Arthur Miller: Titles

Transcription

1 Arthur Miller: Titles This is a compilation of some of the titles submitted by centres in Summer It is not a definitive or prescriptive list of titles but it will give an idea as to different approaches to the task. Some student devised titles have not been listed as, while many have been successful due to the interest of the student, they may not be as successful if given to a class. Titles with a similar focus but with e.g. a different location or form of writing, have been subsumed into each other to keep a concise list of approaches. Death of a Salesman / All My Sons Note: many of the titles based on Death of a Salesman have the suicide of characters and bereavement as central themes. Script a scene in which Arthur Miller introduces, and comments on key characters in his plays. Biff Loman and Chris Keller write to each other about their fathers. Create a scene set in the Keller garden on the day of Chris and Anne s wedding. Biff is a part-time gardener working on the wedding setting. The present merges with past and Keller/Loman early beginnings are presented alongside Chris and Ann. It is inside a church. Joe s confession is heard and Willy is seen distractedly at the altar. Link these two characters with the original use of the confessional motif. Write the scene. Biff and Chris meet in the waiting room of the therapist s office. Show what happens during their sessions with the analyst and during an encounter between the two on the forestage. A split set reveals two households which are visited in turn by police officers investigating the deaths of Joe and Willy. They draw their final conclusions about these two men from listening to wives and sons tell their stories. Write a creative response based upon this. The Widows meet. Linda and Kate meet at a bus stop on the journey to the graveyard. Their conversation develops in a nearby coffee shop as they take shelter from the rain. They share their experiences of widowhood. Write the scene showing what takes place. A change of Season. Biff is at his father s grave on the day of the funeral, long after the others have left. He meets Chris and they discuss their relationships with their fathers. Write what happens The Queen of Hearts. A card game is being played in the basement of the Keller house. Happy joins the game. Use props tie the two plotlines together. The discussion focuses on their fathers. Those left behind. Kate and Linda first encounter each other in the graveyard. They share memories of their husbands. You may wish to use dramatic monologues to begin the scene which develops into dialogue. The Golden Boy. Chris s session with his therapist is abruptly interrupted by a distraught Biff. The two men encounter one another and piece together their similar situations. Write what happens. Circle of truth. A chance meeting in a psychiatrist s office brings together Willy and Joe for a moment of revelation before they choose to commit suicide. Write what happens.

2 I know who I am. Biff and Chris meet by accident in a New York bar and discover they have a great deal in common. Chris offers Biff hope for the future. Write what happens. Write what happens between Willy Loman and Joe Keller when the two men meet after Happy and Biff have abandoned Willy at the diner. Script a scene between Linda Loman and Kate Keller. They meet up following a newspaper article being written about Joe Keller s death. Script a scene between Willy Loman and Joe Keller. It is set in a bar which Willy has visited during one of his sales trips. It takes place when each man has committed his crime but other people are not yet aware of it. Linda Loman and Kate Keller have met through a group meeting at the church. They talked and shared their feelings. Write their subsequent correspondence to each other where they discuss: the importance of family; issues of guilt, blame, responsibility and success; and relationships Write a scene between Biff Loman and Steve Deever. It is set in prison after Biff has been found guilty of stealing a suit. Script a scene between Biff Loman and Ann Deever. Biff recognises her as he had been in prison with Steve. He attempts to reconcile her with her father. Write a creative response showing what happens between Biff Loman and Kate Keller in a hotel foyer in Boston. Biff has just seen his father with the woman ; Kate is constantly moving from hotel to hotel, it is several years after Joe s death but she finds it impossible to settle or return to her old home. Chris Keller and Biff Loman meet in a hotel in New York, as a ten-year anniversary of the Ebbet s field final. The two young men played on opposite teams and also had state trials but have not met since. Chris is contemplating following Larry into the war; Biff is working in a variety of jobs. Write what happens. Write a chapter from an actress s autobiography, who played the roles of Kate Keller and Linda Loman. Write the transcript of a literary talk show interview with Sean O Casey and an actress who has played a key role in both plays. Write a conversation and subsequent correspondence between Linda Loman and Kate Keller after the deaths of their husbands. Kate gives talks to groups of bereaved women; Linda attends one of these and the two women form a bond as a result. Joe Keller and Willy Loman meet in an interview waiting room. They meet later in a bar after Willy has had a failed job interview. Joe gives him advice and confides in Willy about his own failure. Write an exchange of letters between Kate Keller and Linda Loman after the deaths of their husbands. The two women had met briefly at the home of Sue Bayliss, who had previously been a neighbour of Linda before her marriage. Write what happens between Willy Loman and Chris Keller: Willy has had one of his car accidents and Chris is first on the scene. It takes place during the events described in Death of a Salesman but after those of All My Sons.

3 Following the break-up of Anne and Chris, Anne flees the Keller s house and travels to a highway diner where she runs into Happy Loman, someone who she shares a secret history with. They begin talking and realise they have much in common. It is Keller s office a few years before All my Sons. Willy is visiting Joe in his capacity as a salesman. Willy, Joe and Chris are three characters present and all three discuss their beliefs about the American dream and the pursuit of material wealth and its effect in them and their families. There are many similarities evident in the lives of Linda Loman and Kate Keller. Script an additional scene wherein Kate and Linda both meet at a bereavement counselling session and where they discuss their lives, loves, regrets, husbands and their futures. The role of wife plays a vital part in each of the plays. Improvise a scene at a suicide support group where Kate and Linda have both come for help. Having focused on connections and comparisons regarding theme and style, create an additional scene where a character from one play encounters a character from another play and forms a relationship. Pay attention to stage directions, characterisation and show knowledge of the characters lives as developed in the original text. In response to Miller s plays, All My Sons and Death of a Salesman, realise a scene between the characters Chris Keller and Biff Loman. Develop the two characters and consider how they may have been affected by the deaths of their fathers. A Chance Meeting An imaginary meeting between Chris and Biff five years after the deaths of Willy Loman and Joe Keller in which they discuss where the deaths of their fathers have led them, while the spirits of Joe Keller and Willy Loman look on and together they discuss their sons conversation. Willy Loman and Joe Keller meet in the afterlife where they sympathize with each other over the disappointment of their sons and their failure at being truthful fathers. Write what happens. Solace. Explore the themes of the American dream, abandonment and betrayal. What was the effect of the men s abandonment and betrayal on the women? Initiate a meeting between two women characters, and allow them to connect and generate an image of comfort between them. A Father s View. Unite Willy Loman and Joe Keller to explore why they committed their suicides. Every Cloud Has A Silver Lining. Script an accidental reunion between Linda Loman and Kate Keller who flashback in time to see their late husbands, Willy Loman and Joe Keller, sparking off a newly found relationship. Write an additional scene which draws comparisons between the two male protagonists, through their connection and meeting. A Day at a Time. Imagine a scene in which Linda and Kate meet some years later. They discuss their sons, husbands and the problems associated with family life. Soul Searching. In an additional scene/s explore the reaction of the men after they have committed suicide and allow their characters to meet and examine their own decisions and resolve, in their own minds, the issues that lead to their deaths. Beyond the grave. Create an extra scene where Willy and Joe meet to explore further the theme

4 of fatherhood in both plays. Use flashbacks to show both the Loman and Keller families talking about their late fathers. As both men watch these discussions they hear opinions on how they raised their sons and respond to what they hear. Imagine Willy Loman and Joe Keller both survived their suicide attempts. They meet each other when they share a hospital room together and discuss their situations. Imagine the plays take place at the same time. Joe Keller and Willy Loman meet by chance just prior to their deaths. Write a scene in which the two men discuss their situations. Imagine the plays take place at the same time. One week after the deaths of Joe and Willy, Linda and Kate meet. Write a scene in which the two spouses reflect on what has happened. Imagine the two plays take place a week apart. Write a scene between Chris Keller and Willy Loman in which the two men discuss their situations. Imagine Joe and Willy die on the same day. One week later, characters from both plays meet. Write a conversation (a scene) where the characters discuss the past and the possible future. Write a letter to a friend as an actress playing one of the female roles from the two plays. Compare the two female roles, and their relationships. Imagine the plays take place at the same time. One week after the deaths of Joe and Willy, Chris and Happy meet. Write a scene in which the two men discuss their life since their fathers deaths. Imagine the plays take place at the same time. One week after the deaths of Joe and Willy, Chris and Biff meet. Write a scene in which the two men discuss what has happened. Write a scene between Biff Loman and Chris Keller. Joe Keller is still alive and Chris has just found out that Joe has authorised the use of the cracked cylinder heads. Willy Loman s funeral was earlier that day. Kate Keller is widowed in Arthur Miller s All My Sons and Linda Loman is widowed in Miller s Death of a Salesman. Imagine Linda has heard of Kate s loss and writes to sympathise with her. Compose the letter which should include reference to Kate s situation and to Linda s feelings about her personal loss. Write Linda s response cross-referencing the events in both plays. Willy Loman and Joe Keller are similar characters both of whom had failings. They reflect on their similar lives through a conversation as they wait outside the Gates of Heaven. Willy Loman and Joe Keller are two men with pasts full of secrets. After an accidental meeting while travelling they establish a bond and confide their secrets to each other. Imagine Biff Loman and Chris Keller meet on the anniversary of their fathers deaths to discuss the impact their fathers had on their lives. Imagine Joe Keller and Willy Loman are brought together in the lobby waiting for a business conference. Write what they would say to each other. Prepare diary logs and media clippings which highlight and compare the reasons why the characters of Joe Keller from Miller s All My Sons and Willy Loman from Death of a Salesman commit suicide. The diary entries and media clippings will reflect mistakes they made throughout their lives leading up to their tragic suicides.

5 Write a letter from Biff to Chris explaining the death of Willy Loman and write Chris response expression sympathy. The letters should show how they dealt with the death of their fathers and the similarities in their situations. Chris Keller is working as a group counsellor with people who have lost a family member due to suicide. Biff attends the group for the first time. Write, in script form, the encounter between the two men. Chris Keller and Biff Loman are both working on a ranch in the mid-west. Write, in script form, the exchange between them when they discuss the deaths of their fathers. Having read, discussed and reflected on two of Miller s plays, produce of piece of creative work in which you explore connections and comparisons between characters and/or themes and issues raised in the two plays. Imagine you are a journalist who has been asked to interview a famous actor who has played the roles of both Chris Keller and Biff Loman. You are particularly interested in the similarities and differences between both characters motivations. Write up the interview. All My Sons and Death of a Salesman are plays that deal with family relationships and explore a wide range of themes. Create a scripted conversation in which key characters develop and explore these connections between texts. Imagine that Joe Keller and Willy Loman speak from beyond the grave. Write what they might say about the choices they made in life and the consequences of their choices. You might choose to write soliloquies or a dialogue. You must ensure that connections between the texts are explored. Imagine that in his mind Willy Loman re-visits a meeting he had with Joe Keller just before Joe was arrested. Write the scene in which they meet. Imagine that Chris is devastated after the death of his father. He wants to do something good to counteract the way Keller has acted. He decides to go to jail to speak to Steve Deever but runs into Biff. Write the scene in which they meet. Chris Keller and Biff Loman meet in a bar on the outskirts of New York. Chris has given up hope of living a fulfilling life and Biff, now preparing to live his dream, gives him advice. Write a scene in which Ann Deever meets Linda Loman after the death of Willy Loman and Joe Keller. Write a scene in which the characters, Linda Loman (Death of a Salesman) and Kate Keller (All My Sons) meet in a psychiatrist s office. Imagine that Willy Loman s car breaks down while he is on a business trip and Joe Keller stops to help him. Write a conversation that takes place between them. It is days after Chris father, Joe Keller, killed himself. Chris is down town in New York, in a local bar sitting having a drink alone. Happy Loman enters and takes up a seat beside Chris Keller. It is a couple of years after Happy Loman s father s death. Create a conversation between them. Write a scene occurring during or after the two plays you have studied in which a character from each play meets. Incorporate your own ideas using the knowledge gained during your study

6 whilst still focusing on Miller s use of language and dramatic effects. Write a scene in which Jim Bayliss and Willy Loman meet. Describe how Steve Deever and Bernard would interact after the incidents of both Willy Loman and Joe Keller s death. Write a new scene to illustrate this. A therapist has worked with both Linda Loman and Kate Keller after their respective husbands deaths. She writes a detailed report discussion her findings on both women, including comments on their roles as wives and mothers. Write the report. Imagine a court hearing is held to determine the factors which led to the death by suicide of Willy Loman and Joe Keller. The dead may attend for short periods (this is in keeping with Miller s style of compressing time and using dreamlike sequences in the present) A journalist investigates the deaths of two main protagonists and how the society of the capitalist system had an impact on the decision to commit suicide. Write the newspaper report which seeks to look at the complexities in each of the families which led to the fathers committing suicide. Imagine you are Arthur Miller making a radio broadcast. Two of your characters, Willy Loman and Joe Keller, have been accused of not meeting the title of tragic hero. Write the speech you would give in their defence. My scene is set in what is now Chris Keller s office just after Keller s death. Chris inheritance of the business brings to the unenviable position of hiring new staff. As the play opens, Biff and Happy are seen in the reception, waiting for Biff s interview. These intense conditions bring out the emotions which the recent family tragedies have dealt upon the boys. My scene is set in a middle class bar in Boston, after Death of a Salesman and hence Willy s suicide but before All My Sons. Linda and Keller meet in this bar after having no previous contact for over 40 years, both of whom had with partners who were incapable of accepting reality. Their discussion focuses on the impact of this on the lives of themselves and their families. Following the break-up of Anne and Chris, Anne flees the Keller s house and travels to a highway diner where she runs into Happy Loman, someone who she shares a secret history with. They begin talking and realise they have much in common. Write two scenes for All My Sons in which Kate remembers Bernard representing Joe in court and Kate meeting Linda by Joe s grave. Explore the relationships between husband and wife, reactions to tragedy, and truth and lies in the two plays. Write an encounter between Annie and Chris from All My Sons with Biff and Happy from Death of a Salesman highlighting the choices which the characters make and how their dreams have distorted reality and their realisation of themselves. In a restaurant, after the events of both plays, Biff and Linda Loman and Chris Keller are celebrating their families joining together in business. Biff encounters the woman with whom his father had an affair, highlighting how he has never forgotten this event and his inability to move on from it. In the scene show both families feelings about the betrayals and deaths of Willy and Joe.