This famous play has been known to me since when I was a sophomore. But not unitl yesterday did I urge myself to read it thoroughly. And guess what? I am deeply touched by it.
Written by Eugene O’Neil, the greatest dramatist ever existed in American Drama--the father of American Drama, so to speak. He borrowed all dramatic techniques from Greek, English and all schools of thoughts prevalent at that age and fused them into his own playwriting. It goes without saying that he really made groundbreaking contribution to American drama which has been flourished like the evergreen from that point on. Thanks to this legendary figure, we could feel the pulse of such great heart, vibrating with “blood and tears”.
This play puts a dysfunctional family into spotlight. A family made up of a stingy father-Tyron, a drug-addicted mother-Mary, a sneering and cynical brother-Jamie and a week and pessimistic little brother-Edmund. Perhaps the adjectives I use here are not well-chosen and not suitable to cover all their personality as the human being is such complex and many-sided creature. I just mean their dominant features that lead to their destiny. Needless to say, they love each other. However, the tension also lies in their relationship. As the play goes forward, this tension mounts. We then find that they begin to argue with each other, make complaints, sneer at each other, suspicious of each other. Mary is a sensitive mother who is too much haunted by the past. Because of her husband’s money-making ambition, she shifts the places as he does, she feel insecure and homeless. When one of her babies died out of disease, her nerves break down. What’s worse, her husband just sends for an incompetent doctor for her treatment (because it is cost-effective), the mother doesn’t get better but worsen. She becomes heavily reliant on the drugs to sooth her pain. She then becomes more sensitive and vulnerable. She often suspects that the whole family is on guard to spy on her and distrust her. Drugs and the indulgence in the past become the gateway for her to flee from mental imprisonment. Tyron is a concerned and responsible father; however, because of the hardship he endured at very early age, he also values money a lot. He invests money on property to accumulate more wealth rather than the betterment of their family. Jamie the elder son was disappointed at her mom’s nervousness and father’s stinginess. He doesn’t take life seriously and fritter his acting talents away by fooling around, addicting to alcohol and being very very cynical. A mean guy. Edmund is in a lamentable condition. He is stricken by consumption, about to be sent to the state institution for medical treatment. His brother’s degeneration leaves a footprint in his character-building as well. Although good at literature and poetry, he fails to achieve anything in either field. He could be the most considerate person in this play, but he is torn between the idealism and reality.
From some points above, it could be seen that these four characters are entangled in their dreams, past, present. Their trouble mostly stems from their inability to communicate with each other. Mary loves fog and wall which are symbols of the barrier in communication. They just hide their feeling from each other, assuming the air of indifference or everything-ok to disarm their loved ones. But indeed, they blame each other for the present gloomy and poor condition. Who should be to blame? The play doesn’t answer directly but weave the dialogues of different groups of members together to illustrate the point. My conclusion is rather silly but maybe universal. Only connect.