The Price of a Prodigal Life
by Madeline Olsen

Assignment Description: An analysis of the play The Price by Arthur Miller, in light of the parable of the prodigal son.

Teacher: Paula Marantz Cohen

The story of the prodigal son is a well-known parable in the Bible that tells of two brothers, one of whom chooses to squander his inheritance in riotous living while the other remains at home to labor with their father. When the profligate son returns, poor and needy, the father throws a celebration in his honor; this angers the other son, who slaved by his father’s side, for his brother has been improvident and troublesome. As we know, however, things are not always what they seem. What if the prodigal son had a more genuine motive for his actions than did his hardworking son? And what if the hardworking son, who one expects to be virtuous and good-hearted for his charity towards his father, is only naïve and in denial? Arthur Miller asks just these questions and displays both sides in his 1968 play The Price. He places the two brothers’ stories side by side, leaving the reader to make the judgment of whose actions were more justifiable. It is a story of perspectives, resentment, and regrets as Victor and Walter, two estranged brothers, convene for the first time in sixteen years. From Victor’s perspective Walter’s actions seem selfish and greedy, but once the reader is able to see the motive behind this “prodigal” son’s actions, it seems as if Walter’s neglect of their father was justly provoked.

After their father lost both his significant fortune and his confidence following the crash of the stock market, Walter and Victor were forced to make decisions that would affect the rest of their lives. Similar to the events portrayed in the parable, Victor remains at home to morally and financially sustain their father while his brother sets off to pursue independent goals. Though Walter refuses to give in to his father’s pleas of helplessness, Victor entirely abandons his dreams of becoming a successful scientist to support his father. Left financially drained and out of hope, Victor asks his brother, now a successful surgeon, for a loan to continue his education. Walter refuses him. At this point, one might assume that Walter simply is a self-centered, greedy character, but it is soon revealed that their father was not as helpless as he seemed. Despite the fact that Victor was giving up the little he had to provide for him, his father was silent about the significant amount of money he had hoarded, which was capable of supporting them both. Walter knew about these actions, but said nothing directly about it to his brother; however, Walter is convinced that Victor was aware of this truth but chose to ignore it.

Though it is subtle, one of the points the parable of the prodigal son touches on is the courage it takes to go out on one’s own and risk failure. The prodigal son takes this chance and fails, but when he returns his father still commends him, despite his loss. Walter had this bravery, but his brother lacked it. After he was denied the loan from his brother, Victor gives up on his dream, though he had many other means of obtaining the money he needed for his schooling. Victor could have easily sold some of his father’s expensive possessions or simply asked his father about his hoard of funds; however, Victor was too afraid of how his father would respond to these actions. Though he did not need his son to support him financially, Victor aided him anyway, giving up his dreams in the process. If he truly wanted to pursue a scientific career, Victor could have readily acquired the funds to support his education, but his fear of failure held him back. He used his compassion for his father to shadow this fear, avoiding the possible failure that he was so afraid of but also resulting in a life full of regrets.

Though the prodigal son squanders all of his money and soon becomes destitute, Walter, who represents the prodigal son in The Price, is in contrast very wealthy. The underlying similarity between the affluent Walter and the impoverished prodigal son is that they both did not capture what they set out to find. In the parable, the prodigal son sought wealth, but ended up even poorer than when he started. Walter did not venture out to specifically obtain wealth; he left to find stability and happiness but is now divorced and barely speaks to his children. Victor, on the other hand, with a lowly career as a police officer obtained just what Walter aimed for: he has a stable life with a loving wife and a successful son. This addresses one of the central themes of the play; everything comes with a price. Walter believed that having more money would make his life stable, and the price he paid for focusing on this was the degradation of his family relationships. Victor focused on the opposite, preserving family relationships, and the price he paid was the opposite as well; he cared for his father and as a result lost his opportunity for a promising career.

One significant difference between the parable of the prodigal son and The Price is that in the parable, the father serves as a sort of idealistic figure through his forgiveness and understanding of his prodigal son while in The Price, the father’s actions are central to the conflict. The most practical and sensible character is also the oddest individual, an old salesman named Solomon whom Victor called to sell his father’s furniture. Solomon is the life force in the play, and though he is an outsider to the problem at hand, he seems to understand it more than any other character from the beginning. Not only does he serve as comic relief, but he also conveys the theme of the story-- sometimes one must let go and move on. Frequently, he laments his daughter who committed suicide, but since he cannot understand the situation, he comprehends that he must move on and let it go, though it is a very hard thing to do. Essentially, this is what Victor and Walter must do at the end of the story.

This conclusion is ironic considering the play’s similarities to the prodigal son. While the parable emphasizes forgiveness, this is essentially what the ending of the play lacks; instead, The Price accentuates moving on from an irresolvable issue. Both brothers are unable to truly understand each other, and their problems and differences go unsettled. Neither brother can see the story through a different perspective and instead of working towards accordance, it is symbolized that they both move forward with their lives despite the troubling burden of their past.