in the stage directions on page 8, the playrightarthur miller mentions:"tall closely planted poplars" and a "four-foof-high stump of a slender apple tree". compare and contrast the symbolic significance of these trees.

The poplar trees are not a symbol of the past. These trees are the past, firmly rooted in reality. The apple tree has become a symbol of Mrs.Keller's delusional hope that Larry will return home from the war. The apple's cling to a thin root like Mrs.Keller's hope. Like the illusion of her son returning, the tree is dying. The other trees are rooted in reality and thrive.