FREE ESSAY ON A VIEW FROM THE BRIDGE BY ARTHUR MILLER

A VIEW FROM THE BRIDGE BY ARTHUR MILLER

After reading Arthur Miller's play A view from the bridge, I am convinced that the most
striking character is Marco. He is an Italian immigrant that moved illegally to the
United States with his brother Rodolpho to work as longshoremen, since at the time (the
play was written in 1955) his country of origin, Italy, was going through a major
economic depression because of the outcome of World War II. In the play, we are told that
Marco's plan is to make enough money to survive and be able to send some of that money to
his wife and his three kids back in Italy, who are starving. Marco physically resembles
the Sicilian stereotype, with dark skin and dark hair. He is also very strong and he
could easily load the whole ship by himself.(pg.541) In this play, the author uses plot,
dialog, actions and symbolism to emphasize Marco's honor which, in my opinion, is his
prominent characteristic.
Throughout the play, we can clearly see that the plot helps us develop Marco's character
in our imagination. For example, he is an illegal alien, and this might give the reader a
less honorable view of him, and it might justify Eddie's action. But the fact that Marco
left his family to give them support and to save his oldest son who is sick in the chest,
(pg. 535) makes the reader forget about his illegal stay and makes his status rise to the
one of a hero. 
In this play, Marco's actions lead us to the discovery of a violent side which he uses to
defend his honor in a number of occasions. For example, when he challenges Eddie to lift
the chair at the end of the first act, we understand that he did it to save his brother's
face and his family's honor. In addition, the killing of Eddie by Marco's own hands at
the end of the play, is the final display of his character. Marco's character is
definitely expressed more by his actions than by his words. He is very strong, and he is
obviously aware of that, but doesn't like to show it in words, or brag about it. In fact,
when Eddie was making fun of his brother Rodolpho, instead of replying to him in words,
he chose to use his strenght to get his point across by lifting the chair. In addition,
Marco doesn't talk about his family much; instead, he works as hard as he can, and that
is enough to show everybody how much he cares about them. As a final insult to Eddie,
Marco chooses to spit in his face in front of everybody. This is because in the Italian
culture, that act is considered as an extreme expression of anger toward a person, and it
is rarely left without punishment. In addition, the action of going to the church before
facing Eddie shows us that he is very religious and cares about his soul. 
Marco is a very honorable man and believes in his tradition, and the author shows us that
through a number of symbols. For example, spitting on Eddie's face once he realizes that
Eddie turned him and his brother to the police is a symbol of disgust and revolt for
Eddie's actions. In addition, at the end of the play, we are told that Marco went to
church before going to talk to Eddie. This action tells us that Marco is ready to give up
his life and commit a mortal sin to defend his honor, because what Eddie has done, the
breaking of the omerta', the breaking of trust, is something that in his culture must
never be left unpunished.
Throughout the first act of the play, Marco is only referred as a flat character and the
only time we are really aware his persona and his strength is at the end of the first
act, when he lifts a chair over his head and makes it seem like a challenge to Eddie, as
a response for mocking Rodolpho. But only in the second act his character is fully
exposed and we see his image transform into a round character. In this play, Marco is
portrayed as the victim, since he hasn't done anything to Eddie but he still gets
arrested. In addition, although his brother Rodolpho gets away with it by marrying
Catherine, he has no other choice but to go back to his hungry wife and sick children in
Italy. This thoughts, and knowing that Eddie has no regrets for what he has done makes
him furious, and at the end of the play he seeks revenge.
I belive this play would not be complete without this character. If Marco would have not
existed, it would have left Eddie unpunished and alive, and this would be in conflict
with the very conception of drama which drives this works.
Bibliography
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