Playwrights, unlike authors of novels and other forms of literature, use production props and sets in the development of their works. These additional aspects present in theatrical creation offer playwrights the opportunity to support and develop the various themes and ideas of a work through additional stimuli, whether visual or auditory. Props are an aspect of scenography that are used by actors during performances to replicate and materialize some elements of reality on stage. As a result, the effectiveness of the show and subsequent impact on the audience is defined through the use and value given to a character's props. Both Athol Fugard's Master Harold and the Boys and Arthur Miller's Death of a Salesman incorporate the use of various theatrical properties to enrich and enhance character development and create tension, emotion, and atmosphere in a performance. In Master Harold and the Boys, Fugard includes significant props such as: speech bubbles and a bottle of whiskey to define the characters and establish their developments throughout the show. Since this play takes place within one setting for the entire performance, many of the props incorporated into the script remain in use by the characters, or in full view of the audience, at all times, like the speech bubble. books. Fugard's use of comics within the work symbolizes the nature of Hally's father, thus giving the audience a clear insight into his personality and characteristics. The implications of the comics in this case indicate that Hally's father is rather naive and is amused by childish entities, further suggesting that feeble-minded men, similar to Hally's father, are the ones in power. Thus, through the incorporation of comics to define a secondary character in the game, Fugard in turn illustrates his disdain for supporters of apartheid. The significance of the speech bubbles as a prop is undoubtedly one of the most effective in the play, as it serves to establish the characterization of a character who never even appears on stage. The whiskey bottle, similar to the comics in that it is also connected to Hally's father, is another example of a prop that establishes character development, but in this case within Hally himself. Unlike the comics, this item is only used within a specific scene on stage, making its significance central to the relationship between Hally and her father because it appears after Hally is informed of her father's return home. The eventual breaking of this bottle, as well as the bottle itself, becomes a symbol of Hally's dislike towards her father. However, the anger expressed in this case is more symbolic of Hally's inability to deal with her situation, rather than hatred for her father. This expression of anger also introduces the theme of displacement, which is observed in Hally's character development in numerous other instances throughout the play. In Death of a Salesman, Miller's inclusion of both the balloon and the gas pipe defines the characters associated with them on stage and defines the meaning behind the developments of these characters. The soccer ball is a prop used regularly in past scenes and is associated not only with Biff, but also with his relationship with his father Willy. The ball characterizes Biff as the physically healthy and athletic child he once was in the past, which serves as a contrast to the harsh reality of his current unsuccessful situation in the present. Football was the one aspect of Biff's life that gave him power and ability, further strengthening hisdistorted view of reality and the American dream that Willy so strongly encourages. Thus, by incorporating the use of an American football on stage, Miller physically simulates the aspect of Biff's life that defined him as an individual and his character's development. Likewise, the use of the rubber hose, or gas hose, in this play serves to establish the characters' definitions, this time regarding Willy. The rubber hose symbolizes Willy's suicide attempts, all due to his inability to provide for his family. The paradoxical aspect of this situation is the fact that the gas pipe is part of an element of primary necessity for the survival of the Loman family: heat. Therefore, Willy's inability to provide the money to pay for such essential aspects of a home are the driving forces behind his suicide attempt in the first place. As a result, the gas pipe serves as a constant reminder to the viewer of Willy's desperation and agony as a character. Miller's use of props in Death of a Salesman adds to the definition of the characters and illustrates their developments throughout and at certain points in the play. In Master Harold and the Boys, Fugard once again uses theatrical properties to enhance the effectiveness of the play, this time through the creation of tension, emotion and atmosphere. All four of these components are essential elements involved in determining the actual impact of a play on the audience. These moments are heavily influenced by aspects of the set design, particularly the props. The tension within this play is created through the use of the telephone, through which Hally only ever speaks to her mother. By incorporating the use of this prop, Fugard allows the audience to hear only Hally's reactions to what her mother is saying, rather than her actual words. All of the audience's ideas about what he says are entirely speculative and based on Hally's point of view in the conversation, therefore, an element of tension and the unknown is created within each of the scenes in which the telephone is used. Furthermore, like the comics on the counter, the phone remains clearly visible to the audience for the duration of the show. This once again generates elements of tension and apprehension in the public, who can see the telephone in full view, but have absolutely no idea when it will ring next. Emotion in the show is created not only through what the characters feel on stage, but also through the feelings evoked in the audience. Fugard shows both of these instances in the work with the inclusion of the kite. Although there is discrepancy as to whether or not a real kite is used as a prop in the physical depiction of this play, its existence as an important symbol in the play is equally effective regardless of the director's choice to incorporate it into a souvenir scene or Not. The kite symbolizes hope, hope for a better future, especially a future where racial equality and unity exists. When the real reason why Sam left him alone on the bench during the kite-flying scene from Hally's childhood is revealed to Hally, an emotional change occurs in Hally, as well as the evocation of empathetic and sad emotions directed at Sam in the audience. Finally, the atmosphere in this play is created through the inclusion of Hally's textbooks or school books. Like the speech bubbles and the telephone, these props are present on stage throughout the entire show. They represent the formal education Hally received and Sam's failure to decipher them symbolizes the government's attempt to keep black South Africans out of the population