Urinetown was a humorous play at times with socially relevant themes. Kotis and Hollmann imagined a dark and disrupted community that was controlled by a corrupt government and eventually overthrown. Current social forces such as corruption, environmental issues, and corporate control may have shaped their feelings. Our characters of Public Amenity 9 live in a society controlled by an unethical company who has privatized toilet use due to a 20 year drought. Because of this our characters are faced with multiple dilemmas that affected their ethics and values. While reading Urinetown, I began to think about certain events that reminded me of the issues our characters where faced with. This helped me envision what the scenery was like and what time period this took place in. Kotis and Hollmann wanted their audience to experience the reality of these issues and not just a fictitious story. Beginning the play we see a relationship between Urinetown and government corruption. “Senator Flipp had received a bribe from Cladwell to insure that the new rate hikes are applied; shortly after he plans on going to Rio with the cash.” Unfortunately, whether it is a business or a state concern, society is faced with witnessing corruption of this same instance. This gave the reader/viewer a humorous yet non-fictional aspect of realism. As they disregard the common good for private benefit, they throw away trust and become partners in crime. Some of the most influential forces in society deal with politics and authority figures. The characters formed a belief that they would be sent to Urinetown if they disobeyed the law. They were taught that Urinetown was a forbidden place of exile. The UGC and its workers reinforced water consumption tax and be... ... middle of paper ... ...alistic that there could be a society where you couldn’t “pee for free”. This spoof became an entertaining yet accurate position on these issues. Urinetown also touches on environmental concerns. We can only assume that because of the water shortage the Amenity’s dealt with failed pressure and leaking in pipes. I recognized that our playwright’s wanted the characters to emulate their values and outlooks they believed in. We learned that social forces like dishonesty, corporate control, and environmental concerns all played a part in the play Urinetown. As a result of the unfair rate hikes and water taxes the Amenities were forced to revolt. The dark community eventually overthrew the powers that be and started fresh with no restrictions. For a time the people lived happily, but an overuse of resources would be their fate soon enough. They were always doomed.
This whole play by Arthur Miller shows how our community will turn on each other to save ourselves no matter if it’s right or wrong and it’s true in our society today. It also shows how a good man regained his happiness and holiness by standing up for what’s right against the lies and sacrificed himself for the truth.
Eight Men Speak by Oscar Ryan et al presents a variety of epic devices employed throughout its composition. We see “the essential truth in every word of these six acts”(Foreword 5) come to life in this thought provoking presentation of didactic literature. Through the use of Epic Drama we see the effects of our corrupt government as it is brought into perspective using the epic devices of using the audience as active participants, using narration rather than action , and political engagement. These epic devices play a key role in portraying the didactic message of the play. The play causes the reader not only to be a present member of the audience, but to have presence of mind as well; to not only hear what the characters are saying, but to take initiative if they wish to see change.
The play teaches are very important lesson on being too cautious. When faced with a small problem like a power outage, the residents of a small town turn on each other. It shows how vulnerable and paranoid humans can be. At the end of the play, the narrator says that this is something that could happen among humans anywhere, it is not just confined to the ?Twilight Zone?. This is a departure from most other episodes, which end, ?only in the Twilight Zone?. This show, which broadcasted during the Cold War, is meant to demonstrate horrible things that could come from people being too paranoid and distrustful.
... story ‘Harrison Bergeron’, it can be derived that that these societies have strict rules and regulations, citizens of the society have become so adapted that they are afraid of change, and there is a severe lack of freedom. Both environments displayed uncivilized and inappropriate behavior, with innocent people being killed in front of their loved ones. What appeared to be an innocent tradition and harmless government turned out to be the perfect recipe for disaster.
There are many ideas, experiences, values and beliefs in the play Blackrock by Nick Enright. The play is based on a true story and is set in late November to early January in an Industrial city and its beachside suburb of Blackrock. It is about a girl called Tracy aged 15 who was raped and murdered at a teenage party and the effects of it on the locals and community. Three main ideas explored in the play that challenged and confirmed my own beliefs include “Disrespect toward women”, “Victim blaming” and “Double standards”.
Life as a human is dictated by an inborn hunger or purpose, and people, in general, will act on this hunger for their own personal gain in their individual ways. This hunger, be it for wealth, land, love, power, revenge, or pride, can, and will be the undoing or failing of all mankind as Miller so clearly points out in his play 'The Crucible';. This essay will explore the motives of characters within the play and even the motives of Arthur Miller himself and therefore show how conflict stems from certain recognisable human failings including those mentioned above, fear, and hysteria.
Charles Fishman came down to College of Charleston to explain the crisis of water. Coming out, Charles Fishman explained how he made his book The Big Thirst. It was his wife and him at a hotel, and this is when he discovered the water Fiji. He wonders why the company made a brand like that because Fiji right doesn’t have much in sanitary water. Every human who has access if water, uses 88 gallons of water a day. 40% of the world don’t have sanitary water to drink. One fact that he told the audience was, every one Google search, two tablespoons are used. The number one usage of water is car washes and number two is leaking water. In 2002, UNC Chapel Hill were close to not having water, but a few days later it rained. UNC Chapel Hill had a problem
Miller uses similarities between Abigail and Procter and real people from the McCarthy era, relations with characters Danforth, Hathorne and Hale with organizations from the McCarthy era and the method of choosing a controversial topic similar to communism to show allegory. The strategies Miller used to craft this play included using literary terms and features, setting, plot events and characters to convey his overall criticism of the time period. The McCarthy era greatly contributed to Arthur Millers development of the plot of this play and the ability to connect with the audience and make them relate what they saw to their own lives.
The community, although it is very tight and strongly bound by tradition and family, is also troubled and varied. The potato crop is failing, the maps are being changed for the convenience of the English, people want to move out of Ireland, (for example when Maire tells Hugh she wants to learn English for when she moves to America). Things appear to be at peace when we are put into this environment and everything seems well at first, but as we look further into it we can see things are much more deep seeded and dark than at first glance. For example, Doalty steals a piece of equipment from some English soldiers; this cheeky mischief seems harmless until we hear about some of the English horses being lead off a cliff to their deaths. Nothing is what it seems in this play, there are many more issues that lurk beneath the rather innocent surface of this seemingly simple, rural community; feelings of hatred and betrayal course through the bodies of many of the populous. What the English are doing is not right, nor is it fair. They have no right to change the identity of a people for their own convenience.
For all Annawadians except Asha, corruption ingrained in society prevents the impoverished citizens of a Mumbai slum from being able to become successful in life. Despite working hard, saving money, and only wanting to better the life of their family, the Husains’s story is demonstrative of the fact that an unintentional entanglement in the “great web of corruption” “in which the most wretched tried to punish the slightly less wretched” could easily lead to near ruin (Boo 115). Over the course of her narrative, Boo shows that Annawadians recognize the issues of corruption present in their society, and the fact that they lack the power to change the system. For Annawadians, the courage and aspiration to become more successful in life meant taking a gamble, and Boo shows that their gamble could only be made in a system where the odds were forced against their
The destructive force that the play showcases the most is greed because the town of Salem is destroyed, and many people are hanged. Greed is a major part of the story and is shown throughout the play by many different characters. The people of Salem are affected and the town is eventually destroyed because of the selfish acts resulting from greed.
The desire for power and authority has always been a part of the human nature. Today’s society most often use power to dominate one another and fulfill one’s personal intentions, which can affect other people in many ways. Having power and authority is truly gratifying but it is terrifying if abused and used for selfish acts. The play, The Crucible, by Arthur Miller is an example to illustrate the consequences of abuse of power. The characters Abigail Williams, Deputy Governor Danforth and Reverend Parris use their power over society by manipulating people and using their authority to fulfill their personal intentions, like material gain, vengeance, maintaining social status and reputation, and attention, which eventually lead into a mass hysteria.
life in the mid to late twentieth century and the strains of society on African Americans. Set in a small neighborhood of a big city, this play holds much conflict between a father, Troy Maxson, and his two sons, Lyons and Cory. By analyzing the sources of this conflict, one can better appreciate and understand the way the conflict contributes to the meaning of the work.
In the beginning of the play, Walter is foolish and quarrelsome, with his heart set on becoming affluent. As he grasps how hard work his father worked and how hard his family works, he reasons that living by his standards is more important than gaining wealth, and he stops feeling resentful towards them. This play highlights how many members of society focus more on making money than living by their ethical
Montesh, M. (n.d.). Conceptualizing Corruption: Forms, Causes, Types and Consequences. Retrieved May 4, 2014, from