Controlled hysteria is what's required. To exist constantly in a state of controlled hysteria. It's agony. But everyone has agony. The difference is that I try to take my agony home and teach it to sing.
Arthur MillerRead
The structure of a play is always the story of how the birds came home to roost.
Interpretation
What this quote means
This quote reflects the idea that a play's narrative often reveals the consequences of past actions.
Arthur Miller suggests that the core structure of a play revolves around the unfolding of events that ultimately lead characters to confront the repercussions of their earlier decisions. The metaphor of 'birds coming home to roost' indicates that actions have consequences that return to affect the individuals who instigated them, making for a compelling narrative in theater that mirrors life's complexities.
Themes
PlayNarrativeConsequencesActionsTheater
In practice
Example use cases
During a discussion about the themes in Arthur Miller's plays, one might use this quote to illustrate the importance of consequences.
More from Arthur Miller
All quotes βThe word "now" is like a bomb through the window, and it ticks.
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Amos Oz is one of the finest novelists of this entire period. MY MICHAEL is a beautiful work of great depth and in some indescribable way lingers in the mind as a lyric song to his country's people as much as a moving love story.
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Just remember, kid, you can quicker get back a million dollars that was stole than a word that you gave away.
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Oh,Elizabeth, your justice would freeze beer.
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Immortality is like trying to carve your initials in a block of ice in the middle of July.
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Perhaps I abandoned criticism because I am full of contradictions, and when you write an essay, you are not supposed to contradict yourself. But in the theater, by inventing various characters, you can. My characters are contradictory not only in their language but in their behavior as well.
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