`A view from the Bridge' has its roots in the late 1940's when Miller became interested in the work and lives of the communities of dock workers and Longshoremen of New York's Brooklyn Harbor, and where he had himself previously worked. Miller found that the waterfront was the `Wild West, a desert beyond the law', populated and worked by people who were poorly paid and exploited.

The play tells a story of an Italian Longshoreman, Eddie Carbone, working in the New York docks. His wife's cousins, Marco and Rodolfo seek refuge as illegal immigrants from Sicily. Trouble begins when his wife's niece, Catherine becomes attracted to the younger of the two immigrants, Rodolfo. Eddie's baffled jealousy culminates in an...