Angels in America

Angels in America

by

Tony Kushner

Teachers and parents! Our Teacher Edition on Angels in America makes teaching easy.

The Angel of America Character Analysis

The Angel of America is the symbol of all that is fantastic, imaginative, and otherworldly in Angels in America—in other words, most of the play. The Angel—a hermaphrodite, but for the purpose of this summary, a “she”—appears before Prior Walter shortly after Prior is diagnosed with AIDS, suggesting that the Angel may not, in fact, be real, but only a hallucination Prior is experiencing. Nevertheless, as the play continues, the Angel shows up to frequently, and speaks with such a unique voice, that we have no choice but to regard her as a character in the play—independent, complex, and real. It is the Angel who tells Prior that Heaven is in a state of disarray, thanks to God’s preference for human beings. The Angel, jealous of humanity for distracting God from her fellow angels, wants Prior to spread the message “Stop moving” around the world. In other words, she wants to compel human beings to stop being human. While the Angel doesn’t seem to like human beings much, she also seems sympathetic to Prior’s AIDS, and—it’s suggested—saves Prior’s life by blessing him with health and life.

The Angel of America Quotes in Angels in America

The Angels in America quotes below are all either spoken by The Angel of America or refer to The Angel of America. For each quote, you can also see the other characters and themes related to it (each theme is indicated by its own dot and icon, like this one:
Homosexuality in the AIDS Era Theme Icon
).
Millennium Approaches: Act 3, Scene 7 Quotes

Greetings Prophet;
The Great Work begins:
The Messenger has arrived.

Related Characters: The Angel of America (speaker), Prior Walter
Related Symbols: Angels
Page Number: 125
Explanation and Analysis:
Perestroika: Act 2, Scene 2 Quotes

Bored with His Angels, Bewitched by Humanity, In Mortifying imitation of You, his least creation, He would sail off on Voyages, no knowing where.

Related Characters: The Angel of America (speaker), Prior Walter
Related Symbols: Angels
Page Number: 170
Explanation and Analysis:
Get the entire Angels in America LitChart as a printable PDF.
Angels in America PDF

The Angel of America Quotes in Angels in America

The Angels in America quotes below are all either spoken by The Angel of America or refer to The Angel of America. For each quote, you can also see the other characters and themes related to it (each theme is indicated by its own dot and icon, like this one:
Homosexuality in the AIDS Era Theme Icon
).
Millennium Approaches: Act 3, Scene 7 Quotes

Greetings Prophet;
The Great Work begins:
The Messenger has arrived.

Related Characters: The Angel of America (speaker), Prior Walter
Related Symbols: Angels
Page Number: 125
Explanation and Analysis:
Perestroika: Act 2, Scene 2 Quotes

Bored with His Angels, Bewitched by Humanity, In Mortifying imitation of You, his least creation, He would sail off on Voyages, no knowing where.

Related Characters: The Angel of America (speaker), Prior Walter
Related Symbols: Angels
Page Number: 170
Explanation and Analysis: