“Everything in his life is in his plays, and everything in his plays is in his life,”
Elia Kazan said of Tennessee Williams. Williams, who is considered to be the greatest Southern playwright, inserted many of his own personal experiences into his writing, because he “found no other means of expressing things that seemed to demand expression” (Magill 1087). He stated that his primary sources of inspiration for his works were his family, the South, and the multiple writers he encountered in his life. Therefore, he presented American theatergoers with unforgettable characters, an incredible vision of life in the
South, and a deeper meaning of the concept he called “poetic realism” (Classic
Notes 1). Poetic Realism exists as the repeated use of everyday objects, so that they would produce a symbolic meaning. Often, Tennessee Williams’ writing was considered to be melodramatic and hysterical; however, it is the haunting and powerful life experiences included in Williams’ writing that makes him one of the greatest playwrights in the history of the American drama.
Thomas Lanier Williams began his life March 26, 1911 as the second child of Cornelius and Edwina Williams. His father, Cornelius, managed a shoe warehouse and was a stern businessman. Cornelius’ bouts with drinking and gambling (habits that Tennessee later inherited) made him increasingly abusive as Tennessee grew older. Tennessee, his mother, his older sister, Rose, and his younger brother, Walter, lived with Tennessee’s maternal grandparents until
1918, when his father was transferred to his firm’s main office in St. Louis.
Although, he began living with his father at age seven, his father remained emotionally absent throughout his life. His mother, however, smothered
Tennessee with her aggressive showings of affection. The move to St. Louis was shattering to Tennessee, Rose, and Edwina. The change from a small, provincial town to a big city was very difficult for the lower class family. Because of the ridicule from other children, her father’s abuse, and her mother’s unhappiness, Rose was destined to spend most of her life in mental institutions and she quickly became emotionally and mentally unstable. Edwina allowed
Rose’s doctor to perform a frontal lobotomy on Rose; this event greatly disturbed
Williams who cared for Rose throughout most of her adult life. Tennessee remained aloof from his younger brother, because his father repeatedly favored
Walter over both of the older children. His parents often engaged in violent arguments and Tennessee, Rose, and Walter repeatedly encouraged their mother to leave their abusive father. Williams family life was full of tension and despair; however, he said he found therapy in writing.
Unable to bear his life at home, Tennessee began his lifelong
...le to live as full citizens in the city and many were placed in subordinate status.
Drypoint etching, 1936, by Arthur W. Heintzelman, commemorating the Tercentenary of the founding of Rhode Island by Roger Williams. Courtesy of Roger Williams University Archives.
The motif of acting is a central literary device of Hamlet – the audience witnesses Hamlet, as well as the other characters of the play, adopt ‘roles’ as no one is truly who they ‘seem’. This is first addressed by Hamlet in the beginning of the play when he responds to his mothers’ request to “cast thy nightly colour off”, and not to forever mourn his father as “all that lives must die,/Passing through nature to eternity”. He expresses that his “shows of grief” can ‘seem’ as “they are actions a man might play”. This is the first instance the play directly addresses the motif of theatrical performance, as it insinuates that Hamlet is the only one who truly mourned his fathers loss – this is especially stressed during his first monologue, in which he expresses moral struggle with his mothers marriage to Claudius, and his suggestion she never mourned her husband: “Within a month?/Ere yet the sa...
Tennessee Williams was a well renowned playwright, who highlighted his personal experiences in his plays and stories. He had a colorful life and he enjoyed writing about what was considered taboo subjects in the 1940's, 1950's and the 1960's. Williams explored homosexuality, alcoholism, violence, greed and sex.
Robin Williams: Living the American Dream Americans are blessed with the freedoms of life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness. Each person is entitled to pursue the true dreams and desires of his or her heart. These individualized opportunities are often referred to as the American Dream. Difficulties frequently arise on the journey to one's dream. One must find a way to conquer these struggles to make his or her dream a reality.
Shakespeare’s use of role playing and metatheatre in 1 Henry IV and A Midsummer Night’s Dream call attention to the nature of theatre. Not only the nature of the play we are watching, but also the play of life. As the audience, we have a broader perspective. As if we are allowed to see through a different lens. We inhabit a world that is very different from the one we live and yet in some ways we see ourselves in the characters (Bedford).
The only difference is that, William wrote in Poems and plays for the entertainment of readers and viewers, for profit. But one cannot deny that one’s life is an entire play, just as William’s life was expressed though his life’s Work in his novels carried out for more than 300 years.
Through comedy and tragedy Shakespeare reveals the vast expanses and profound depths of the character of life. For him they are not separate worlds of drama and romance, but poles of a continuum. The distinction between tragedy and comedy is called in question when we turn to Shakespeare. Though the characters differ in stature and power, and the events vary in weight and significance, the movements of life in all Shakespeare's plays are governed by the same universal principles which move events in our own lives. Through myriad images Shakespeare portrays not only the character of man and society but the character of life itself.
He plays the roles of both author and stage manager of a dumb show, The Murder of Gonzago, and tells the players to act out the poisoning of a king. He further instructs them to "suit the action to the word, the word to the action," and then dilates on the art of acting itself, "whose end, both at the first and now, was and is hold as 'twere the mirror up to nature" (III.ii,16-17,19-20).
In fact many women and children worked long hours in very poor working conditions. There was no medical coverage to pay for doctors or pension plans to help individuals once they’ve retied. In addition during this period job security didn’t exist and layoffs were very common especially during the slower winter months (Francis, Jones, and Smith 155). These harsh condition prove that even working class citizen weren’t presented with the opportunity to live life in prosperity. The obvious issues paved the way for the government to create social services such as Unions, charitable organizations, and social institutions. Most of these institutions provided relief to about two to three thousand working class citizen in their respective city (Francis, Jones, and Smith 160). But even with this minimal help the working class did not enjoy life in
Richard Hoggart, Raymond Williams, E.P. Thompson, and Stuart Hall initiated the intellectual movement in the U.K. that became known around the world as Cultural Studies. These thinkers critiqued industrial capitalism, identifying the impact that the Industrial Revolution had on the social and the natural order, especially during the period immediately after the Second World War. They championed working-class culture, the existence of which was being threatened by American popular culture.
Frank, Mike. “Shakespeare’s Existential Comedy.” Essays—Shakespeare: Late Plays. Tobias, Richard eds. Ohio University Press, 1974.
Hamlet is not only a representation of the world, but it is a presentation of the theatricality of the world, and it aims to acquire the detachment that allows self-reflection. According to Catherine Jo Dixon, the word “meta-theatre” is derived from the Greek prefix meta, which signifies a “level beyond the subject that it qualifies” (1). Arguably one of the most memorable examples of meta-theatricality is from William Shakespeare’s Hamlet in Act III, Scene II, where Hamlet stages a play in an attempt to “catch the conscience of the King” (2.2.526). However, while this is one instance of meta-theatre in Hamlet, Shakespeare created an entire work infused with meta-theatre, either through the direct use of theatre or theatrical metaphors and imagery. Others include Polonius’ praise and report on the Players (Ham. 2.2.325-29), Hamlet’s advice to the Players (Ham. 3.2.1-39), and Hamlet’s antic disposition. The effect of this was that it allowed the emphasis of the contrast between truth and pretence, reality and illusion.
“I was not aware of how much vital energy had gone into this struggle until the struggle was removed” (A Streetcar Named Desire). Williams struggled as a child which helped him began his writing career. William’s grew up during the Great Depression, the many changes of presidents, and a fire that change work policy everywhere in the United States. A Streetcar Named Desire brought him great success.
"Literary people have long been studying and teaching plays as if they were meant to be read rather than performed."