Character analysis
George Deever
in All My Sons by Arthur Miller
George Deever is Ann's older brother and the son of Steve Deever, who is serving time for sending out faulty cylinder heads that led to the deaths of twenty-one American pilots during World War II. A lawyer, George acts as the most volatile moral figure and the main dramatic force in Act Two of the play. After visiting his father in prison for the first time, he arrives at the Keller home filled with barely contained anger, convinced that Joe Keller is fully to blame for the crime and that his father has been unfairly made to take the fall.
George’s journey shifts from righteous anger to a moment of vulnerability and then back to a sense of bitter defeat. When he first arrives, he is confrontational and intent on winning Ann back, standing firmly against her marrying into the Keller family. Kate Keller takes a strategic approach to soften him by invoking nostalgia—she reminds him of his father’s garden and offers him food. For a brief moment, George lowers his defenses, almost tempted by the warmth of the home he once knew. This vulnerability reveals his deep desire for the family stability he lost when his father was imprisoned.
The turning point occurs when Kate inadvertently reveals that Joe hasn't been sick in fifteen years, which directly undermines Joe's alibi for the day the faulty parts were shipped. George seizes this slip as proof of his father's innocence, but Chris forcefully throws him out before he can pursue it further. Ultimately, George leaves feeling defeated, with his accusations unresolved, serving as the truth-teller that the Keller family cannot afford to confront.
Connected characters
- Ann Deever
George's younger sister, whom he tries to protect from the Kellers. He urges her to leave with him, seeing her engagement to Chris as a betrayal of their imprisoned father and a dangerous entanglement with the family he holds responsible for their ruin.
- Joe Keller
George's primary antagonist. He arrives convinced Joe framed his father and confronts him directly in Act Two. Joe's folksy charm briefly disarms George, but Kate's slip about Joe's health reignites George's certainty that Joe is guilty and Steve is innocent.
- Kate Keller
Kate deliberately uses maternal warmth and shared memory to neutralize George's anger, offering him food and invoking his childhood. Her strategy nearly works, but it is her unguarded remark about Joe's health that inadvertently hands George the evidence he came looking for.
- Chris Keller
Once a close friend, now an obstacle. Chris physically and emotionally expels George from the property when George's accusations threaten to unravel the family's story, marking the final rupture of their friendship and George's defeat in the play.
- Steve Deever
George's father, whose prison visit transforms George from an estranged son into a fierce advocate. Steve's account of events is the engine of George's mission throughout the play, though Steve never appears onstage.