Arthur Miller's All My Sons

[laviniaque]

Hi;

In Arthur Miller's play "All My Sons", Joe says, "I could live on a quarter a day myself, but I got a family so I..."
Waht does "on a quarter" means? Is it about spend money or eating food or something else?

Thank you.

 

[GoesStation]

The American twenty-five cent coin, labeled only "QUARTER DOLLAR", is universally called a quarter. Living on a quarter a day (which hasn't been possible for more than half a century) means spending no more than twenty-five cents for all your daily necessities, including food.

 

[teechar]

What does "on a quarter" mean? Is it about spending money, [STRIKE]or[/STRIKE] eating food or something else?

To live on something (or on some amount of money) means to subsist relying only on that.

 

[Tdol]

Living on a quarter a day (which hasn't been possible for more than half a century) means spending no more than twenty-five cents for all your daily necessities, including food.

The play was written in 1947, so it falls outside the half a century.

 

[GoesStation]

The play was written in 1947, so it falls outside the half a century.

Yes. I imagine a person could have lived on the streets or camped out somewhere on a quarter a day in 1947 America. It would not have been enough money to pay for clothing, medical care, or any kind of shelter.