Perspectives on Arthur Miller

Perspectives On Arthur Mille
by Atma Ram

The present volume on Arthur Miller contains fresh perceptive and evaluative essays written by eminent scholars on Miller as a tragedy writer, a critic of contemporary American society and a writer who combines in his works traditional motifs with contemporary concerns and experimentation in forms.
The first section of the book ‘Perspectives on Tragedy’ views the concept of tragic hamartia from three standpoints from the point of view of Aurobindo’s Integral Consciousness, as a psychological block, and an offshoot of personal identification. The second part ‘A Critique of Society’ examines the socio-historical dynamics, which has resulted in the collapse of the fabled American Dream and its consequent fallout.

The third section ‘Tradition and Modernity’ evaluates Miller’s quest of values amidst present-day neuroses and fixations, the tension between ‘order’ and ‘freedom’, which he pours into expressionistic dramatic mould.

The anthology thus provides a fuller understanding and a better appreciation of Arthur Miller, the dramatist.

About The

Dr. Atma Ram (b. 1937) has taught and guided research in colleges in Himachal Pradesh and at Himachal Pradesh University, Shimla, Presently Principal (and Chairman), Postgraduate Department of English, Govt. College, Dharmsala; Himachal Pradesh. Author of fourteen books, ten on (ed.) Mulk Raj A Home Appraisal (1988); (ed.) Contemporary Indian English A Critical Appraisal; (ed.) Interviews with Indian English Poets (1987); Essays on Indian English Literature (1984); (ed.) Interviews with Indian English Writers (1983); Heroines in Jane Austen (1982); (ed.) Perspectives on R. K. Narayan (1981); Woman as A Study of Jane Austen (under print); (ed.) Sun and Short Stories from Himachal (1988). Dr. Atma Ram visited the USA and Britain in 1981 as a Fulbright Fellow, and his creative work in Pahari won the Himachal Pradesh Sahitya Akademi Award in 1983.