, the vital relationship is between a man and the niece to whom he has been a father. Eddie is shown being destroyed by farces that 10
he cannot control, and the complex of love and guilt has the effect of literal disintegration (Williams, 1971: 274-275).
In the book Literature, it is said that A View from the Bridge was originally a one act-play written in the genre of naturalism. In this play, the character was more realistically developed. Miller related the relationships of the neighborhood characters to a rigid code of ethics that influence Eddie’s actions and reactions.
Eddie experiences great conflict between parental love and sexual attraction to his niece, Catherine, whom he adopted after his sister-in-law’s death. Eddie’s repression of this sexual attraction and his accusation of his cousin, Rodolpho’s homosexuality are evidence of the conflict. These emotions create a sense of alienation in Eddie that ultimately leads him to violence (Hogins, 1975:882-884).
East Carolina University, School of Theatre and Dance wrote that A View
From the Bridge is a powerful drama of which the critics wrote by Walter Kerr,
New York Herald Tribune; "A dramatic bonfire", John Chapman, New York
Times; "Splendid, stunning theatre", London Times; "A play of imaginative power", New York Daily News; "Intensely, absorbing drama.” This play has become a modern classic. It features some of Miller's best works in his deeply observed characters, muscular writing, steamroller narrative and riveting climax.
This play was gripping, stirring, steadily illuminated by the incandescence of a deeply-feeling playwright whose insights into human beings is always profound.
(http://www.theatredance.ecu.edu/Productions/Bridge/View_from_the_Bridge.ht ml). 11
There is also review by Frank Rich, who tells that A View from the Bridge is about the destruction of jealous Eddie wreaks on himself and his family once
Catherine falls in love with Rodolpho. The star of the play, Eddie, is one of the
Brooklyn longshoremen with a secret, unrecognized passion “that had moved into his body like stranger “. That passion is an incestuous, possessive love for his orphaned niece, Catherine. “Eddie’s reckless path of vengeance leads inexorably to catastrophic violence, but not before he has committed the cardinal sin against his close-knit community - informing to the immigration police”
(http://partners.nytimes.com/books/00/11/12/specials/miller-bridge83.html).
The original version of A View from the Bridge was revised into two acts. In this version, the verse became prose, the length was expanded to two acts, and the characters were allowed to speak more - thus becoming more human and more sympathetic. The later version goes into slightly more detail about how the network brings the illegal immigrant into the country (Hayman, 1970: 55-60).
In this thesis, the writer tries to give more study on the character’s personality. The discussion will be focused on Eddie’s personality that changes as the effect of his forbidden love to his niece. Interesting point in this study is that the personality of a person could change since it is influenced and shaped by his environment and his experiences. 12
B. Review of Related Theories
1. Theory of Characters and Characterization
Character is defined as the description of a person who has certain type and quality. It can be good or bad. The authors will present their characters in their works. Based on their importance, characters are divided into two parts, major and minor characters. Major characters can be the center of the story. They are the most important characters in the story. Minor characters appear only once or twice in the story. Their roles are less important than the major one (Milligan,
1983:155). Upon the characters we can build expectations and desires to establish our values and to present convincing dramatization of human issues of the book.
The book will essentially fail if the characters fail in their role (Henkle, 1977: 93).
Each character has his or her or its own characteristics. Character in a literary work has his or her own personalities and physical appearances or characteristics that make him or her different from each other. Based on their psychological behavior, there are two kinds of characters namely flat and round characters. The flat characters are the characters that represent single characteristics, treat, idea or limited number of qualities. The flat characters are static and do not develop as fully as round characters. Round characters are complex in temperament and motivation. Round characters are dynamic and often appear as the center of the story. They represent number qualities or traits and complex multidimensional characters of significant intellectual and emotional depth that have the capacity to grow and changes (Forster, 1978: 73). 13
Rohrberger and Woods stated that characterization is the process by which an author creates a character. Not only the physical appearance that the reader can imagine the character, but also through his or her behavior and thought
(1971:20). While Barnet, Berman, and Bruto have opinion that characterization is defined by what the characters do, by what they say, by what other say about them and by the setting in which they move ( 1988:746). Based on these opinions above, can be concluded that characterization is the way of the author presents the character.
M. J. Murphy in his Understanding Unseen (1972: 161-173), he mentions nine ways on how an author may describes the character’s personalities and traits to the reader. They are: a. Personal Description
An author can describe a person’s appearance and clothes. b. Character as seen by another
An author uses another character’s eyes and opinions to describe a
character. c. Speech
What a character says can give the reader an insight of another person’s
characterization. d. Past life
A person’s past life can shape his nature. We can find out the character’s past
life by the author’s direct explanation, the character’s thoughts and
conversation, and also by the minor character. 14
e. Conversation of others
The conversation of other people and the things they say about a character can
be a clue to a person’s character. f. Reactions
By allowing the readers to know how a person reacts to various situations and
events, an author can also give a clue to a person’s characteristics. g. Direct Comment
The author can describe or comment on a person’s characteristic directly. h. Thoughts
The author can give his readers a direct knowledge of what a person is
thinking about. i. Mannerisms
We can understand the character through the way in which he behaves and
talks when he is with the other people.
2. Theory of Incest
Incest is one of the forms of sexual disorder. In the book Abnormal
Psychology, “incest is the sexual relationship between close relatives for whom marriage is forbidden, seems virtually universal in human societies” (1996: 341).
Incest includes all forms of sexual contact. The most common form is between brother and sister. The next most common form, which is considered more pathological, is between father and daughter. It is more often the case to the father who becomes interested in his daughter when she begins to mature 15
physically. The structure of families in which incest occurs is unusually patriarchal and traditional, especially with respect to the position of women relative to men. Furthermore, it is believed that incest is more prevalent when the mother is absent or disabled and there might be sexual frustration in the marriage.
Most incest victims tend to be the older women. Some factors that put a child at risk for being subjected to the case of incest are having a stepfather, having a mother who did not graduate from high school, having a poor relationship with the mother, and having fewer than two close friends in childhood ( Neale and
Davison,1996: 340-341).
According to Coleman, there are some causal factors of incestuous behavior occurs in our life. The first factor is because of accidental incest. In this condition, brother and sister share the same bedroom during the preadolescent period. In some cases older brother seduce their younger sister without any apparent understanding of the social prohibitions or possible consequences. Second is incest associated with severe psychopathology. In the case of psychopathic fathers, the incestuous relations maybe associated with the lowering of inner control, such as alcoholics and psychotics. The third is incest associated with pedophilia. The father has an intense craving for young children as sex objects, including his own daughters. Fourth is incest associated with a faulty paternal model. The fathers set an undesirable example for his son by engaging in incestuous relations with his daughters and may encourage his son to do likewise.
The last one is incest associated with family pathology and disturbed marital 16
relations. The family has low morals or is disorganized. In some cases, hostile wife may actually foster father-daughter incest (1976:576-577).
3. Theory of Personality Changes
In the play of A View from the Bridge, the personality of the central character, Eddie Carbone, is very interesting to be analyzed. The changes of his personality and emotion reflect a significant life phenomenon. Many theorists have their own perception and present them in various ways. So, theories of personality changes below will support the writer in understanding more deeply about one’s personality.
In the book Personality Development, the author defines that personality development is a stage in growth of a constantly changing and evoking process within the individual. The process becomes more complex, in the patterning of one’s self-concept, habit, attitude, emotional states, sentiment, and motives.
Furthermore, it determines his/her uniqueness in speech, in reactions to people and things, in mannerism, in fantasy, and in other ways directed toward the specific goal to adjust his/her environment (Hurlock, 1974: 7).
Personality of human being is different from one to another. One’s personality can change by the time. Allport, as cited in Bryne and Kelley
(1981:87), stated that “one’s personality is a dynamic process for it can change through one’s life”. The changes happen when there is a condition that leads to a new emotional, informal, or imaginative response. When an individual is faced to 17
a new fact, there might be dramatic changes in one’s info-belief system, new expectancies, and perhaps new emotional responses as well as attitudes.
One’s personality is unique. Each person has their own personality.
Personality is a psychological pattern of single person consisting of characteristics thought, feeling and behavior. Personality is dynamic. It continually exists over time and situation. There will be different personality in different time and situation. Pattern of characteristics thought, feeling and behavior persist over time and situations and distinguishes over person from another (Phares, 1984:673). So, human’s personality is an important factor that determines his/ her characteristics, behavior, and thought.
There are three characteristics of changes in personality that stated by
Hurlock (1974:120-122). First, the changes are for better and worse. This personality reflects the life adjustment of the individuals are making at certain point. Generally, the worse changes happen at puberty times. The person will have different kinds of personality and this time is called as danger time.
Sometimes, people forget their good personalities and change their new personalities that are not always better. The second personality is for quantitative and qualitative. The quantitative changes are for the replacement on the whole personality pattern. The quantitative will make the personality strengthen, weaken, or reinforced. A person who is shy, self-conscious, and self-effacing in social status, may be less so in the presence of intimate friends than in the presence of strangers or those whom he regards as his superiors, but his behavior is consistent. While qualitative changes are for the replacement on the part of the 18
personality. An already present trait is replaced by another trait, usually an undesirable one to be a desirable one. The third changes are for the slow and rapid changes. The changes are regarded as slow if the changes are hardly seen, while rapid changes are clearly seen for all. Usually, personality changes happen slowly and gradually because it involving the replacement of new habit as the substitution for the old habit. The rapid changes are usually having close relationship with the brain damages and this change also considered as danger signal. It is caused by the stimulation which temporarily causes the person to forget his real self-concept and see himself as he would like to be.
Hurlock stated that the changes do not occur by themselves; there are many conditions that may be responsible for personality changes. There are physical changes, changes in social pressure, changes in role, strong motivation, and changes in self-concept (1974:124).
It is described that “physical changes may come from maturation and decline from illness, organic, and glandular disturbance, injuries or some other condition resulting from the person’s life pattern not unrelated to the normal changes in the body structure.” Social environment may produce changes in the person’s self-concept and in his personal behavior. A change in environment will not guarantee an improvement in personality. Moving to a new environment will not automatically improve our personality. The changes will depend largely on how well we are accepted in the new environment and whether it meets our needs or not (1974:125). 19
There will be significant changes if a person has significant people in his life, who might effect personality. This personality will change within social pressure. Generally, people have a strong desire to be accepted by those who are significant to him; he tries to change any personality traits that he can be accepted.
Strong social pressure to comfort to a socially approved personality pattern thus leads us to change in certain aspect of personality. Traits, which are likely to lead to social rejection such as aggressiveness, shyness, bossiness, and greed, are subjects to an increase in dominance rather than those which are usually admired, such as affection, cooperatives, and generosity (1974:126).
Role changes result in status changes within the group. One’s role may change because of a change in age, a change in one’s role may come from changes in economic condition. A change in a role may also be due to affiliation with a new group (1974:127).
The changes can be affected when the motivation to improve the personality is strong enough. Ordinarily, people are strongly motivated to change those traits which they believe will improve their social relationship and earn them social acceptance greater (1974: 127).
A change in the self concept will lead to a change in the entire personality pattern, because self-concept is the core of personality pattern which determines the kind of adjustment the person will take. Changing one’s self-concept requires tremendous self-insight, which means that a person must be able to see himself as he actually is, not as he would like to be or other perceives him (1974:128). 20
C. Theoretical Framework
In this study, theories of character and characterization are needed since the central character takes an important role in this study. The theories of character and characterization are used to explore the characteristics of Eddie Carbone and his personality changes in the story. The analysis of the character in the story will be based on the theory of character that has been stated before. Murphy’s theory of characterization is also used as the most suitable method to give more understanding about the character.
To answer the second problem, the writer needs theory of incest since the character to be discussed experienced incestuous love. His love gives big influence to the changes of his personality. The writer used theory of incest from
Coleman, Neale, and Davison as the suitable theory.
In answering the third problem, the writer needs both theories of personality and incest to find out the changes of the character’s personality as the effect of his incestuous love. CHAPTER III
METHODOLOGY
A. Object of the Study
A View from the Bridge is the work that is going to be used as the object of this study. This play was written by Arthur Miller in 1955 and was first staged in
1956. Miller wrote this play based on his experience when he worked in
Brooklyn neighborhood. The play focuses on a doom-ridden family and the community in front of which that household all-too-publicly disintegrates. In this case, the family is the working-class-Italian Carbone in the community of Red
Hook, Brooklyn, 1955. The issue is the emerging sexuality of the Carbone's niece,
Catherine, who has begin to wear high heels and to walk "wavy." Guardian Uncle
Eddie's all-consuming adoration for his niece evolves into a lusty force stronger than all the wise counsels, desperate pleas, and bad omens in the world.
(http://www.austinchronicle.com/gyrobase/Issue/review).
A View from the Bridge is the tragedy of Italian-American longshoreman
Eddie Carbone, whose intransigence proves his downfall. Like the central characters of All My Sons and Death of a Salesman, Eddie is a man out of time.
He has labored long to support his wife Beatrice and his niece, Catherine. Eddie is the Brooklyn longshoreman with a secret passion. That passion is an incestuous, possessive love for the seventeen-year-old orphan niece, Catherine, whom he and his wife Beatrice have raised like a daughter. The play is about the destruction of
21 22
jealous Eddie wreaks on himself and his family once Catherine falls in love with
Rodolpho.
B. Approach of the Study
In analyzing a literary work, it is important to obtain a deep and good understanding about the literary work itself. Therefore, it needs an appropriate approach that can help to support the analysis of the story as the material of the thesis. Since this study discusses about one’s personality, the psychological approach is needed as suitable approach to analyze the character’s personality in the story. As stated in the book An Introduction to Personality, “the field of personality is defined as a branch of psychology which deals with dimensions of individual differences and with situational determinants of behavior. Thus, behavior is viewed as determined by a combination of personality, traits, and situational factors” (Bryne and Kelley, 1966:33).
This approach is chosen as the most suitable approach because this approach will bring us to analyze the play from the point of view of human beings. It will help to identify how the character is characterized and how he undergoes his personality changes. Certainly, to get and find the answers of three questions in the problem formulations, the writer employs theory of personality and theory of psychology. According to Rohrberger and Woods, psychological approach involves various theories of psychology to explain the character’s personality in the story. The proponents of this approach used the theory of human psychology as the reference to analyze the character in the story. It also insists each 23
character’s behavior that could be referred to the psychology of human beings.
Through this approach, the character’s behavior and though can be analyzed more profoundly (1971, 13-14).
C. Method of the Study
In order to answer three questions stated in the problem formulation, there were some methods that the writer had done. Firstly, the writer used library research since this study focused on literary work. In this method, the writer took all the suitable references from the library to support the analysis. In this thesis, there were two kinds of data that were used. They were primary and secondary data. The primary source was a play entitled A View from the Bridge. The writer read it carefully to obtain a good understanding of the content of the story and concentrated more on Eddie Carbone’s actions and reactions, quoted the important descriptions on his character which shows us the nature of his personality.
The secondary data were used as the second method to support the answer of the problem formulation. The data were some comments and critics on the play which the writer takes from the books. Some books of theories were also used to support secondary data. The writer found the sources by surfing on the internet.
Thirdly, in analyzing this play, the writer applied the psychological approach as the critical approach taken from Reading and Writing about
Literature by Rohrberger and Woods, this approach involves the effort to locate and demonstrate certain recurrent patterns. We can apply certain psychological theory in analyzing the control of the story in a work of literature. Then, the writer 24
made summary and took notes of the points to be discussed, that are Eddie’s personality changes. The next step was making the analysis by finding behavior personality and the changes of the chosen character. In this step, the writer applied the theories of character and characterization in order to find out the characteristics of one character. Besides, the theory of incest was used to reveal the incestuous love that experienced by the character. It was also applied the psychological approach to reveal the changes of the character’s personality as the effect from that incestuous love. The last step is to sum up the analysis as a conclusion. This process was done by summarizing the answers of the three questions in problems formulation and selecting the important points of the research. CHAPTER IV
ANALYSIS
This chapter discusses the three questions that are stated in the problem formulation. The first part of this chapter covers the description of Eddie’s characteristics in the play. The second part depicts the analysis on how the character’s incestuous love is revealed in the play. The last part of this chapter presents Eddie’s personality changes as the effect of his incestuous love.
A. Description of Eddie’s Characteristics
This section will clearly discuss Eddie’s characteristics as described in the play. Eddie Carbone is the important character in this discussion because he has big influence in the story development. Eddie Carbone is one of the round characters in the story because he has many dominant traits. Therefore, to identify the description of his characteristics, some methods of characterization as suggested by Murphy (1972:161-173) will be used. That characterization will be employed through personal description, manner and other thought or conversation as presents in his nine methods of characterization.
In A View from the Bridge, Eddie Carbone lived with his wife Beatrice and her orphaned niece Catherine. The Carbone family is the poor family who lived in
Brooklyn, where Eddie works at the shipyards as the longshoreman. At the first,
Eddie’s family looks lke a loving family who care for each other. However, their life changes since the presence of the two cousins to the story. From the analysis of his characterization, we can find the description of Eddie’s characteristics.
25 26
1. Generous
In the first part of the story, Eddie Carbone only lives with his wife,
Beatrice, and his niece, Catherine. Their life seems good and happy at first.
Beatrice’s cousins are reported on the way to their home from Italy. The two cousins named Rodolpho and Marco. They think that they can live better and find good job by going to America. Before they get the job, they want to stay in
Eddie’s flat only for a while. Fortunately, Eddie is very welcome and kind at that time. He gives them place to sleep in his house.
EDDIE You’re welcome, Marco, we got plenty of room here. Katie, give them supper, heh? Exits into bedroom with their bags (p. 26).
As stated by Murphy that there will be a clue to one’s characteristics by seeing from how someone reacts to various situation and events. So, from Eddie’s reaction, it can be seen that he is a very generous person because he lets the cousins stay freely in his house. Eddie gives them place to sleep without thinking about the risk because of keeping illegal immigrants in his house.
2. Loyal
Murphy said that we can find one character by seeing from whenever he speaks, whenever he is in conversation with another, and whenever he puts forward an opinion. Here is part of Eddie’s conversation with her niece,
Catherine, which is talking about the cousins’ status because staying illegally in their house.
CATHERINE No, I just mean…people’ll see them goin’ in and out. 27
EDDIE I don’t care who sees them goin; in and out as long as you don’t see them goin; in and out. And this goes for you too, B. you don’t see nothin’ and you don’t know nothin’ (p.19-20).
Catherine seems afraid of the arrival of Rodolpho and Marco. She is afraid if there will be somebody asking about the existence of them because of their status as illegal immigrants. In fact, Eddie tries to safe the cousins and still lets the cousins stay in his house. From Eddie’s conversation, he shows that he is loyal with his family. Although, he doesn’t have much in his life but, like other people in his close Brooklyn neighborhood, he is willing to make sacrifices for friends or family entering this country illegally. Even, he doesn’t care about the risk because of keeping illegal immigrants. As we know that there will be a law to judge a person who keeps other people illegally in this country. Then, Eddie’s loyalty is proved by his preferring of keeping the illegal immigrants than obeying the law.
3. Respectful
Eddie’s personality as a respectful person also can be seen from his reaction in the first part of the story when Rodolpho and Marco just arrived in his house.
Eddie is very welcome to them. He supports them to find the job in that city and gives the place to stay freely. He also shows his sympathy when Marco told about the poor condition of his family. Eddie’s reaction to Rodolpho and Marco shows that he is very respect to them and we can see that he is a kind of hospitable person.
EDDIE Oh, you guys be all right- till you pay them off, anyway. After that, you’ll have to scramble, that’s all. But you’ll make better here than you could there (p.30). 28
Eddie really shows his respect both for the cousins and also his wife. His respect to his wife is shown by his reaction that helps Beatrice to calm the situation because of her panic in the cousins’ arrival. She is afraid because of their poor house. She wants the new paint of the wall and also new tablecloth. In this situation, Eddie is able to calm Beatrice and makes her not to be very panic. Eddie says that they will be very thankful and even, they will not recognize about the wall and tablecloth.
4. Caring
Eddie is a kind of caring person. He cares for the women he protects, his wife and his niece. He pays more attention to Beatrice and supports her in doing something which he deals to. When her two cousins came from Italy, Beatrice looks very panic and afraid. She is afraid of their poor condition and cannot serve them better. She wants to make their house is looked better when the cousins arrived. So, she wants to change the tablecloth and wash the wall. Then, Eddie’s reaction supports Beatrice not to be so worry and directly he asks Beatrice to buy a new tablecloth. As the play progresses, they seem as a loving family who shows their respect for each other.
BEATRICE No, I’m just nervous, that’s all. To Catherine: I’ll make the fish. EDDIE You’re savin’ their lives, what’re you worryin’ about the tablecloth? They probably didn’t see a tablecloth in their whole life where they come from (p.10)
Although, Eddie and Beatrice have never had a sexual intercourse for three months, in daily life they still seem as a couple with no problem. It is because from the beginning of the play, they always show their closeness and respect for 29
each other. The other characters even do not realize about their problem, because they can keep their problem well as they can keep their close relationship.
EDDIE Why? What worries you got? BEATRICE When am I gonna be a wife again, Eddie? EDDIE I ain’t been feelin’ good. They bother me since they came. BEATRICE Its almost three months you don’t feel good; they’re only here a couple of weeks. Its three months, Eddie (p.40).
He also cares and pays attention to his niece, Catherine. In the beginning of the play, he always gives comments on the way she dresses and appearances.
EDDIE Where you goin’ all dressed up? CATHERINE (running her hands over the skirt) I just got it. You like it? EDDIE Yeah, it’s nice. And what happened to your hair? CATHERINE You like it? I fixed it different. Calling to the kitchen: He’s here, B! EDDIE Beautiful. Lemme see in the back. She turns for him. Oh, if your mother was alive to see you now! She wouldn’t believe it (p.6).
Eddie’s comment on Catherine’s skirt which is too short also seems normal as a comment from father to daughter. In this part, Eddie only reminds Catherine how to dress up politely, just like father who reminds his daughter.
EDDIE I think it’s too short, ain’t it? CATHERINE No! Not when I stand up. EDDIE Yeah, but you gotta sit down sometimes. CATHERINE Eddie, it’s the style now. She walks to show him. I mean, if you see me walkin’ down the street- (pg.6). 2630
As a father and daughter, their relationship seems harmless at first. Eddie acts as an overprotective guardian of his niece in her increasing maturity. This seems normal because he and Beatrice do not have a child of their own. Beside that, they had promised to raise Catherine as their own child. By keeping the promise, it proves that Eddie is a man who has strong beliefs.
EDDIE Katie, I promised your mother on her deathbed. I’m responsible for you. You’re a baby, you don’t understand these things. I mean like when you stand here by the window, wavin’ outside (pg. 7 ).
5. Overprotective father
At first, Eddie looks like a father who is very love to the family. He shows his love to Catherine by being an overprotective father. He reminds Catherine not to walk so wavy because he does not like when the boys outside look at
Catherine’s way on walking by using her high heels. This event shows that Eddie treats Catherine specially, but still in the line that she is his daughter. He wants her daughter to be different from all girls outside who are always being watched by other boys.
EDDIE Catherine, I don’t want to be a pest, but I’m tellin’ you you’re walkin’ wavy. CATHERINE I’m walkin’ wavy? EDDIE Now don’t aggravate me, Katie, you’re walkin’ wavy! I don’t like the looks they’re givin’ you in the candy store. And with them new high heels on the Sidewalk-clack, clack, clack. The heads are turnin’ like windmills. CATHERINE But those guys look at all the girls, you know that. EDDIE You ain’t “all the girls” (p.7). 2731
His protectiveness also can be seen when Catherine wants to take the job.
Eddie suggests that she should not take the job. His reason is that he does not like the neighborhood where Catherine will go to work. The neighborhood is not good for Catherine.
CATHERINE Why? It’s a great big company- EDDIE I don’t like that neighborhood over there (p.14-15).
Eddie said that the company is not good for Catherine. She will be with so many plumbers and sailors there. Actually, Eddie wants Catherine in other better place to work. Eddie’s love to Catherine is very great. He also has a very great expectation for Catherine. He always hopes Catherine will get better in all of her life.
EDDIE Look, did I ask for money? I supported you this long I support you a little more. Please, do me a favor, will ya? I want you to be in a nice office. Maybe a lawyer’s office someplace in New York in one of them nice buildings. I mean if you’re gonna get outa here then get out; don’t you go practically in the same kind of neighborhood (pg.15).
As his love for Catherine is very great, his action is very possessive to
Catherine although she is not his own daughter. At first, Eddie doesn’t allow
Catherine to work outside.
EDDIE It’s not wonderful. You’ll get nowhere unless you finish school. You can’t take the job. Why didn’t you ask me before take a job? (p.13).
As Catherine tells Eddie about the job, directly he forbids her to take the job. His possessiveness is seen as he is Catherine’s father who owns her, after 2332
quarrel with his wife about taking the job or no, finally he allows Catherine to work. His possessiveness shows that actually it is hard for Eddie to live without
Catherine in his house. He is afraid Catherine will never visit him again after she works and moves from his house.
EDDIE And then you’ll move away. CATHERINE No, Eddie. EDDIE (grinning) Why not? That’s life. And you come visit on Sundays, then once a month, then Christmas, and New Year’s, finally (p.17).
That conversation reveals Eddie’s sadness that actually he does not want
Catherine goes to work outside. He is afraid that Catherine will leave his house and at last never visit him again. From this part, Eddie’s possessiveness is asked.
Whether he really loves Catherine because she is his daughter or because of his secret desire to Catherine.
B. Eddie’s Incestuous Love toward His Niece
Incestuous love is a powerful feeling that is culturally prohibited between relatives, which includes sexual contact between siblings, or between children and their parents, grandparents, uncles, or aunts. As depicted in the story, Eddie and
Catherine are in a family relationship. Their relationship is between uncle and niece. Since Catherine’s mother died, Eddie and Beatrice took Catherine as their own daughter. They raised Catherine since she was a child. They promised
Catherine’s mother to take care of Catherine like their own child. They love 2433
Catherine very much, and now their relationship is already seen as parents and child.
This section discusses Eddie’s powerful feeling to his niece which is regarded as incestuous love. As the play progresses, Eddie’s love for Catherine is revealed by his own action, manner, and conversation with other character. The audiences realize that there must be a secret desire from Eddie to Catherine when
Catherine lights Eddie’s cigar in the living room, it is an event that gives Eddie unusual pleasure.
CATHERINE Here1 I’ll light it for you! She strikes a match and holds it to his cigar. He puffs. Quietly: don’t worry about me, Eddie, heh? EDDIE Don’t burn yourself. Just in time she blows out the match. You better go in help her with the dishes. CATHERINE (turns quickly to the table, and seeing the table cleared, she says, almost guiltily) Oh! She hurries into the kitchen, and she exits there: I’ll do the dishes,B.! Alone, Eddie stand looking toward the kitchen for a moment. Then he takes out of his watch, glances at it, replace it in his pocket, sits in the armchair,and stares at the smoke flowing out of his mouth (p.24).
Eddie’s delight is the first indication of his sexual desires. This possibly warm and affectionate act between niece and uncle has phallic suggestions.
Eddie’s great attention to his attractive niece and impotence in his own marital relationship immediately makes his secret desire clear.
Usually, Catherine is always at home when Eddie back from working.
Since the cousins stay in their house, Catherine seems go out often with
Rodolpho. So, it is rarely for Eddie to meet Catherine in his back from working. 2534
This event makes Eddie get mad and angry to Catherine. He tells something nonsense to Catherine when she just backs from walking around the city with
Rodolpho. It shows that Eddie is jealous oftheir close relationship.
EDDIE I don’t see you no more. I come home you’re runnin’ around someplace. CATHERINE Well, he wants to see everything, that’s all, so we go… you mad at me? EDDIE No, he moves from her, smiling sadly. It’s just I used to come home, you was always there. Now, I turn around, you’re a big girl. I don’t know how to talk to you (p. 46).
Other character is also aware of Eddie’s feeling to Catherine. Beatrice is the first character who expresses this possibility in her conversation with Catherine.
But, Beatrice not directly tells that secret to anybody. She just keeps what she knows and tries to stop Eddie’s shameful feeling by her own way. Beatrice thinks that the best way without hurting anybody is by letting Catherine to take the job to work outside.
BEATRICE Well, look Katie, if it’s goin’ to hurt you so much you’re gonna end up an old maid here. CATHERINE No! BEATRICE I’m tellin’ you, I’m not makin’ a joke. I tried to tell you a couple of times in the last year or so. That’s why I was so happy you were goin’ to go out and get work, you wouldn’t be here so much, you’d be a little more independent. I mean it. It’s wonderful for a whole family to love each other, but you’re a grown woman and you’re in the same house with a grown man. So, you’ll act different now, heh? (p.53)
Beatrice only hopes that if Catherine goes to work outside, she will get a good man for her to marry. If Catherine is ready to be married, she believes that her husband, Eddie, will not do anything to satisfy his feeling. 2635
BEATRICE Because it ain’t only up to him, Katie, you understand? I told him the same thing already. CATHERINE (quickly) What? BEATRICE That he should let you go. But, you see, if only I tell him, he thinks I’m just bawlin’ him out, or maybe I’m jealous or somethin’, you know? CATHERINE (astonished) He said you was jealous? (p. 53)
Through that conversation, Beatrice indirectly shows her awareness by her jealousy. She does not want Catherine keep staying in that house because she already knew Eddie’s feeling for her. Then, Beatrice tells Catherine that she should grow to be a mature woman who has her own choice for her life. Beatrice builds Catherine’s independentce and says that she is not a baby anymore. She has to be with her own life.
BEATRICE No, I’m just sayin’ maybe that’s what he thinks. She reached over to Catherine’s hands; with a strained smile: You think I’m jealous of you honey? CATHERINE No, it’s the first I thought of it. BEATRICE (with a quiet sad, laugh) Well, you should have thought of it before…but I’m not. We’ll be allright. Just give him to understand; you don’t have to fight, you’re just- you’re a woman, that’s all, and you got a nice boy, and now the time came when you said good-by. All right? (pg.53-54).
Unlike Beatrice who wants Catherine to be an independent woman, Eddie does not want Catherine to go to work outside. It seems that Eddie does not want
Catherine to leave him and his house. Through this conversation, it is clearly 2736
shown Eddie’s secret desire to Catherine that he really has a great expectation of
Catherine.
EDDIE (sadly smiling, yet somehow proud of her) Well…I hope you have good luck. I wish you the best. You know that, kid. CATHERINE (rising, trying to laugh) You sound like I’m goin’ a million miles! (pg. 23).
Eddie’s desire to Catherine is explored through his conversation with other character. Alfieri, who works in that neighborhood as a lawyer, also realizes
Eddie’s feeling during his first conversation with Eddie. Eddie comes to him and tells about what he feels related to the arrival of two cousins. His conversation shows that Eddie does not really like Rodolpho. Eddie tells Alfieri that Rodolpho is not a right guy, “the guy ain’t right, Mr. Alfieri” (pg.56). It means that whatever
Rodolpho looks like are the worse things for Eddie.
EDDIE Wait a minute I’m tellin’ you sump’m. He sings. See. Which is- I mean it’s all right, but sometimes he hits a note, see. I turn around. I mean- high. You know what I mean? ALFIERI Well, that’s a tenor. EDDIE I know a tenor, Mr. Alfieri. This ain’t no tenor. I mean if you came in the house and you didn’t know who was singin’, you wouldn’t be lookin’ for him, you be lookin’ for her. ALFIERI Yes, but that’s not- EDDIE I’m tellin’ you sump’m, wait a minute, please Mr. Alfieri. I’m tryin’ to bring out my thoughts here. Couple of nights ago my niece brings out dress which it’s too small for her, because she shot up like a light this last year. He takes the dress, lays it on the table, he cuts it up; one-two-three, he makes a new dress. I mean he looked so sweet there, like an angel- you could kiss him he was so sweet (p.57) 2837
Even, all of Rodolpho’s effeminate characteristics that he is able to sew and sing beautifully are the worst things for Eddie. Rodolpho does not fit Eddie’s idea of what a man should be. Eddie sees that a real gentleman should not have such effeminate characteristics. Those characteristics make him not proper for a man who works in the docks. Eddie finds that Rodolpho needs to reach his own paper in his close relationship with Catherine. Rodolpho’s paper is only wanting to get
American citizenship by his marriage with Catherine.
ALFIERI Because there’s nothing illegal about the girl falling in love with an immigrant. EDDIE Yeah, but what about it if the only reason for it is to get his papers? ALFIERI First of all you don’t know that. EDDIE I see it in his eyes; he’s laughin’ at her and he’s laughin’ at me (p.55).
In this case, Eddie actually wants Rodolpho to be judged as the wrong guy who loves his niece because he only wants to take the advantages from their love relationship. But, Alfieri said that there is no law for the two humans who falling in love each other. Eddie feels disappointed when Alfieri does not support him.
This event, then, stimulates Eddie to find other ways to stop Catherine’s relationship with Rodolpho. Eddie’s eagerness, then, leads him to act irrationally.
It can be said that all of Eddie’s views about Rodolpho are only his accusation which directly shows his jealousy. By telling everything to Alfieri,
Eddie hopes that there will be somebody who can understand and help him in judging Rodolpho. Eddie uses his own reason as one of his effort to separate 2938
Rodolpho and Catherine. The following quotation explored Eddie’s deep feeling that makes his desire to Catherine become clear.
EDDIE (with a helpless and ironic gesture) What can I do? I’m a patsy, what can a patsy do? Iworked like a dog twenty years so a punk could have her, so that’s what I done. I mean, in the worst times, in the worst, when there wasn’t a ship comin’ in the harbor, I didn’t stand around lookin’ for relief- I hustled. When there was empty piers in Brooklyn I went to Hoboken, Saten Island, the West Side, Jersey, all over- because I made a promise, I took out of my wife’s mouth. I walked hungry plenty days in this city! It begins to break through. And now I gotta sit in my house and look at a son-of-a-bitch punk like that- which he came out of nowhere! I gice him my house to sleep! I take the blankets off my bed for him, and he takes and puts his dirty filthy hands on her like a goddam thief! ALFIERI But, Eddie. She is a woman now. EDDIE He’s stealing from me (pg.60)
Eddie speaks out to what he feels, it makes clear that Eddie does not want anybody to take Catherine from him. He just wants to have Catherine for himself because he thinks that he did so many things for Catherine instead of his hard working for their life. He thinks that it is not fair if Rodolpho suddenly take
Catherine from him. What Eddie did is not featured as what a father did. He just figured as a possessive man who wants to have the girl as his lover.
C. Eddie’s Personality Changes as the Effect of His Incestuous Love
The description of Eddie’s characteristics in the first part of this analysis shows merely describe him into the good personality description. In the second part, it presents the revelation of Eddie’s incestuous love to Catherine. In this part, we will observe his bad attitudes and personalities, which show his personality 3039
changes. This bad personality of Eddie arises after he has his personality changes.
Eddie gets personality changes after he recognized that his niece is in love with one of his cousins. Eddie cannot accept that fact, because he also keeps secret feeling to his niece. As his love for his niece cannot to be fulfilled, Eddie turns his frustration into his bad personality changes.
1. Selfish
As the play progresses, the love between Catherine and Rodolpho becomes clearly seen. But, Eddie sees their love as something bad for him. He thinks that
Rodolpho steals Catherine from him. Realizing that he cannot have Catherine for himself, he makes himself not generous anymore. Eddie changes into a very selfish man. As stated by Hurlock that the characteristics can be changes for better and worse. In this case, Eddie experienced the worse changes because he has too much love for Catherine and he cannot fulfill his expectation that forced him into deeper frustration.
Unlike the first part of the story, now Eddie counts everything he gave to
Rodolpho and Marco. Eddie thinks that Rodolpho should thank him and pay back his kindness with a good thing instead of stealing Catherine from him (p.60). As other characters are aware of Eddie’s feeling to Catherine, Marco and Rodolpho move upstairs to stay in Mr. Dondero’s flat, one of their neighbors.
EDDIE Who brought them in here? BEATRICE All right, I’m sorry; I wish I’d a drop dead before I told them to come. In the ground I wish I was. EDDIE Don’t drop dead, just keep in mind who brought them in here, that’s all. He moves about restlessly. I mean I got couple of rights here. He moves, 3140
wanting to beat down her evident disapproval of him. This is my house here not their house. BEATRICE What do you want from me? They’re moved out; what do you want now? EDDIE I want my respect! (p.88).
Eddie and Beatrice are debating about the cousins. Because he is already losing his respect, Eddie does not want to give the place to stay anymore. This event shows that Eddie really changes from a generous to a selfish person. Eddie changes his personality as he feels that Rodolpho is his rival in getting Catherine’s love. So, Eddie will not share anything for his rival. This part proves that the changes of personality happen when there is a condition that leads to a new emotional, informal, and imaginative response. Eddie’s frustration condition leads him to a new emotion as a selfish man.
2. Cruel
When an individual is faced to a new fact, there might be dramatic changes in one’s info belief-system, new expectancies, and perhaps new emotional responses as well as attitudes. Now, Eddie changes to be cruel as his new emotional responses and attitudes. He only believes that Rodolpho is a homo and not a good guy. Eddie expects that Catherine will believe what he said and cancel her marriage planning.
In the beginning of the story, Eddie acts as loyal person. He changes to be the cruel man in order to get his needs. It can be seen from his effort to stop
Catherine’s love with Rodolpho. As his love to Catherine suppresses him, he is doing something nonsense. He tries to make an accusation about Rodolpho in 3241
order to prove that Rodolpho is not a good guy. Eddie accuses that Rodolpho is a homo because of Rodolpho’s effeminate characteristics such as singing, sewing and cooking. Eddie’s new expectation is that Catherine will believe in him and she will change her mind not to continue her planning. In fact, Catherine did not believe him and still wants to continue her planning to be married by Rodolpho.
Eddie also asks her wife to help him. He asks Beatrice to tell Catherine that Rodolpho is not good for her. Eddie’s action makes Beatrice aware of her husband’s desire for her niece. Then, Eddie tries to keep his feeling for Catherine.
In order that his love will not be revealed, he makes a reason that Catherine is not mature enough to choose his own couple. By saying that she is still a “baby”, means that Catherine needs more time to meet on other good guy to marry, because in her life, she just meets one guy named Rodolpho.
EDDIE I’m tellin’ you the truth. A wife is supposed to believe the husband, if I tell you that guy ain’t right don’t tell me he is right. BEATRICE But how do you know? EDDIE Because I know. I don’t go around makin’ accusations. He give me the heeby-jeebies the first minute I seen him. And I don’t like you sayin’ I don’t want her marryin’ anybody. I broke my back payin’ her stenography lessons so she could so out and meet a better class of people. Would I do that if I didn’t want her to get married? Sometimes you talk like I was a crazy man or sump’m. BEATRICE But she likes him. EDDIE Beatrice, she’s a baby, how is she gonna know what she likes? (p.90-91).
Eddie thinks that a homo is not the right man, but Beatrice denied. She just sees
Rodolpho as an optismistic boy with a great love for Catherine. 3342
Besides accusing Rodolpho as a homo, Eddie makes other way to prove that
Rodolpho is really not a good guy. Eddie, then, challenges Rodolpho to attend a boxing match. However, this boxing is nonsense reason. Eddie just wants to hurt
Rodolpho as his vengeance for stealing Catherine’s heart. So, this is clearly seen as an excuse to punch Rodolpho, but Rodolpho takes it good-humouredly. This symbolic beating will turn into a true beating with his other cousin, Marco that makes Eddie dies.
CATHERINE (with beginning alarm) What are they doin’? They are lightly boxing now. BEATRICE (she senses only the comradeship in it now) He’s teachin’ him; he’s very good! EDDIE Sure, he’s terrific! Look at him go! Rodolpho lands a blow. ‘at’s it! Now watch out, here I come, Danish! He feints with his left hand and lands with his right. It mildly staggers Rodolpho. Marco rises. CATHERINE (rushing to Rodolpho) Eddie! EDDIE Why? I didn’t hurt him. Did I hurt you, kid? He rubs the back of his hands across his mouth (p.72).
Eddie does everything uncontrollably in order to have Catherine. At last, he tries to stop Catherine’s wedding by calling Immigration Bureau. He is reporting that there are two illegal immigrants in his household. Unlike the beginning of the story, he lectured Catherine how they have to tell no one about
Marco and Rodolpho. Eddie said that illegal immigrants’ cousins of the family must be hidden. From this incident, Eddie undergoes a drastic change as a family betrayer. The force of this transition reveals not only his self-destructive madness, but the deepth of his unspoken love for his niece. 3443
EDDIE Give me the number of Immigration Bureau. Thanks. He dials. I want to report something, Illegal Immigrants. Two of them. That’s right. Four-forty- one Sazon Street, Brooklyn, yeah. Ground floor. Heh? With greater difficulty: I’m just around neighborhood, that’s all. Heh? (p. 86-87)
Without thinking of the risk, he easily calls Immigration Bureau. He hopes that Rodolpho and Marco will be judged as illegal immigrants and they will be sent to jail or to their original country. But, what happened is turn to Eddie. As the officers of Immigrant Bureau come, Marco and Rodolpho already have moved upstairs. Eddie is obviously regretting the call he made to the Immigration
Bureau. So, it makes Beatrice and Catherine immediately suspect that Eddie was the informer. Then, all the neighbors turn away from Eddie. His betrayal of the two men causes Eddie to lose the respect of his neighbours, his friends and his family. As Marco and Rodolpho were led by the officers to go away, they spit out to Eddie’s face and Eddie shouts out that he’ll kill Marco. This event makes the honor of both Eddie and Marco is now at stake.
Eddie’s possessiveness becomes greater to Catherine. He acts as if he is the man who owns Catherine. As in the previous, Eddie is the caring person who always tolerates and understands what Catherine wants. Even, when he didn’t agree, he asked Catherine smoothly and carefully without hurting Catherine. Now,
Eddie is a hard-headed man who is not going to give up on what he wants. He always tries to prohibit Catherine’s relationship with Rodolpho.
He directly suggests Catherine not to marry Rodolpho because Rodolpho’s purpose is only to get the American citizen, not the real love of Catherine. 3544
EDDIE Katie, he’s only bowin’ to his passport. CATHERINE His passport! EDDIE That’s right. He marries you he’s got the right to be an American citizen. That’s what’s goin’ on here. She is puzzled and surprised. You understand what I’m tellin’ you? The guy is lookin’ for his break, that’s all he’s lookin’ for. CATHERINE (pained) Oh, no, Eddie, I don’t think so. EDDIE You don’t think so! Katie, you’re gonna make me cry here. Is that a workin’ man? What does he do with his first money? A snappy new jacket he buys, records, a pointy pair new shoes and his brother’s kids are starvin’ aver there with tuberculosis? That’s a hit-and-run guy, baby; he’s got bright lights in his head, Broadway. Them guys don’t of nobody but theirselves! You marry him and the next time you see him it’ll ne for divorce (p. 48-49).
Until the end of the story, he never allows Catherine to be married by
Rodolpho. Even, in the day of the wedding, he prefers to stay at home and does not want to attend the wedding. Beatrice is in her preparation for the wedding. She is ready with her best clothes and beautiful hat to go to the church. But, directly
Eddie stops her and also forces her not to come to the wedding. He makes
Beatrice keep staying with him because he gives the choices; if she still wants to go to the wedding, he’ll never allow her to come back to that house again. In the final, Eddie’s stubbornness drives him to the wrong direction; he lost everything he wants.
EDDIE Didn’t you hear what I told? You walk out that Door to that wedding you ain’t comin’ back here, Beatrice. BEATRICE Why? What do you want? 3645
EDDIE I want my respect. Didn’t you hear of that? From my wife? Catherine enters from bedroom. CATHERINE It’s after three; we’re supposed to be there already,Beatrice. The priest won’t wait. BEATRICE Eddie. It’s her wedding. There’ll be nobody there from her family. For my sister let me go. I’m goin’ for my sister. EDDIE Look, I been arguin’ with you all day already, Beatrice, and I said what I’m gonna say. He’s gonna come here and apologize to me or nobody from this house is goin’ into that church today. Now if that’s more to you that I am, then go. But don’t come back. You be on my side or on their side, that’s all. (p. 105-106).
3. Rude
Eddie also experienced the rapid changes in his personality. In these changes of characteristics, they usually have close relationship with the brain damages.
These changes are also considered as a danger signal. It is caused by the stimulation which temporarily causes the person to forget his real self-concept and see himself as what he would like to be seen. After realizing that his love for
Catherine does not meet his expectation, Eddie turns to do the worst things to break the relationship between Catherine and Rodolpho. In this case, Eddie lost his good personality and he sees himself as he would like to be.
Eddie transfers his sexual frustration into hatred to Marco and Rodolpho.
His love for Catherine empowers him to act uncontrollably. In this event, Eddie is seen as a rude man, because he enemies his own cousins. His frustration makes him doing something impolite. Unlike the first part of the story where Eddie seems very respectful, now, Eddie acts as a rude man, a man with no morality. It is happened when Eddie go home in drunk, he found Catherine and Rodolpho in 3746
the bedroom doing intimate action. Directly, he kisses both Rodolpho and
Catherine at the same time. He thinks that by kissing two of them, he will find if
Rodolpho really a homo or not. It is possible, however, the kiss is intended to mock Rodolpho, not to express any latent sexual feelings for him. He did this to prove that Rodolpho could have no sexual desires for Catherine and was only marrying her to live in America.
CATHERINE Eddie, I’m not gonna a baby anymore! You- He reaches out suddenly, draws her to him, and as she strives to free herself he kisses her on the mouth (p. 82).
Directly Rodplpho protests, Eddie should not kiss Catherine on her lips because
Catherine is going to be his wife. Eddie is not following what he said and directly kisses him too.
RODOLPHO (with tears of rage) Don’t say that to me! Rodolpho flies at him in attack. Eddie pins his arms. Laughing, and suddenly kisses him (p.83).
4. Violent
Hurlock said that there will be significant changes if a person has significant people in his life, who might effects personality. The people will have strong desire to be accepted by those who are significant to him; he tries to change any personality traits that he can be accepted. As Eddie experienced that he regards
Catherine as a significant person for him. He is obsessed to have her to be his lover. Eddie has strong desire to posses Catherine, and then he tries to find the way to fulfill his fantasy. All of Eddie’s effort, then, leads him to his personality 3847
changes because his strong emotion to Catherine is suppressed and causes him to act completely irrationally.
Eddie cannot control his emotion and he drops mentally and physically. He uses his last effort to gain his love by using violence. Teaching Rodolpho to box is one prove that Eddie wants to win this conflict with violence. It seems that in all of his life, he never wants Catherine and Rodolpho going marry. He turns vengeance by asking Marco to fight him because he feels that nobody respecting him anymore. Eddie thinks that nobody cares for what he feels and nobody understand to what he wants. After all of his effort are fail, he uses violent as his last choice to bare his deep frustration.
As the fighting ends, the conflict in this story also ends, as well as Eddie’s life. Both Eddie and Marco cannot control their emotion and they are full of anger. They fight as they are not relatives. Eddie draws a knife, but Marco is able to grip Eddie’s wrist and turn the knife in Eddie himself. As the final, Eddie dies in his own knife.
MARCO Anima-a-al ! Eddie lunges with the knife. Marco grabs his arm, turning the blad inward and pressing it home as the women and Louis and Mike rush in and separate them, and Eddie, the knife still in his hand, falls to his knees before Marco. The two women support him for a moment, calling his name again and again. CATHERINE Eddie, I never meant to do nothing bad to you. (p. 112).
In his process of changing, he cannot control his frustration that finally makes him lose his name. Eddie’s fear need to secure his good name from Marco is a result of his failure to ‘protect’ Catherine. The community witness his loyalty die away due to his commitment to keeping Catherine to himself, and turning his 3948
vengeance into a need for acceptance by spending his last moments fighting
Marco for his good name in the community. Eddie is determined to earn back his honor when his paranoia made him believe that all respects were lost before it actually were. This event shows that Eddie experienced the role changes which result in status changes within the group. Now, his neighbors regard him as the community betrayal after witnessed what Eddie already did.
EDDIE Then why--- Oh, B.! BEATRICE Yes, yes! EDDIE My, B.! He dies in her arms, and Beatrice covers him with her body….(p.112).
This quote occurs as the conclusion of the play and is spoken between Eddie and Beatrice. As Eddie lies dying in Beatrice's arms, the couple find some sort of reconciliation and repair of their torn and battered relationship. Beatrice, even under such horrible circumstances, is able to forgive Eddie. Eddie constantly dominates Beatrice throughout the play, but in this tiny moment, Eddie needs
Beatrice more than she needs him. It is the first time for Eddie who looked honestly and really needs Beatrice. Beatrice is the tirelessly forgiving character of the play. She is terribly jealous of her niece, who receives more attention from her husband than she does, but still forgives Eddie in the end.
All of Eddie’s irrational acts to defend his love toward Catherine end as he loses his life. Eddie cannot control his emotion and his furry rises. Eddie’s fatal flaw is that he cannot see that his influence must inevitably wane if life is to 4049
progress, and his refusal to compromise ultimately causes him to betray his own class and ethnic loyalties, with inevitable consequences.
5. Jealous
As his feeling to Catherine clearly revealed, he is changing from an overprotective father figure to a jealous man. He never gives up to get what he wants. This new personality is indicating the rapid changes since it is clearly seen for all. His jealousy is firstly seen during his conversation with Alfieri. He tells
Alfieri that Rodolpho stealing from him. It seems that it is very hard for him to let
Catherine go with other man, without realizing that actually he is only her uncle.
EDDIE (with a helpless and ironic gesture) What can I do? I’m a patsy, what can a patsy do? I worked like a dog twenty years so a punk could have her, so that’s what I done. I mean, in the worst times, in the worst, when there wasn’t a ship comin’ in the harbor, I didn’t stand around lookin’ for relief- I hustled. When there was empty piers in Brooklyn I went to Hoboken, Saten Island, the West Side, Jersey, all over- because I made a promise, I took out of my wife’s mouth. I walked hungry plenty days in this city! It begins to break through. And now I gotta sit in my house and look at a son-of-a-bitch punk like that- which he came out of nowhere! I gice him my house to sleep! I take the blankets off my bed for him, and he takes and puts his dirty filthy hands on her like a goddam thief! ALFIERI But, Eddie. She is a woman now. EDDIE He’s stealing from me (p.60)
Other evident of his jealousy is when Eddie gets mad and angry when she went out with Rodolpho. All of Eddie’s efforts in stopping Catherine’s wedding are also show his jealousy because he cannot accept the wedding. Even, when he believed that Rodolpho is “stealing” from him, Eddie prevented Catherine from discovering independence. The only reason is because he had wanted her for 4150
himself. Nevertheless, he fears that his desire could be revealed as there is no reasonable motive of his own feeling. Eddie feels that he is already losing his respect, due to his feelings for Catherine. His feeling were stronger that that of a father figure and niece. Unlike at the start, that he is seen as an overprotective guardian of his niece in her increasing maturity. CHAPTER V
CONCLUSION
The three questions in the problems formulation are already answered in the previous chapter. That analysis, then, leads into a conclusion of this thesis. In answering the three questions, the writer used the main theory of character and characterization by Murphy, the theory of incest by Neale and Davison, and the theory of personality changes by Hurlock. All of the theories are supporting the analysis to reveal the character who experienced incestuous love and his personality changes. The character to be discussed is Eddie Carbone, one of the central characters in a play by Arthur Miller entitled A View from the Bridge.
After analyzing Eddie’s characteristics in the story and the changes of his personality, the writer come to the conclusion in three descriptions. The first one is the description about Eddie’s characteristics. The second is discussed how his incestuous love is revealed. And the third is portrays his personality changes as the effect of his incestuous love.
For the first, the writer found that in the play, Eddie is characterized as a generous person because he is hospitalizing his cousins well. He is loyal because his preferring to keep his cousins as illegal immigrants in his house. He is kind of respectful person in the way he welcomed the cousins and helps her wife calming the situation that makes her not to be very panic. Caring person is also one of his characteristics. And the last is he known as an overprotective and possessive father for Catherine.
51 52
The second analysis is to reveal Eddie’s incestuous love. In the story, it is found that his love is revealed by his own action, manner, and conversation with other. The first indication is in his delight when Catherine lighted a cigar for him.
He had unusual pleasure for his sexual desire. Eddie’s jealousy also can become prove as his sinful love to his niece. He got angry and mad when saw Catherine and Rodolpho walking around the town together. When he realizes that Catherine falls in love to Rodolpho, he tries to stop the wedding they planned. He convinces that Rodolpho is not the right guy by telling that Rodolpho’s purpose is only gaining the American citizenship. Besides, he accuses that Rodolpho is a homo.
By telling that reasons, he expects that Catherine will change her mind not to marry with Rodolpho.
Actually his wife also already recognized her husband shameful feeling to her niece. But, she tells nobody. She just persuades Catherine to be independent woman who should grow to be mature and has her own choice for her life. She thinks that if Catherine goes to work outside and marries with other man, her husband will stop his efforts in fulfilling his desire. Eddie’s love to Catherine becomes clearly revealed in his conversation with Alfieri, the neighbor lawyer. He asks him if there is a law between an illegal man who loves an immigrant.
Actually Eddie wants Rodolpho to be judged because already stealing Catherine’s heart from him. Eddie seems very desperate when Alfieri answer the there is no law between two people who falling in love.
The last analysis is depicts Eddie’s personality changes as the effect of his incestuous love. His strong emotion to Catherine is suppressed and causes him act 53
completely irrational. Realizing that Catherine falls in love with Rodolpho, Eddie tries some ways in order to stop their close relationship. His frustration drives him to wrong direction that brings him into his fatal action. In the process of protecting and possessing Catherine, Eddie experienced changes in his personality. Unconsciously, he changes to be selfish, cruel, rude, violent, and jealous man because he cannot fulfill his desire.
In this study, the point is that people who fall in love will experience changes in her or his life. This love will give the great effect in one’s life. It can be for the better or worse, depend on how their love can be satisfied. Unsatisfied love can makes people cannot control their emotion and make them drop mentally or physically. And slowly will shape their real personality. It can be said that our personality influenced by our environment and the condition of ourselves. BIBLIOGRAPHY
Abrams, M.H. A Glossary of Literary Terms. New York: Holt, Rinehart and Winston, 1981.
Barnet, Berman, and Bruto. Literature for Composition, 2nd Edition. Boston: Scott, Foresman, and Co., 1960.
Barranger, Milly. S, Understanding Plays: 2nd Edition. London: Allyn and Bacon, 1994.
Brewster, H. G. New Century Dictionary. New York: Appleton Century, 1952.
Bryne, Donn, and Kelley. An Introduction to Personality: 3rd Edition. New Jersey: Prentice- Hall Inc, 1981.
B. Iden Payne Theatre. A View From the Bridge: Go Away, Little Girl. http://www.austinchronicle.com/gyrobase/Issue/review (accessed on 18 January 2008).
Chalandra, Dennis M.Phd. and James, L Robert Phd. The Crucible: Notes. Nebraska: Cliff’s Notes. Inc., 1968.
Coleman. Abnormal Psychology and Modern Life, 5th edition. Illionis: Scoot, Foresman and Company, 1976. ] Crooks, Robert and Karla Baur. Our Sexuality: Second Edition. California: The Benjamin/ Cummings Publishing Company, Inc., 1983.
East Carolina University School of Theatre and Dance. A View from the Bridge by Arthur Miller. http://www.theatredance.ecu.edu/Productions/Bridge/View_from_the_B ridge. html (accesed on 16 Januari 2008.
Encyclopedia of World Biography on Arthur Miller. http://www.bookrags.com/biography/arthur-miller/ (accesed on Decemcer 2007).
Forster.E M. Aspect of the Novel and Related Writing. London: Edward Arnold, 1974.
Hauck, Paul. How to Love and be Loved. London: Shelpdon Press London, 1983.
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Hayman, Ronald. Contemporary Playwright Arthur Miller. London: Heiman London, 1970.
Henkle, Roger B. Reading the Novel. New York: Cornell University Press, 1977.
Hogins, James B. Literature. SRA Canada, 1975.
Hurlock, Elizabeth B. Personality Development. New Delhi: Tata McGraw- Hill, 1976.
Kalish, Richard, A. The Psychology of Human Behavior. 3rd Edition, San Francisco: Wodsworth Publishing Company Inc., 1973.
Vena and Nouryeh. Drama and Performance: An Anthology. New York: Harper Collins College Publisher, 1996.
Milligan, Ian. The Novel in English: An Introduction. London: The Macmillan Press, Ltd., 1983.
Miller, Arthur. A View from the Bridge. New York: The Viking Press, Inc., 1955
Murphy, M.J. Understanding Unseen: Un Introduction to English Poetry and and the English Novel for Overseas Students. London: George Allen and Unwin Ltd, 1972.
Neale and Davidson, Abnormal Psychology: Revised 6th Edition. New York: John Wiley and Sons Inc, 1996.
Phares, E.J. Introduction to Personality. Ohio: Charles E. Merrill Publishing, 1984.
Reinert, Otto, ed. Drama: An Introduction to Anthology. New York: Little, Brown and Company, 1996.
Rich, Frank. Arthur Miller’s A View from the Bridge. February 4, 1983. http://partners.nytimes.com/books/00/11/12/specials/miller- bridge83.html (accessed on 16 Januari 2008).
Rohrberger, Mary, and Samuel H. Woods. Reading and Writing about Literature. New York: Random House, 1971.
Wiiliams, Raymond. Drama from Ibsen to Brecth. London: Chatto and Windus, 1971. APPENDICES
Appendix 1
Summary of A View from the Bridge
The play of A View from the Bridge tells about Eddie’s family who live in
Brooklyn neighborhood. The play opens with the lawyer Alfieri, who sets the scene. In this play Alfieri act as a chorus and also as one of the character in the story. In this opening, Alfieri introduces Eddie as the central character in the story. In this play, Eddie lives with his wife, Beatrice, and his niece, Catherine.
One day Eddie arrives home from the dockyard where he works with some news. He announces that Beatrice's two cousins from Italy have reached New
York and they will arrive at the family's home at 10 o'clock that night. It is obvious that the family has often discussed the visit before. Beatrice is anxious that she hasn't completed all the preparations in the house she had intended to welcome them, and Eddie reminds Beatrice not to be so kind to the cousins. Eddie said that they will be very thankful stay freely in their house.
Catherine also has some news: she tells Eddie that she was selected to be offered a well-paid job at a big plumbing company. She is excited at the prospect, but Eddie is worried. Eddie wants her to concentrate and finish her education first.
He also gives other reason that he doesn’t like the neighborhood where Catherine wants to work. The neighborhood is not good for Catherine, he expected that
Catherine will get better job in the office than in plumbers. Beatrice takes
56 57
Catherine's side; she supports Catherine to take the job. However, in the end
Eddie relents and allows Catherine to take the job.
After talking about Catherine’s job, Eddie reminds Beatrice and Catherine not to mention the arrival of the cousins outside the house. They have to keep them secretly because the cousins came to that country illegally.
Then, the cousins, Marco and Rodolpho, arrive and are warmly welcomed.
Marco is quiet and polite man. He needs to find the job for his better life. He hopes to go home in about six years. He wants to earn much money and hope able to send the money for his wife and children in Italy. Rodolpho is cheerful. Unlike his brother, Marco, he wants to stay in America because he thinks that he can fulfill everything he needs in that country.
A few weeks later, Eddie and Beatrice sit waiting for Catherine and
Rodolpho to come home from the cinema. It is clear that Rodolpho and Catherine have fallen in love. During their waiting, Eddie looks anxious. It makes Eddie’s hostility toward Rodolpho now clearly seen. Beatrice recognizes that her husband is jealous to Rodolpho. She, then, admires Rodolpho and hope that he and
Catherine will marry, but Eddie is appalled by this idea. Their conversation leads
Beatrice to ask Eddie about the state of their own marriage: they have not made love for months. However, Eddie refuses to discuss it.
After Catherine and Rodolpho finally return, Eddie asks to speak to
Catherine alone. He explains that she has grown up without his realizing it.
Catherine admits that she likes Rodolpho. Aware of Catherine’s feeling, Eddie tells her that Rodolpho is only using her to marry an American to gain US 58
citizenship. Catherine is very upset. She admits privately to Beatrice that she loves
Rodolpho and wants to marry him, but in other side, she doesn't want to hurt
Eddie. Beatrice advises her to be more independent and grown up, and less intimate with Eddie in the house. By being independent, Beatrice hopes that
Catherine will be able to choose her lover and able to make her own decision to marry or goes to work outside.
Realizing that Catherine’s relationship becomes closer to Rodolpho, Eddie finds the way to stop their marriage. He goes to see Alfieri, wanting the law to judge and stop Catherine marrying Rodolpho. He claims that Rodolpho is only doing it to gain a US passport. He also makes an accusation that Rodolpho is homosexual. However, Eddie is amazed when Alfieri explains that no law can prevent the marriage. Eddie reacts angrily when Alfieri hinted that perhaps Eddie loves Catherine too much.
There is tension in the air when Eddie, Beatrice, Catherine, Marco and
Rodolpho at home together. Eddie makes unpleasant comments, implying that
Rodolpho is too friendly with Catherine and too casual with his money.
Rodolpho’s effeminate characteristics that he can cook, sing and sew makes him being worst by Eddie. Eddie said that a man with such skills is not proper working at the docks. Then, Eddie teaches Rodolpho to box. This is clearly just an excuse to punch Rodolpho, but Rodolpho takes it good-humouredly. Catherine shows that she is more interested in Rodolpho's safety than Eddie's. Marco shows off his own strength to Eddie by lifting a chair by its leg with one hand - a feat that Eddie cannot match. 59
In the day nearly Christmas, Catherine and Rodolpho are alone in the apartment for the first time. Catherine is somber; they talk about their future life.
She asks Rodolpho if they could live in Italy when they are married, but he claims it would be ridiculous to go back to such poverty. He does reassure her that he is not going to marry her just to gain US citizenship, however. She says that she doesn't want to hurt Eddie. When he has comforted her, they go into the bedroom.
Eddie returns, drunk, and is aghast to see Rodolpho follow Catherine out of the bedroom. He tells Rodolpho to leave immediately; Catherine says that she will go too, but Eddie grabs her and kisses her. When Rodolpho protests, saying that
Catherine will be going to be his wife, Eddie kisses him too.
Some days later, Eddie returns to Alfieri and tells him what happened.
Alfieri restates that there is nothing Eddie or the law can do to prevent the wedding. He advises Eddie to let the couple marry, warning him that there could be awful consequences if he didn't. But, Eddie ignores Alfieri's words and telephones the Immigration Bureau, anonymously, to betray the cousins. When
Eddie returns home, he finds that Marco and Rodolpho have moved upstairs to a neighbor’s apartment. There is a tense conversation with Beatrice - she is very angry with him. Beatrice tells Eddie that Catherine and Rodolpho are going to get married next week. Beatrice asks Eddie if he is agree to come to the wedding and, when Catherine comes in, Beatrice encourages Catherine to ask Eddie herself.
Catherine refuses to listen to Eddie's suggestion that it is not too late for her to meet other boys. 60
When Eddie discovers that Marco and Rodolpho are lodged with two other illegal immigrants upstairs, he becomes concerned and warns that they will be less safe from the authorities there. He is obviously regretting the call he made to the
Immigration Bureau, but it is too late - two officers arrive. It is clear that Beatrice and Catherine immediately suspect that Eddie was the informer. As the officers lead Marco and Rodolpho away, they spit in Eddie's face. Eddie shouts out that he'll kill Marco; Marco replies angrily that Eddie has stolen food from his children. Eddie protests that he is innocent, but all the neighbors turn away from him as his betraying community.
At the day of the wedding, Beatrice gets dressed in her best clothes, but
Eddie tells her that if she goes, he won't let her back into the house. Catherine is angry, calling Eddie a rat. When Rodolpho arrives to take Catherine to the church, he says that Marco is at the church, praying. Eddie's fury rises: he wants to get even with Marco, for ruining his good name in the neighborhood. Beatrice tries to calm him, telling him that the reason he is angry is because he is about to lose
Catherine for ever - but this truth fires Eddie up even more. Marco arrives, calling
Eddie's name. Eddie goes to meet him in the street and demands a public apology.
Instead, Marco calls him an "animal". Eddie draws a knife but Marco is able to grip Eddie's wrist and turn the knife on Eddie himself. Eddie dies in Beatrice's arms. Alfieri closes the play, commenting on how useless Eddie's death was. Appendix 2
Biography of Arthur Miller
Arthur Miller was born on October 17, 1915, in New York. He is known as
American playwright, novelist, and film writer. He is also considered as one of the major dramatists of 20th-century American theater. His father ran a small coat- manufacturing business; during the Depression it failed, and in 1932, after graduating from high school, Miller went to work in an auto-parts warehouse.
Two years later he enrolled in the University of Michigan and graduating in 1938.
Miller returned to New York City to a variety of jobs, writing for the Federal
Theater Project, the Columbia Workshop, and the Cavalcade of America. In 1944, the Broadway production of his The Man Who Had All the Luck opened and closed almost simultaneously, though it won a Theater Guild Award. In 1945 he wrote his novel, Focus, which contain a diatribe against anti-Semitism, appeared.-
Miller succeeds with his great works. The opening of All My Sons on
Broadway in 1947, makes his theatrical career burgeoned. He won three prizes and fascinated audiences across the country. Then, The Death of a Salesman
(1949) brought Miller a Pulitzer Prize, international fame, and an estimated income of $2 million. The words of its hero, Willy Loman, have been heard in at least 17 languages as well as on movie screens everywhere. By the time of his third Broadway play, The Crucible (1953), audiences were ready to accept
Miller's conviction that "a poetic drama rooted in American speech and manners" was the only means of writing a tragedy out of the common man's life.
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He made social dramas which focused on the inner life of working men; neither had the power of Salesman; A Memory of Two Mondays and two one-act plays, A View from the Bridge (1955). In 1961, he also created his film script, The
Misfits with the artist Marylin Monroe. His next play, After the Fall (1964), was a bald excursion into self-analysis. His second wife, Marilyn Monroe, was the model for the heroine. Incident at Vichy (1965), a long one-act play based on a true story out of Nazi-occupied France, examined the nature of racial guilt and the depths of human hatreds; it is discursive exercise rather than highly charged theater.
In The Price (1968) Miller returned to domestic drama in a tight, intense confrontation between two brothers, almost strangers to each other, brought together by their father's death. It is Miller at the height of his powers, consolidating his position as a major American dramatist.
However, The Price proved to be Miller's last major Broadway success. His next work, The Creation of the World, and Other Business, was a series of comic sketches first produced on Broadway in 1972. It closed after only twenty performances. All of Miller's subsequent works premiered outside of New York.
Another play, The Archbishop's Ceiling, was presented in 1977 at the Kennedy
Center in Washington, D.C. In the 1980s, Miller produced a number of short pieces. Elegy for a Lady and Some Kind of Story were two one-act plays that were staged together in 1982. Miller's Danger, Memory! was composed of the short pieces I Can't Remember Anything and Clara. All these later plays have been 63
regarded by critics as minor works. In the mid-1990s, Miller adapted The Crucible for the Academy Award-nominated film starring Daniel Day-Lewis and Joan
Allen.
Miller remains secure in his reputation as a major figure in American drama.
His awards include the Theatre Guild National Prize, 1944; Antoinette Perry
(Tony) Award, 1947 and 1953; Pulitzer Prize for drama, 1949; Emmy Award,
1967; George Foster Peabody Award, 1981; John F. Kennedy Award for Lifetime
Achievement, 1984; Dorothy and Lillian Gish Prize, 1999; Tony for best play revival, 1999; and the Tony Lifetime Achievement Award, 1999. In 2000, Miller's play The Ride Down Mt. Morgan, first published in 1992, was nominated for a
Tony Award for best play. http://www.bookrags.com/biography/arthur-miller/