A Comparison of the Performance of 'Confusions' by Alan Ayckbourn
A Comparison of the Performance of 'Confusions' by Alan Ayckbourn We performed Confusions by Alan Ayckbourn on 28th November 2002. Since it is divided into five short plays which all relate to each other, separate groups performed different plays, or scenes. My group used the scene "A Talk in the Park" as our performance piece. I will be comparing this scene to "A View from the Bridge", written by Arthur Miller, and the television soap "Eastenders". "A Talk in the Park" illustrates the comedy of human behaviour as well as making the audience aware of the underlying tones of loneliness and isolation, where the protagonists, five contrasting characters sitting on separate benches, give vent to their innermost feelings. The irony of this is that they are willing to confide in a perfect stranger but are not themselves prepared to listen. It was written in the 1970's. "A View from the Bridge", written in 1955 and set in 1950's Brooklyn, tells the story of Eddie Carbone, who agrees to shelter his wife's cousins, Rodolpho and Marco, who are illegal immigrants. Trouble begins when Eddie's younger niece Catherine falls for Rodolpho. I am also going to compare "A Talk in the Park" with "Eastenders" which presents real life situations, including those which are touched upon in "A Talk in the Park". "A Talk in the Park" was set in the present day. This is because that the writer
The Religious Aspects Of The Crucible Are Immersed In Hysteria - Discuss.
?The Religious Aspects Of The Crucible Are Immersed In Hysteria - Discuss. The Crucible is a play, which draws a parallel between the Salem witch-hunts of 1692 and McCarthyism in the 1950s. Arthur Miller, author of the play, was put in prison in the early 1950s owing to his slight left wing sympathies. In this period of time, the American regime was very strict and paranoid; this was caused by fear of 'reds under the bed' (communists in America). When Miller was released from prison he chose to write a play outlining his views on America, but instead of directly using his own situation, he used a parallel event to put his ideas forward. The chosen event was the Salem witch-hunts of 1692. Miller portrayed the puritanical Communist regime, seeped in intrigue, suspicion and fear, as the society that was in existence in Salem, the town in which the play is set, prior to the religious hysteria, which swept the community. Salem was a theocracy, which means 'a system controlled by aspects of religion', or in Salem's case, people who took the every word of The Bible literally. The whole religious and political framework of the town was changed by the hysterical reactions of its citizens. Before the witch-hunt, Reverend Parris, the minister, and 'God's Earthly Representative', led the community. He was the only educated person in the town and was responsible for the spiritual
The crucible has a very interesting structure, as in it doesn't follow many of the usual rules of play writing and uses it to maximum effect. The play consists of four acts and no scenes to separate them
Form and Structure The crucible has a very interesting structure, as in it doesn't follow many of the usual rules of play writing and uses it to maximum effect. The play consists of four acts and no scenes to separate them. This is unusual for a play write to do because it limits the acts location two one place, meaning that the story can not develop in a different place or time which can limit what someone can do with the plot The whole of the play is a subtext for what was going on at the time in 1940's America. To more precise what was happening with the red scare and general Joseph McCarthy. General McCarthy was behind the fight against communism within America. In the end he decided to start broadcasting to America a list of communists living in America at the time. Of course no such list existed and it was obviously just the names of random people living America that had nothing to do with communism in any way what so ever. This however caused mass hysteria and turned an entire nation against itself and pitted friends and neighbours against each other as everyone hunted for the communists like a mad witch hunt. Arthur Miller was using the subtext to show how obsurd the idea of mass hysteria based on a lie really was. The main thing that distinguishes the plays structure from others is the way in which it ends on an anti climax. As we can see in the graph the first
How Miller sustains the interest of the audience through his characterization and use of dramatic tension by focusing on two extracts from the play.
The coursework is to discuss on how Miller sustains the interest of the audience through his characterization and use of dramatic tension by focusing on two extracts from the play. "A view from the Bridge" is set in Brooklyn, amongst an immigrant community who are poor and struggling, most working as 'longshoremen' when the work is available. Eddie is of Italian ancestry, his father emigrated from Italy to America, and therefore he has been brought up with the strong, passionate Italian/Sicilian way of honour and loyalty. Marco and Rodolfo are illegal immigrants, 'submarines', who have managed to go to America through a system of syndicates; using some of the money they make working in America to pay off the syndicate. Their illegal status and the terrible unemployment and poverty where they have come from and their absolute need to work, in Marco's case means life or death for his family. Miller writes the play after a lawyer {Alferi}, re-tells his account about how illegal immigrants seek refuge in the USA. The title of the play is based on the Brooklyn Bridge and Alfieri having a view from top of it. In the play, Eddie Carbone is introduced as a 'slightly overweight longshoreman´ and we see straight away that he is a character of authority when Catherine appears and waits on him in an affectionate way. Catherine is an 18-year old who, because of her mother's death is
Drama coursework- comparison between: 'The Crucible' by Arthur Miller and 'Vinegar Tom' by C. Churchill
Drama coursework- comparison between: 'The Crucible' by Arthur Miller 'Vinegar Tom' by C. Churchill We are currently performing a piece of drama called 'The Crucible' and have studied a play called 'Vinegar Tom'. 'The Crucible' was written by Arthur Miller in 1953 and was set in Salem, Massachusetts USA in 1692. 'Vinegar Tom' was written in the 1970's and was set in the 17th century. Although 'Vinegar Tom' was written about the 17th century, the ideas parallel those of the issues of the 1970's. The issue was feminism. Although women were beginning to work the same jobs as men, their wages were drastically different, with men being paid a lot more for the same job. More women started to go to university in order to gain the qualifications that would enable them to do the jobs that men did. Some parts of the play reflect the feminist issues that were happening at the time the story was written. In 'The Crucible' the issues surrounding the time of when the play was written was McCarthyism. Arthur Miller was interested not only in the Salem witch trials, but also the more current affairs of the USA. The opposing look on communism sparked a massive conspiracy theory that set neighbours, friends and family against each other. People were accused of being communists, and, in order to free their name and the risk of being blacklisted, they had to give the names of other that were
To what extent do you consider Willy Loman a tragic hero?
. To what extent do you consider Willy Loman a tragic hero? Should 'Willy Loman' of Arthur Millers classic, Death of a Salesman be regarded as a tragic hero, or merely a working-class, socially inadequate failure? Described by Miller as a "self-destructive, insecure anti-hero", it seems almost impossible for Loman to be what is known as a tragic hero in the 'classical' sense, but with the inclusion of other factors he maybe a tragic hero, at least in the modern context, or partially suit one nonetheless. To make the decision as to Whether Loman is a tragic hero or not, one must define the term 'tragic hero' and reveal its development in theatre over the course of time. The tragic hero first defined by Aristotle in the Poetics, "...sees the rise of a noble character (employing artistically enhanced language); presented in dramatic form. Due to a character flaw and a seemingly unchangeable series of events, their demise is met, resulting in a pitiable and fearful scenario, leading to catharsis." According to Aristotle, fate and the wish of the Gods played a large component in the falling of the tragic hero and nothing at all could be done to stop this. On the contrary some centuries later Shakespeare, whose collection of plays included many tragedies, decided his plays would rely less on fate and more blame would be attributed to the character involved and those surrounding
"Show how the tension rises and falls in the last scene of Act One of 'A View From The Bridge' - How has Eddie's situation changed by the end of the scene?"
"Show how the tension rises and falls in the last scene of Act One of 'A View From The Bridge'. How has Eddie's situation changed by the end of the scene?" 'A View From The Bridge' is a tragic play written by Arthur Miller, set in the town of New York in the 1950's, The Italian-American Carbone Family live in a poor and humble area, just over Brooklyn Bridge from Manhattan. Although American the Carbone's still have their Italian values and live a Conservative Italian lifestyle. This play is in part about family values, and how two different cultures clash when Catherine and Rodolfo fall in love. But on a more perspective view, it is also about a tragic hero Eddie Carbone and his love for his step-daughter Catherine. This 'LOVE 'is not a father to daughter love but a husband to wife love, a love that is not meant to be there. A love to powerful for Eddie to give up. Eddie, the main character of this play is a longshoreman from a conservative background in Sicily. He lives with his wife Beatrice and their step-daughter Catherine. Where he came from there are very firm social and moral issues. The scene that I am going to study is when the Carbone family and their to guests from Sicily have just eaten their evening meal and are having a pleasant conversation at first, but underlying tensions soon begin to build up. The beginning of the scene originally suggests a happy
The themes and issues in Arthur Millers "The Crucible".
The themes and issues in Arthur Millers "The Crucible" reflect the historical and social context in which the play was written. The play was written in 1953, in the middle of the McCarthy political witch-hunt and is set against the backdrop of the mad witch-hunts of the Salem witch trials in the late 17th century (1692). It is about a town, after accusations from a few girls, which begins a mad hunt for witches that did not exist. Many townspeople were hanged on charges of witchcraft. Miller brings about the absurdity of the incident with the theme of truth and righteousness. The theme is conveyed through the struggles of Millers main character, John Proctor. When Miller was summoned before the House Un-American Activities Committee, he was placed in the same position as John Proctor. Miller was asked to give the names of people he had seen at a meeting of communist writers ten years before. Miller refused to answer this question (just like Proctor refused to sign the false confession) and was therefore fined for contempt of Congress. Miller parallels these two conflicts from 1692 and 1953 into "The Crucible" making it clear that the themes and issues dealt with are ones which we deals with now, in modern times, not just in the old days. All these themes are valid for all times and places. Other themes, which make the play relevant to modern audiences, include the
Why and how does Eddie Carbone change as the play progresses? What leads to his death? How do you think an audience would respond to the changes in his personality as they watch him destroy himself?
Why and how does Eddie Carbone change as the play progresses? What leads to his death? How do you think an audience would respond to the changes in his personality as they watch him destroy himself? My essay is about a play called A View From The Bridge. The play is set in the 1940s in Brooklyn New York. The play is about a man called Eddie Carbone, who is a hard working long shore man. He lives with his wife Beatrice and her niece Catherine. They have raised Catherine, as they have no children of their own. As the play progresses two new characters are introduces. Their names are Rodolpho and Marco, they play two brothers who are illegal immigrants, and they are also Beatrice's cousins. They have come to America to make money for their family in Italy. The theme of the play changes later in play when Catherine finds herself falling in love with Rodolpho. Eddie, although Catherine's uncle, has very strong feeling for her and does not like the idea of Catherine and Rodolpho being together so tries to make it seam that Rodolpho is gay. All eddies attempts to break Catherine and Rodolpho up fail so Eddie then does something that he will regret. Catherine and Rodolpho will soon be getting married. Eddie hates this idea and so makes the decision to call the immigration office. The immigration office sent police round to eddies house to arrest Rodolpho and Marco. They are
How does Arthur Miller make Act 3 a dramatic scene
How does Arthur Miller make Act 3 a dramatic Act? In the play Arthur Miller shows us how the time in Salem affected people's thoughts about witchcraft and how the behaviour of certain characters such as Abigail Williams changed the outlook of respectable characters in the play. Arthur Miller wrote the play because of the time in the 1950's in which Joseph McCarthy, a man who led an anti-communist investigation to seek out any communist sympathizers in the USA. People who were suspected of communism were encouraged to own up and identify any other communists as a way of escaping punishment. This is like in the play with those who are suspected of witchcraft are advised to own up therefore facing lesser punishments. Although 'The Crucible' is historically incorrect play because of the characters relationships shown between John Proctor and Abigail Williams. This is because in real life John would be in his sixties and Abigail only 11 or 12. It is extremely unlikely that they would have had a sexual relationship. Therefore the story of John and Abigail in the play was not only wrong but was there to set the root of the problem in Salem. An effective device used to depict the power and bigotry in the town which would tear the community apart. Abigail Williams is a devious character and is clearly pointed out by the audience as the villain in the play. She is manipulative
