Ekphrasis In Arthur Miller’s The American Clock

Arthur Miller(1915-2005)is an outstanding figure in American theater of the twentieth century,whose plays mirror the American society and its shifting values.In a career spanning more than 50 years,Miller never ceases to experiment with his dramatic language.Some critics point out that the language of the late plays synthesizes the elements in his early plays.And it is more varied in representation and vivid in reference,showing a tendency of postmodernism.However,the previous study does not specify the improvements of his language,especially the pictorial features.Premiered in May 1980,the vaudeville The American Clock,revolving around the Baum family and more than 50 vaudevillians,depicts a panorama of the chaotic American society during the Great Depression.As a highly dynamic and visualized play,it demonstrates his innovations in the language.From the perspective of ekphrasis(the verbal representation of visual representation),this thesis explores how three major techniques of metaphor,montage,and collage represent American society in visual images.Miller reveals the vagaries of the law of money through the images centered on metaphors such as the bike,the diamond bracelet,the bird,and the crown,illuminating the causes of the total economic collapse.The recurrent images of the young man Joe selling flowers and the mother Rose playing the piano personify the concept of America and indicate that the aspiration for a better future is the driving force that leads America out of the gloom.To conform to the clock’s rotation,he applies montage to connect historical scenes and images retrieved from memories to examine the cause-and-effect relationship in this crisis.Besides,he employs collage to portray characters in various industries affected by this catastrophe and the decaying cityscape and rural landscape in panoramic shots,revealing the widespread destruction due to the Great Depression.Ekphrasis strengthens the rhetorical and aesthetic effects of Miller’s dramatic language.It also manifests his constant pursuit of textual innovation,which reminds readers to focus on the images embedded in language to appreciate his plays better.