Word: esther
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...what's it all about?" Esther Franz asked in the opening moments of Arthur Millers's The Price. Watching her throughout the play, I knew at the end that she had discovered the answer and was pleased. By this time, I had also discovered her answer, but I was not satisfied...
...play, Esther (Betty Field) is married to Victor Franz (Michael Strong) who has been fending with his brother Walter (Sheppard Strudwick) for 28 years. Although the brothers' abilities and inclinations were similar, Victor became a policeman, Walter a successful surgeon. Both Victor and Walter seem unhappy and blame others for forcing them into their present situation. However, each is responsible for his own choice- a choice that had to be made and must be recognized. What Esther often says of herself is true of the two men, "I can never believe what I see before...
Victor and Esther realize in the end that they are indeed happy. Their ululate success comes from the realization of life's complexity- the knowledge that rewards come in different forms and at different times. The performances of the three main characters depict this uneven nature of life. Michael Strong as Victor shapes his characterization to the events of the play. He balances between the over-confidence of a happily married policeman and the defensive anger of a middle-aged man who sees himself as a failure. As he slips from one phase to the other, he is complemented...
...have an emotional contact between his audience and his characters. Miller in effect, negates this power of the theatre by demanding that his audience focus so closely on his theme. I felt compelled throughout the play to try to discover the importance of each line and of each symbol. Esther's repeated comments on the meaning of the play, the symbols in the set, in the gestures, and in the speeches ("The price hasn't changed.") cries out to be noticed. The play did not allow me to become involved in the lives of the characters and to follow their...
...There's a price people pay," Victor and Esther discover toward the end of the play. They had sacrificed some things to gain others. Miller gives up certain inherent advantages of the theater to stress his theme. However, it is possible to sacrifice too much or the wrong things. Walter did this and lost his happiness. Arthur Miller does this and loses his play...