What do you think?
Rate this book
The last Yankee
Two marriages are transformed when the husbands meet in the visitor's room of a mental hospital, as their clinically depressed wives find the hope and strength to change their lives
40 pages, Paperback
First published April 1, 1994
2 people are currently reading
112 people want to read
About the author
Arthur Miller
546 books3,221 followersWorks of American playwright Arthur Asher Miller include
Death of a Salesman
(1949), for which he won a Pulitzer Prize, and
The Crucible
(1953).
This essayist, a prominent figure in literature and cinema for over 61 years, composed a wide variety, such as celebrated A View from the Bridge and All My Sons , still studied and performed worldwide. Miller often in the public eye most famously refused to give evidence to the un-American activities committee of the House of Representatives, received award for drama, and married Marilyn Monroe. People at the time considered the greatest Miller.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Arthur_...
This essayist, a prominent figure in literature and cinema for over 61 years, composed a wide variety, such as celebrated A View from the Bridge and All My Sons , still studied and performed worldwide. Miller often in the public eye most famously refused to give evidence to the un-American activities committee of the House of Representatives, received award for drama, and married Marilyn Monroe. People at the time considered the greatest Miller.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Arthur_...
Ratings & Reviews
Friends & Following
Create a free account to discover what your friends think of this book!
Community Reviews
Displaying 1 - 18 of 18 reviews
January 1, 2018
لروی: پت، ما دیگه داریم پیر میشیم. من دیگه پولدارتر و جذابتر از الانم نمیشم، تو هم خوشگلتر از این نمیشی، حالا میخوایی با من بمونی یا نه؟
*****
لروی: راننده این اتومبیل یک بازنده مادرزاد است.
*****
لروی: راننده این اتومبیل یک بازنده مادرزاد است.
June 5, 2010
Patricia Hamilton is recovering from depression, maybe she feels strong enough to go home. But a visit from her husband Leroy, coincides with that of a successful businessman, who has come to see his newly-admitted wife, clash of values and emotions upsets them all. Miller focuses on the relationships of two couples, one married with seven children, and the other, a childless couple. Both women are patients at a mental institution. The two men meet for the first time in the waiting room, struggling to communicate under the circumstances. In act two when the four characters brought together inside, we see a picture of a society whose members feel obscurely cheated and where success is equated with failure.
آخرین یانکی (آمریکایی) را حسن ملکی به فارسی برگردانده و در سری انتشارات "نسل قلم" در 1380 منتشر شده است
آخرین یانکی (آمریکایی) را حسن ملکی به فارسی برگردانده و در سری انتشارات "نسل قلم" در 1380 منتشر شده است
January 10, 2019
دو مرد از دلایل افسردگی زنانشان میگویند... از تاریخ خانوادیگشان و از آزادی...
January 30, 2021
Scene I is relatively short, but impactful. We watch Leroy and Frick meet, as their uneasy, forced-by-the-circumstances conversation turns from banal chitchat to profounder topics. Already, the narrative frames Leroy as the more sympathetic of the two men. He is quiet, modest, content to live a simple life and enjoy small, simple victories. Frick, on the other hand, is shown to be extremely clueless, racist and elitist. He trivialises and tries to explain away his wife’s depression, arguing that a woman who has as much as she does has no business getting depressed. He spends the majority of the scene rationalising the whys and the hows – is it because they don’t have children or because his wife is an only child or because her life is simply ’too perfect’? Meanwhile, Leroy, whose own wife has been in and out of mental health institutions and has struggled with depression for years, displays much more maturity about the situation. He acknowledges he doesn’t know much about her situation, isn’t particularly impressed with the fact that he’s Alexander Hamilton’s descendant and just wants to end the pointless conversation with Frick already. A ’lowly’ carpenter, he’s proud of the honest work he does and even shown to believe he’s overcharging his clients, but justifies doing this on account of having seven children to feed. By this point in the story, it’s quite clear who the sympathetic and who the unsympathetic character is.
Scene II brings us to the other side where we meet Leroy’s wife Patricia and Frick’s wife Karen. Karen seems dazed, for the lack of a better term, a little unfocused, sort of lost and unsure, fearful and weak-willed, so frail, inert, almost not there. Next to her, Patricia looks like a veritable tornado of a woman. She’s proud that she’s managed to wean herself off pills, her constant crutch for nearly twenty years, seems to have found meaning in religion and is determined to stay positive. We also learn she’s quite exasperated with her husband’s humble nature and wishes he were more assertive and made more money, musing how their children have had to work from a young age.
Karen then leaves to go see Frick and Leroy enters the room to talk to Patricia. Their conversation is fluid, candid, the conversation of two people who know one another inside out and have developed a unique rhythm when talking to each other. Patricia believes Leroy is just as depressed as she is, if not more, and that he’s afraid of people, something that’s held him back in life, most notably financially. They talk about their respective upbringings and how flawed they were. When they turn to discussing the future, Patricia admits she’s no longer addicted to the medicine she’s been taking, but is still scared of what tomorrow might bring. It’s evident that she wants more, she wants ’wonderful’, whereas Leroy is quite happy with who they are and doesn’t get the appeal of chasing after something unattainable or superior.
The Fricks re-enter and it’s only then that we see the difference between the couples’ dynamics. Whereas Leroy is mostly considerate and patient, Frick is more than a little patronising and infantilises Karen every chance he gets. Hostility quickly gets established between Patricia and Frick, especially after Karen tap dances for them, with Patricia aggressively urging Frick to acknowledge his wife. He explodes, unaccustomed to being told what to do. After a half-hearted attempt to praise Karen, Frick leaves, visibly embarrassed.
Patricia and Leroy urge Karen to start dancing again, but she’s so disillusioned, she gives up after just a few steps and leaves. The couple stare at each other, as some kind of a mutual understanding, gratitude, affection passes between them. They pack and leave the clinic, exchanging playful banter.
One of the play’s most prominent themes is that of success vs. failure or, rather, how society tends to evaluate the two. Success and failure are two of the most inexplicable terms I’ve ever come across, ones that defy fixed definitions and evade easy interpretations. And the reason for that is quite simple – depending on who you are, what you’re looking for in life and what makes you happy, success and failure can be defined as just about anything. All too often, people tend to throw these terms around carelessly, without ever stopping to think about their elusive meaning.
Yet another major theme is that of marriage or, if you want to get more precise – love and respect in a marriage. The Fricks and the Hamiltons are polar opposites. Whereas both couples face problems, the Hamiltons appear much stronger and readier to deal with theirs. They stand as a united front, something that only makes the audience feel even sorrier for poor Karen who lacks any sort of emotional support in her marriage. A strong bond, one based on genuine affection and respect, can withstand all the institutionalisations in the world. The Fricks’ marriage, by contrast, seems just about ready to crumble after a single one.
And so we arrive to my favourite theme of the play – that of overreaching. I am a notorious overreacher myself and am all too familiar with how difficult it is to feel content with life at present, just the way it is, just the way you are, especially with that nagging voice in the back of your head whispering to you that maybe, just maybe, this is as good as it gets. Patricia grew up staunchly believing she was destined for something better, a superior kind of life, a unique one. Her family ingrained this idea in her and her siblings. She spends her time glorifying her deceased brothers, both of whom committed suicide. None of the children ever lived up to their potential, perhaps because they were never really encouraged to pursue it or work for that better life they thought they would one day lead. They were simply told to expect it, without any real reason or a concrete explanation.
That’s why I love the character of Leroy so much and why I appreciate the words he offers to Patricia: “Pat, we’re getting old! This is just about as rich and handsome as I’m ever going to be and as good as you’re ever going to look, so you want to be with me or not?” And, while I don’t necessarily agree with the entirety of this, I still see where Leroy’s coming from. I can’t speak for others, but I never interpreted his words as ’Well, it’s all downhill from here on out, we might as well get used to it’. More as ’We’ve got a good thing going here, why spoil it by chasing after some intangible something you’re not even sure is going to make you happy’. That’s how I interpreted it, as one person encouraging another to be happy with what they already achieved and enjoy the good they have. Many see that as ’settling’, though I believe that ugly word has no place in this context. No one ever mentioned not being able or allowed to grow more or quitting playfulness and joy and new experiences. Both Leroy and Patricia seem really happy that Karen’s tap dancing and has found something she takes pleasure in doing. And I love that. I love that they’re not making fun of this elderly woman in a top hat and are even encouraging her to dance. It is only Frick who looks down on the innocuous activity, only Frick who finds it silly that a woman Karen’s age is doing something like that. And once she meets Frick and sees what he’s all about, Patricia comes to fully appreciate what she has and, hopefully, stops chasing after castles in the air.
Though short, this piece masterfully depicts the bond between husband and wife, the ’winner’ and the ’loser’, the sane and the insane. Its setting is perfect really and contributes so much to the scenes and the characters. Miller shows us how fragile our ingrained notions of normalcy really are, how deceptive facades can be and how strong quiet courage is next to loud barking and boisterous appearances. I like how the ending is left somewhat open-ended. It’s not quite clear where these characters are going, but I’m an incorrigible optimist, so I’d like to believe Karen gains some confidence and self-worth and Patricia and Leroy just go on, enjoying their seven kids, their kisses, their age, their old car and their modest, yet fulfilling life.
Scene II brings us to the other side where we meet Leroy’s wife Patricia and Frick’s wife Karen. Karen seems dazed, for the lack of a better term, a little unfocused, sort of lost and unsure, fearful and weak-willed, so frail, inert, almost not there. Next to her, Patricia looks like a veritable tornado of a woman. She’s proud that she’s managed to wean herself off pills, her constant crutch for nearly twenty years, seems to have found meaning in religion and is determined to stay positive. We also learn she’s quite exasperated with her husband’s humble nature and wishes he were more assertive and made more money, musing how their children have had to work from a young age.
Karen then leaves to go see Frick and Leroy enters the room to talk to Patricia. Their conversation is fluid, candid, the conversation of two people who know one another inside out and have developed a unique rhythm when talking to each other. Patricia believes Leroy is just as depressed as she is, if not more, and that he’s afraid of people, something that’s held him back in life, most notably financially. They talk about their respective upbringings and how flawed they were. When they turn to discussing the future, Patricia admits she’s no longer addicted to the medicine she’s been taking, but is still scared of what tomorrow might bring. It’s evident that she wants more, she wants ’wonderful’, whereas Leroy is quite happy with who they are and doesn’t get the appeal of chasing after something unattainable or superior.
The Fricks re-enter and it’s only then that we see the difference between the couples’ dynamics. Whereas Leroy is mostly considerate and patient, Frick is more than a little patronising and infantilises Karen every chance he gets. Hostility quickly gets established between Patricia and Frick, especially after Karen tap dances for them, with Patricia aggressively urging Frick to acknowledge his wife. He explodes, unaccustomed to being told what to do. After a half-hearted attempt to praise Karen, Frick leaves, visibly embarrassed.
Patricia and Leroy urge Karen to start dancing again, but she’s so disillusioned, she gives up after just a few steps and leaves. The couple stare at each other, as some kind of a mutual understanding, gratitude, affection passes between them. They pack and leave the clinic, exchanging playful banter.
One of the play’s most prominent themes is that of success vs. failure or, rather, how society tends to evaluate the two. Success and failure are two of the most inexplicable terms I’ve ever come across, ones that defy fixed definitions and evade easy interpretations. And the reason for that is quite simple – depending on who you are, what you’re looking for in life and what makes you happy, success and failure can be defined as just about anything. All too often, people tend to throw these terms around carelessly, without ever stopping to think about their elusive meaning.
Yet another major theme is that of marriage or, if you want to get more precise – love and respect in a marriage. The Fricks and the Hamiltons are polar opposites. Whereas both couples face problems, the Hamiltons appear much stronger and readier to deal with theirs. They stand as a united front, something that only makes the audience feel even sorrier for poor Karen who lacks any sort of emotional support in her marriage. A strong bond, one based on genuine affection and respect, can withstand all the institutionalisations in the world. The Fricks’ marriage, by contrast, seems just about ready to crumble after a single one.
And so we arrive to my favourite theme of the play – that of overreaching. I am a notorious overreacher myself and am all too familiar with how difficult it is to feel content with life at present, just the way it is, just the way you are, especially with that nagging voice in the back of your head whispering to you that maybe, just maybe, this is as good as it gets. Patricia grew up staunchly believing she was destined for something better, a superior kind of life, a unique one. Her family ingrained this idea in her and her siblings. She spends her time glorifying her deceased brothers, both of whom committed suicide. None of the children ever lived up to their potential, perhaps because they were never really encouraged to pursue it or work for that better life they thought they would one day lead. They were simply told to expect it, without any real reason or a concrete explanation.
That’s why I love the character of Leroy so much and why I appreciate the words he offers to Patricia: “Pat, we’re getting old! This is just about as rich and handsome as I’m ever going to be and as good as you’re ever going to look, so you want to be with me or not?” And, while I don’t necessarily agree with the entirety of this, I still see where Leroy’s coming from. I can’t speak for others, but I never interpreted his words as ’Well, it’s all downhill from here on out, we might as well get used to it’. More as ’We’ve got a good thing going here, why spoil it by chasing after some intangible something you’re not even sure is going to make you happy’. That’s how I interpreted it, as one person encouraging another to be happy with what they already achieved and enjoy the good they have. Many see that as ’settling’, though I believe that ugly word has no place in this context. No one ever mentioned not being able or allowed to grow more or quitting playfulness and joy and new experiences. Both Leroy and Patricia seem really happy that Karen’s tap dancing and has found something she takes pleasure in doing. And I love that. I love that they’re not making fun of this elderly woman in a top hat and are even encouraging her to dance. It is only Frick who looks down on the innocuous activity, only Frick who finds it silly that a woman Karen’s age is doing something like that. And once she meets Frick and sees what he’s all about, Patricia comes to fully appreciate what she has and, hopefully, stops chasing after castles in the air.
Though short, this piece masterfully depicts the bond between husband and wife, the ’winner’ and the ’loser’, the sane and the insane. Its setting is perfect really and contributes so much to the scenes and the characters. Miller shows us how fragile our ingrained notions of normalcy really are, how deceptive facades can be and how strong quiet courage is next to loud barking and boisterous appearances. I like how the ending is left somewhat open-ended. It’s not quite clear where these characters are going, but I’m an incorrigible optimist, so I’d like to believe Karen gains some confidence and self-worth and Patricia and Leroy just go on, enjoying their seven kids, their kisses, their age, their old car and their modest, yet fulfilling life.
January 7, 2019
TRIGGER WARNINGS for this play: Psychiatric institutions. Psychiatric medication.
It's not bad, and I want to say that it's good, but the idea of "Stop taking anti-depressants and your depression goes away, huzzah" makes me too uncomfortable.
It's not bad, and I want to say that it's good, but the idea of "Stop taking anti-depressants and your depression goes away, huzzah" makes me too uncomfortable.
July 8, 2011
Great play!
January 30, 2019
Not one of Miller's better works. First scene moves along at a conversational pace as two men (two of the main characters) are identified for us as opposites. The second scene, however, where the wives of the two men are introduced drags along in twice as many pages.
This play does not "pop" as much as his other plays do. There are certainly cultural concerns raised here -- one of the main characters is the last living member of a Revolutionary-era family, how mental illness should be understood -- however it comes across as flat.
This play does not "pop" as much as his other plays do. There are certainly cultural concerns raised here -- one of the main characters is the last living member of a Revolutionary-era family, how mental illness should be understood -- however it comes across as flat.
June 9, 2023
Well, I was hoping for a more literal meaning to The Last Yankee, but alas. I learned enough about Arthur Miller, or at least some of his thoughts on language in theatre. That is the subject of an essay included after the rather short play.
The play leaves one hanging intentionally, but that is for the best, I suspect.
The play leaves one hanging intentionally, but that is for the best, I suspect.
January 26, 2019
Short and powerful. This play asks essential questions: how should we treat people who do actual work every day? Why are carpenters and janitors looked down on? Why do we think some jobs are worth more than others, and why do we pay them differently?
May 20, 2019
Enjoyable but brief drama about depression and the dynamics between couples.
February 17, 2020
"Well all I hope is that I'm the last Yankee so people can start living today instead of a hundred years ago."
November 3, 2022
Ένα από τα τελευταία έργα του Άρθουρ Μίλερ.
December 24, 2022
Arthur Miller’s most forgettable play
March 18, 2025
I got this book of 2 Arthur Miller plays for free. I read the first one in about 45 minutes. I didn’t know he wrote short plays but it was sweet, precise, and poignant.
November 28, 2014
I don't usually enjoy reading plays, but the setting of The Last Yankee in both the waiting room and inside the psych ward was so interesting. I can see how it lends itself well to the stage, as the text is very visual even to a reader on her own. A short read, it delves deeply into really interesting relational dynamics, all the while showing instead of telling. That's what's beautiful about this, I think. The ambiguity and thought-provoking dialogues and stage directions are what make it so powerful.
September 28, 2015
Brief but enjoyable slice of classic Miller neurosis
Displaying 1 - 18 of 18 reviews