the theatre of anger and · •modern drama inadequate to express the social revolution and...
TRANSCRIPT
The 1950s: the upheaval
of traditional
values
Post-war
drama
The theatre
of Anger
J. Osborne’s
Look Back in
Anger
The Theatre of Anger and John Osborne
1. The Theatre of Anger and John Osborne
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This decade was characterised by:
• The destruction of the certainties and basic assumptions of
the Victorian Age, swept away by two World Wars.
• The decline of religious belief.
• The mistrust in rationalism as a means to explain reality.
The Theatre of Anger and John Osborne
2. The 1950s
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This decade was characterised by:
• The disillusionment with socialist ideals, brought about by
totalitarianism.
• The materialism and consumerism of contemporary
society.
• The cultural and moral independence of the young from
their elders.
The Theatre of Anger and John Osborne
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2. The 1950s
• Modern drama � inadequate to express the social revolution
and changing values of Britain in the 1950s.
• The attempt to overcome apathy � caused a real revolution in
British drama.
• There were two main trends in the 1950s drama:
1. The theatre of the «Absurd» � expressed metaphysical
anguish, rootlessness, the lack of purpose and inaction.
2. The theatre of «Anger» � criticised establishment values.
The Theatre of Anger and John Osborne
3. Post-war drama
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• use of a realistic setting
• logical, easy-to-follow plot
• outspoken language
• presence of a thoughtful working-class hero, like the rebel
Jimmy Porter
• open criticism of establishment values
Main features:
The Theatre of Anger and John Osborne
4. The theatre of Anger
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Main works:
• Look Back in Anger (1956)
• The Entertainer (1957)
• Luther (1961)
The Theatre of Anger and John Osborne
5. John Osborne (1929-1994)
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John Osborne
Main works:
• Inadmissible Evidence (1964)
• West of Suez (1971)
• Déjà Vu (1992, with the same
characters of Look Back in Anger)
The Theatre of Anger and John Osborne
5. John Osborne (1929-1994)
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John Osborne
• Structure: three-act conventional
play, with a circular plot.
• Setting: a squalid attic flat in the
Midland.
• Time: the play opens on a tedious
Sunday afternoon. Kenneth Branagh as Jimmy Porter and Emma Thompson as
Alison in Look Back in Anger, a 1989 film directed by Judi Dench
The Theatre of Anger and John Osborne
6. Look back in Anger
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• Characters: Jimmy Porter, an
angry young man with a college
education and a dead-end job; his
wife Alison, an upper-middle
class woman; Cliff, Jimmy’s
business partner, a working-class
uneducated man.
The Theatre of Anger and John Osborne
6. Look back in Anger
Kenneth Branagh as Jimmy Porter and Emma Thompson as
Alison in Look Back in Anger, a 1989 film directed by Judi Dench
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Jimmy expresses anger and
contempt towards:
• the past
• his wife’s not being angry and
her lack of interest
• the whole establishment
• everyone and everything
Richard Burton as Jimmy Porter in Look Back in Anger, a 1958
film directed by Tony Richardson
The Theatre of Anger and John Osborne
7. Look back in Anger: Jimmy Porter
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The Theatre of Anger and John Osborne
• He is an anti-hero � he only
speaks but never acts.
• He has established a love-hate
relationship with his wife �
he wants to possess her but at
the same time he tries to
destroy their relationship. Richard Burton as Jimmy Porter in Look Back in Anger, a 1958
film directed by Tony Richardson
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7. Look back in Anger: Jimmy Porter
The leitmotivs of the play:
• the discontent and social
alienation of certain sections
of British society in the 1950s
• the pain of being alive
• the study of existential
failure
Look Back in Anger, a 2009 Northern Stage performance
The Theatre of Anger and John Osborne
8. Look back in Anger: themes and language
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The Theatre of Anger and John Osborne
8. Look back in Anger: themes and language
The language is:
• revolutionary, crude and
violent
• spontaneous and vital
• full of colloquialisms and
slang expressions Look Back in Anger, a 2009 Northern Stage performance
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Beckett Osborne
Plot Obscure, non
consequential
True-to-life,
consequential
Setting Symbolic, bare Realistic, related to
working class
Theme Meaninglessness of
human experience
Social critic against
middle-class values
Stage Directions Repetitive, frequent Detailed, informative,
clear
Language Everyday, meaningless Everyday, simple, clear
The Theatre of Anger and John Osborne
9. Beckett vs. Osborne
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