SOMEBODY SINGS: BRECHTIAN EPIC DEVICES iN THE PLAYS OF CARYL CHURCHILL A Thesis Submitted to the College of Graduate Studies and Research in Partial Fulfillment of the Requirements for the Degree of Doctor of Philosophy in the Department of English University of Saskatchewan Saskatoon Henriette M. Morelli Spring 1998 QCopyright Henriette M. Morelli. 1997. All rights reserved. National Library Bibliothèque nationale I*l of Canada du Canada Acquisitions and Acquisitions et Bibliographic Services services bibliographiques 395 Wellington Street 395, rue Wellington Otiawa ON K1A ON4 OttawaON KIAON4 Canada Canada The author has granted a non- L'auteur a accordé une licence non exclusive licence allowing the exclusive permettant à la National Library of Canada to Bibliothèque nationale du Canada de reproduce, loan, distribute or sell reproduire, prêter, distribuer ou copies of this thesis in rnicroform, vendre des copies de cette thèse sous paper or electronic formats. la forme de microfiche/film, de reproduction sur papier ou su. format électronique. The author retains ownershp of the L'auteur conserve la propriété du copyright in this thesis. Neither the droit d'auteur qui protège cette thèse. thesis nor substantial extracts from it Ni la thèse ni des e~tssubstantiels may be printed or othewise de celle-ci ne doivent être imprimés reproduced without the author's ou autrement reproduits sans son permission. autorisation. PERMISSION TO USE In presenting this thesis in partial fulfillment of the requirements for a Postgraduate degree fiom the University of Saskatchewan, 1 agree that the Libraries of this University may make it fieely available for inspection. 1 Meragree that permission for copying of this thesis in any manner. in whole or in part. for scholarly purposes may be granted by the professors who supervised my thesis work or, in their absence. by the Head of the Department or the Dean of the College in which my thesis work was done. It is understood that any copying or publication or use of this thesis or parts thereof for financial gain shall not be allowed without my written permission. It is also understood that due recognition shall be given to me and to the University of Saskatchewan in any scholarly use which rnay be made of any matenal in my thesis. Requests for permission to copy or to make other use of material in this thesis in whole or part should be addressed to: Head of the Department of English University of Saskatchewan Saskatoon. Saskatchewan S7N 5A5 ABSTRACT While in recent years Cary1 Churchill's drarna has engendered substantial critical inquiry. there has been no sustained or comprehensive examination of her work in the context of one of this century's most influentid dramatic foms. what has been known as Brechtian epic theatre. Epic theatre's counter-discursive. counter-hegemonic elements have appealed to a new generation of women playwrights. arnong thern Cary1 Churchill. who finds its politics invaluable to her socialist ferninist dramaturgy. A detailed exploration and analysis of several of Churchill's explicitly socialist feminist plays. Light Shining in Buckinghamshire ( 1 976). Vinrgar Tom ( 1 976). Cloud Nine ( 1978). Top Girls ( 1982). Fen ( 1983). and A Mouihful of Birds ( l986), enable us to determine the extent to which her plays cmusefully be considered within the context of Brechtian epic theatre and to undentand Churchill's unique application of epic techniques to a politic that moves beyond class concems to incorporate concems of gender. race. sexual orientation. and age. The theoretical Frarnework of this dissertation will address subjectivity. power, and discourse in an attempt to demonstrate how Churchill's plays. like al1 Iiterary texts. constmct meaning and subject positions for the reader and for the audience. This dissertation piivileges socialist and/or feminist theones that stress the social construction of subjectivity and recognize the need for historical specificity. Such a critical methodology not only clarifies how Churchill's epic drama, with its strong socialist feminist politic. constmcts fictive representations of women and men that contest noms of patriarchal gender relations and the implicit hierarchies of value at work within them, but also reveals how Churchill moves beyond Brecht to present complex female and male characters whose subjectivities are constructed in the experience of class. race. gender. sexual orientation. and age. ACKNO WLEDGMENTS I would like to thank the University of Saskatchewan. especially the Department of Graduate Studies and Research and the Department of English. My deepest gratitude goes to mj supervisors. Dr. Susan Gingell and Prof. Don Kerr, for their assistance and guidance. I also thank my children. Urbain. Jordan. and Melissa. and my husband, Edwin. for the emotional and spintual support that has made this dissertation possible. I hope 1 have justified your faith in me. This thesis is dedicated to my husband. Edwin Peter Morelli. whose love and support have always been there for me. Please accept this as a small token of my love and esteem. And. to my mother. Blanche Marie Letendre. Although Alzheimer's Disease has blurred your memory of us. know that you will Iive on in the fondest mernories of your children and grandchildren for years to corne. TABLE OF CONTENTS Permission to Use ................................................................................................. i ..... Abstract ......... ...... ..................................................................................... ..II-111 Acknowledgments ................................................................................................ iv Dedication ............................................................................................................. v Table of Contents ................................................................................................ vi Introduction ....................................................................................................... 1-5 Chapter One: The roots of epic drama ............................................................. 6-45 C hapter Two: Light Shining in Buckinghamshire ........................................ -46-82 Chapter Three: Vinegar Tom ................................................................. 8314 Chapter Four: Cloud Nine ....................... .. ............................................... 1 15-153 Chapter Five: Top Girls .......................... ............................................... 154- 187 Chapter Six: Fen ................................. .... ................................................. 188-2 15 Chapter Seven: A Mouthfirl of Birds .......................................................... 2 16-247 Conclusion................................................................................................. 248-255 .. Works Cited ................................................................................................. .vi Lx11 INTRODUCTION I 've constuntiy said that I m borh a socialist and aferninisr.' (Caryl C hurc hi Il) Cary1 Churchill, appropnating the apparently previously male-centered epic fom. constructs plays in which she represents both women and men as multiple. de- centered. and intemally contradictory subjects constructed in the expenence of class, race. gender, sexual orientation. and age. While in recent years Churchill's drama has engendered substantial critical inquiry. there has been no sustained or comprehensive examination of her work in the context of one of this century's most influentid dramatic foms. that known as Brechtian epic theatre. Arnelia Howe Kntzer. in The Plays of Caryl Churchill: Theatre of Empowerment (New York: St. Martin's. 199 1). does explore Churchill and Brecht's common artistic intent. 'To empower audiences against oppression rather than encourage serene acceptance of an apparently inevitable fate" (3). but she does not make this commonality the main focus of her inquiry. In Phyliss R. Randall's Caryl Churchill: A Casebook (New York & London: Garland, 1 988). a compilation of nine critical essays on Churchill's work. only Elin Diamond's "Closing no Gaps: Aphra Behn. Caryl Churchill. and Empire" makes reference to Brecht. Similarly. only three journal articles acknowledge the Brechtian influence in ChurchiII's work: Janelle Reinelt's "Beyond Brecht: Britain's New Feminist Drama"; Michael 'Frorn an interview with Linda Fitzsimmons published in File on Churchill (London: Methuen, 1989): 89. Swanson's "MotherDaughter Relationships in the Plays of Cary1 Churchill"; and Elin Diamond's "(1n)Visible Bodies in Churchill's Theatre." Of these, only Diamond's article makes the Brechtian influence central to its analysis. A detailed exploration and analysis of several of Churchill's explicitly socialist feminist plays. Light Shining in Buckinghamshire ( 1 976). Vinegar Tom ( 1 9 76).Chd Nine ( 1 978). Top Girls ( 1982). Fen (1983). and A il.loufhful of Birds (1986). will enable us to determine the extent to which her plays cm usefully be considered within the context of Brechtian epic theatre. In order to understand Churchill's socialist feminist appropriation of epic drama we mut recognize and acknowledge that dramatic form' s male-centered genesis and development. When we trace the historical and contemporary roots of epic drama, we discover that epic theatre incorporates. transfomis. and expands upon some of the classical dramatic concepts of Aristotle and the modem dramatic concepts of Erwin Piscator.