JONATHAN JAMES CRAMER EXPRESSIONiSM IN EUGENE O'NEILL AND ELMER RICE L'EXPRESSIONISME CHEZ EUGENE O'NEILL ET ELMER MCE Mémoire présenté a la Faculté des études supérieures de l'université Laval pour ['obtention du grade de maître es arts (M.A.) Département des littératures FACULTÉ DES LETTRES CMIVERSITÉ LAVAL Janvier 2000 O Jonathan James Cramer, 2000 National Library Bibliothèque nationale 14 of,,, du Canada Acquisitions and Acquisitions et Bibliographie Selvices services bibliographiques 395 Wellington Street 395. nie Wellington OnawaON KlAON4 Ottawa ON KIA ON4 Canada Canada The author has granted a non- L'auteur a accordé une licence non exclusive licence allowing the exclusive permettant à la National Librar). of Canada to Bibliothèque nationale du Canada de reproduce, loan, distribute or sell reproduire, prêter, distribuer ou copies of this thesis in microform, vendre des copies de cette thèse sous paper or electronic formats. la forme de microfiche/film, de reproduction sur papier ou sur format électronique. The author retains ownership of the L'auteur conserve la propriété du copyright in this thesis. Neither the droit d'auteur qui protège cette t4èse. thesis nor substantid extracts fiom it Ni la thèse ni des extraits substantiels may be printed or othewise de celle-ci ne doivent être imphmés reproduced without the author's ou autrement reproduits sans son permission. autorisation. To Mom, Dad, Suzama and Amie Résumé This thesis will examine how certain techniques of stage drama in The tldding ,4fizchine and The Enrperor Joiies. The Hain Ape, The Great God Brown and Strmge Interlrtde distinguish expressionism from other literary movements, especially realism. This study attempts to define expressionism in Amencan theatre as it manifested itself in the work of Elmer Rice (1892- 1967) and Eugene O'Neill (1 888- 1953). By examining the techniques and dramatic tendencies of O'Neill and Rice, this thesis focuses on the problem created by the expression of persona1 ideas and emotions by the playwright while he simultaneously assigns to his plays universal values with which he wishes the audience to associate. Because the work of O'Neill and Rice helped to define the criteria for American expressionism, this thesis examines closely each author's use of dialogue, plot structure and stage technique in order to establish a link between the use of the distortion of these dranzatic e1ements and the irnmediate dramatic effect of this distortion on the audience. Jonathan Cramer Anthony Raspa TABLE OF CONTENTS *.. Résumé Engiish. ...................................................................il] French. ...................................................................... .iv Table of Contents. .........................................................................,v Pre face. .....................................................................................vi Chap ter 1: The Roofs of Eipressiorl isi?r:Ibsei2 a!id Striridberg. .....................1 Chapter II: Ed'j Expressio~iisni:Sta~~islmsly arid Daduisni.. .....................23 C hapter III : Dialogtte: Mdciiig La ri page Stra rige. .................................3 7 C hap ter IV: Character and Actirig Sgk.............................................. .65 Chapter V: Plot, Atnrospliere and SettUig.. ......................................... -.86 Conclusion : A Final Look at the E.~pressio~iismof O 'Neill und Rice.. ........ 109 . * Bibliography ............................................................................ 1 12 Prefac e In the introduction to his collected plays in 1950, Arthur Miller makes a simple but vital statement: "1 wrote these plays to be perfomed." Though quite simple, his statement is meant to remind the reader of something students and cntics seem to forget: his plays were created with the intention of being staged. Ernesr Hemingway, on the contrary, did not tvrite A FareweU ro Arnzs with the hope of it becoming a Hollywood motion picture. He wrote the novel as an expression of himself and his views of a lost generation. Mile Hemingway's art is no less powerful than Miller's, its descriptive medium is quite different. A novel exists in a limited realm consisting of just the written lines themselves and the readrr's mind. For the most part, it is not intended to extend farther than the confines of the reader's psyche. A play, however, does not reach its full artistic potential until it is created and perfomed in front of an audience. Since the age of eight yearç old I have been participating in drama in one form or another. 1 have always been fascinated by the power of the stage, as both symbol and link between audience and the author. A spectator is at the mercy of the playwright, for it is the playwright who, for the most part, controls the audience's experience for that short period of time. Perhaps something similar can be said for al1 other forms of art, but within the context of theatre, the audience is trapped and forced to react to the drarnatic moment as it reveals itself It is this ability of the playdght to control emotion and expenence, even if only momentarily, that led me to develop my interest in expressionism. AAer my Freshman year at the University of New Hampshire I had renounced theatre as my major. The politics and popularity games of the theatre deparmient made me lose the taste for what had originally drawn me to the stage. In the spring semester of my sophomore year, my friend Brendan Quigley persuaded me to audition for Elmer Rice's The Adding Macltiile. Neither of us had read the play but we had both heard that is was unlike the usual productions of Hunller and Our Town. In his treatment of the play, Gilbert Davenport, who was the director for this University of New Hampshire production, emphasized the subjectivity and inner turmoil of man's discontentment in the machine age. He subtly steered the actors away fkorn the realistic techniques of Stanislavsky towards the impending, almost threatening modes of expressionism for which Rice's production called. In Davenport's handiing, the audience's experience seemed subordinate to Rice's desire to project emotion and symbol. To this challenge, for the first time in my short acting career, 1 reacted instead of acted. The range of my character was limited to a fleeting scene rnarked by robot-like speech and movements, but as a character I was not expected to try to express the pre- packaged emotions of the realists, but rather a complex system of symbols created by Rice. The play was an exercise in subjectivity, a subtle assault on the senses that seemed ovenly absurd and yet pertinent to my persona1 experience. Participating in Davenport's production of The Addir~g Machine whetted rny curiosity for expressionism and expenmental theatre. This thesis attempts, in a broad sense, to examine the expressionism of Rice and O'Neill and how the techniques employed in the expressionistic works of these authors distinguish expressionism from other literary movements. This thesis attempts to vii encompass the movement of expressionism as a distinct artistic and specifically dramatic movement as well as exarnining the use of distortion as both an aesthetic and symbolic tool of drama. In this study, I hope to illuminate the various themes presented by both authors, while indicating their distinct dramatic techniques and principles. Through the examination of plot, character, dialogue and stage technique, 1 also attempt to demonstrate the importance of subjectivity as a uniQing trait in the expressionistic works of Rice and O'Neill. We are fortunate that O'Neill was a prolific dramatist, but his formidable body of dramatic works forced me to limit my study to just a handfül of plays. The decision to study only one play by Rice was influenced considerably by the author's unfortunate descent into obscurity over the past thiny years. It is extremely difficult to locate copies of his lesser-known works. The Adnirlg hfacachiite, however, proves so pregnant with theme and symbol that it deserves its own doctoral thesis. Rice was an innovator, but like al1 other great American dramatists, he has too ofien appeared merely a talented student of Eugene O'Neill. 1 was about to dismiss Rice in that way but as my interest in his expressionism grew, 1 realized that my study of Rice, should be, instead, a cornparison of both him and O'Neill. Unfortunately, there is little written about Rice. 1 had the pleasure of corresponding shortly with Rice's biographer, but even he could not locate some of the piays I was looking for. On the other hand, there is a vast sea of insightful criticism of O'Neill, readily available in almost any university library. In this study, my work on O'Neill was aided by the multitude of articles and texts of Laval University, University of New Hampshire, Riviere College, and St. Anselm's College. My work on Rice, viii however, benefits little fiom the supenor criticism and insight of scholan greater than mysel f. I would like to thank the above-mentioned universities for allowing me access to their archives and photocopying services. I should like to thank the students of rny Modem America?~Theatre course that I gave in the Département des littératures at Laval, whose questions, reactions and comments on expressionism forced me to simpliQ and explain my theories in a manner that proved most pertinent to this study. 1 am indebted to my friend Kent Judiesch for his support and his congenial encouragement. I am indebted to the Département des littératures for its generosity in granting me a scholarship. 1 would also like to thank Professor Nigel Thomas and Professor Thomas Reisner for answering the vital questions that helped me narrow down the scope of my study. 1 also offer thanks to Professor Peter Sabor who generously offered invaluable comments and suggestions on how to strengthen this thesis. I have had the great honor and privilege to study under Professor Anthony Raspa, a generous scholar, mentor and fhend who tolerated my academic inadequacies and forced me to see the flaws of my writing and replace them with clarity and precision.