All My Sons Joe Keller Quotes

Joe Keller

Quote 7

Keller: Who worked for nothin' in that war?… It's dollars and cents, nickels and dimes; war and peace, it's nickels and dimes, what's clean? Half the Goddam country is gotta go if I go! (3.150)

Joe uses the dominant American ideology, capitalism, to excuse his actions.

Keller: How can I pay?
Mother: Tell him… you're willing to go to prison. (3.56)

Kate doesn't really suggest this because she believes Keller deserves it. Offering to go to prison is more like a gesture to Chris. She wants to hold on to at least one son.

Joe: So he takes out his tools and he… covers over the cracks. All right… that's bad, it's wrong, but that's what a little man does. If I could have gone in that day I'd a told him – junk 'em, Steve, we can afford it. (1.481)

This is the opposite of what really happened. When asked for advice, Joe directed Steve to cover the cracks. Now he lies to Ann and Chris with ease. Perhaps he's been telling this story for so long he's begun to believe it himself.