In Arthur Miller's All My Sons, most of the characters have different motives for hiding the truth from themselves and others. In the following text the character's motives for doing so is disclosed. The character of Joe Keller in Miller's All My Sons , has many reasons for not telling the truth about letting cracked engine heads out of his factory. He believes that his family is the most important thing that he has. He believes providing for his family supercedes all other things. "Nothing is bigger!" (425) Joe is the most aware of the crime, because he himself commits the crime. Joe lies about his actions for numerous reasons. He lies in court to protect himself from punishment. ...view middle of the document...
Steve tried to tell everyone the truth, but nobody listened to him. He said there was a phone call between him and Joe, but Joe denied it after they were caught. Steve reported the defective parts to Joe, but when Joe told him to weld the cracks he did so. He kept silent at this time and did not report this to the government. He helped cover up the mistake in the process to the government instead of blowing the whistle. He was just as responsible as Joe, because he also knew about the defects and did not take action. Steve did not come out with the truth until after he was caught. He did this because he is a character who is easily manipulated. He is too afraid of Joe to turn Joe and himself in from the start. Ann withheld a lot of information from everyone for various reasons. She never tells anyone about it until she has to. She had known Larry committed suicide and why. She did not want to show this letter to Kate because she does not want to cause any more harm or damage. She loves Chris, and she does not want to do anything that will jeopardize their relationship. Ann has to show it to Kate so she can marry Chris, because Kate believes strongly that Ann is Larry's girl. Kate will not let go unless this key piece of evidence is made known. Ann only wants to be with Chris. Ann believes her father is also guilty, so she does not go to visit him at all in jail. The neighbors all believe or assume Joe is guilty. Sue Bayless even says, "I resent living next door to the Holy Family. It makes me look like a bum, you understand?" (396) They never say anything to the Keller's because they do not want to make enemies or come on the bad side of the Kellers. The Kellers had high social standing. Being friends with them is very important;. it is the thing to do in the neighborhood. The Keller household is the main place for everyone in the neighborhood to visit and to socialize. The neighbors played cards with Joe even though they knew he was guilty of t he charged crimes. Even his next-door neighbors knew he did it and they pretended like the cat was never let out of the bag. Sue Bayles was not as shy to express her feelings on the subject. She tells Ann, "Who is he to ruin a man's life? Everybody knows Joe pulled a fast one to get out of jail." She does not even like the Kellers. She hates having to pretending to be nice to them. She wants Chris...
