The Miracle Worker Literary Elements

The play is biographical once since it tells the real story of the main characters.

English

The action in the play takes place in the 1880s in Alabama. The vast majority of the action takes place around the homestead where the Keller family lived.

Plays are unique when it comes to point of view. One thought is that they are written in third-person objective. The narration may or may not tell the reader what is going on inside the mind of any particular character. Because readers are sometimes given insight into characters' minds, this play is limited omniscient.

The tone and mood is a tragic and desperate one.

The play has no antagonists and the protagonists are Helen and Annie Sullivan.

The major conflict is between the desire to give up and the desire to continue fighting even though it is hard.

The play reaches its climax when Helen finally understands and connects the word "water" to water itself. The miracle has happened.

Helen's first word, "wah-wah," foreshadows her new understanding of language at the water pump.

We find an understatement in the first act when the doctor is told to look at Helen after she suffered a traumatic accident. The doctor assures the parents that their little daughter will be fine and she will not suffer any long-lasting effects. This is an understatement because moments later the parents realize their daughter is no longer able to see or hear.

There are several biblical allusions. James' prayer in which he retells the story of Jacob wrestling with an angel resulting in a blessing is a very important allusion because it symbolizes Helen's struggle with her "angel" and the blessing of language that results from it.

One of the most important images which appear in the play is presented in the first act of the play, soon after the parents realized their child is no longer able to see or hear. The parents are distraught, crying and holding to one another in despair. This image shows just how much the two loved their child and how they are completely devoted to her well being.

One of the main paradoxes which we find in the play is the idea mentioned time and time again that the doctors of the time had little knowledge about medicine. This is a paradox because, despite their lack of knowledge, these men continued to try and help those who were sick.

A parallel can be drawn between Helen and her teacher, Annie. The parallel is used here to show that no case is hopeless and to transmit the idea that a person should never lose hope, no matter how dire the situation is.

We find personification in the line "a slow tune of distant belfry chimes".

The author used stage directions in the play as the main dramatic device. Through these directions, the reader and the viewer learn more about the characters and the way their behavior is described helps the reader paint a more broad picture of their feelings and how they reacted in certain situations.