Performing Harold Brighouse's Hobson's Choice
Dear Mr Doyle,
I am currently planning a show and propose to perform Harold
Brighouse’s Hobson’s Choice. This play raises some important issues,
and I feel that students and their parents would ultimately benefit
from seeing this work. You might ask why I have chosen this piece,
while there are many other plays with well worked-out plots and
themes, which could provide “food for thought” for our students.
The reason that I have chosen Hobson’s Choice is that it may be
particularly beneficial to the majority of our school community,
including teachers and parents. This is because the piece addresses
the challenges of family life and of relationships between the
generations. This work carries a strong message about the difficulties
faced by both parents and children over the issue of independence. It
portrays the struggle between a determined father and his three
daughters.
For those of you who have not seen this play, it tells the story of a
man called Hobson who runs a shoe shop with his three daughters. He
has always limited his daughters’ activities and denied them
independence. The twist of the story comes when Hobson’s eldest
daughter Maggie proposes to Willie Mossop, the boot-maker in her
fathers shop. This infuriates her father as he had decided that she
would not marry but look after him in his old age. The story deepens
when Maggie and Willie make a shoe shop themselves which starts to run
more successfully than Hobson’s shoe shop. The struggle that follows
Maggie’s actions shows that the younger generation needs its
independence. I feel that the benefit of this play for the two age
groups, students and adults, will be greater understanding of each
others’ viewpoints.
The play also warns us of the dangers of alcohol abuse. The father has
an alcohol problem which makes him act more aggressively towards his
children. The audience can see the ill effects of drinking excessively
on family life. This in effect can be inspiring for some members of