Stanza 1-3 Born in 1915 into a Jewish, well-heeled family in Manhattan, Miller enjoyed a privileged childhood until the Wall Street Crash in 1929 when his family were ruined. He quickly learned the necessities of earning his own keep, firstly by working on a bread round and then, later, so that he could afford to go to university, in a variety of menial jobs.

Stanza 4 His first success on Broadway was All my Sons (1947) based on a true story of individuals (later convicted before Congress of neglect of duty) who sought to expose a conspiracy to approve defective aircraft engines destined for military use. Miller would much later be questioned about his Communist leanings, on the basis of this play and his support for principles versus politics.

Stanza 5-6 * The American Dream (A land of opportunity that allows the possibility of upward mobility, freedom and equality for people of all classes who work hard and have the will to succeed.")
Death of a Salesman, a classic of world theatre premiered in 1949 on Broadway. This is the tragedy of Willy Loman, a man destroyed by false values that are in large part the values of his society. It was important for Miller that he placed "the common man" at the centre of his tragedy. Failing to make amends for a secret affair from his past, he found himself in a web of deceit in which the only outcome for him was suicide.

Stanza 7-8 *scare - the red scare of communism.
The Crucible was based on the witchcraft trials in Salem, Massachusetts in 1692-93, a series of persecutions that he considered an echo of the McCarthyism of his day when investigations of subversive activities were widespread. In 1956 when Miller was himself called before the Un-American Activities Committee, he refused to name people he had seen earlier at an alleged Communist writers' meeting. He was convicted of contempt but appealed and won.

Stanza 9-10 "Star-crossed" - not favoured by the stars, ill-fated.
*itch - a nod to her earlier movie, The Seven Year Itch.
As his fame grew with his appeal to the working man, he met and married Marilyn Monroe. Their union (described by Norman Mailer as one of "the great American brain and the great American body) created a Hollywood storm but it was not to last. There is little doubt that they were very much in love but Miller's reputation was always paramount and Monroe, who craved respectability in her roles, needed a constant father figure in her life. Miller, however, wrote The Misfits especially for her. A Western themed film released in 1961, it is now considered by critics to be a masterpiece and one of the best films of the 60s. Monroe died a year after its release.

Stanza 11 After the Fall (1964), Miller, arguably (he insists it was fictional) portrays Monroe in the less than complimentary role of Maggie, whose downward course is traced from popular entertainer to bitter neurotic to suicide.

Stanza 12-13 Miller often criticised in his plays the great American Dream. His own background had revealed that, even with wealth, everything could be quickly lost via the control of governments and large organisations. He therefore aligned himself to the working man and drew on Greek tragedy and playwrights, such as Ibsen, to frame the themes of his works. His social attacks also extended to racial injustices long before they were taken up by the Civil Rights Movement. In short, he was an advocate for the victim, supporting the individual (a searching concern for the inner life) against the might of authority (e.g. Monica Lewinsky in the Clinton scandal).

His substantial body of works includes plays, film scripts and essays which continue to be re-staged internationally and adapted for the screen.

At the time of his death in 2005 he was considered one of America's greatest dramatists.

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