class notes (12.13-1.07)

Rosencrantz and Guildenstern
are
DEAD!

this play was inspired by the theater of the absurd. unlike a
-traditional drama which often contains elements of  
structure, logic, consistency, resolution, significance, et cetera, 
-a theater of the absurd play 
lacks significance and often, lacks all rhyme and reason; they are people enclosed in a box. 
   it's often a commentary and the insignificance of mankind- the characters don't know who they are, what they're doing.. what they are. truly rosencrantz and guidebstern constantly forgot who they themselves were, introducing themselves as the wrong characters.. hilarity ensues. (this VERBAL HUMOR is very prevalent in theater of the absurd plays.) think monty python and the holy grail, lolz.

OTHER FUN FACTS ABOUT THE THEATER OF THE ABSURD, YAYYYAYAY.
-protagonists are often passive; they wait for the world to give them something to do, but nothing really ever does. they often then spend their time playing meaningless games.. (heads, heads, heads)
-this type of play was spawned during world war i, the absurdity of war.
-characters often have no aspirations whatsoever. they are completely content doing absolutely nothing. absurd!


ROSENCRANTZ + GUILDENSTERN deviate from this traditional setup in a few ways, however. the main one is that they are actually capable of strong emotion- they have a genuine affection and friendship for each other. they care about each other in a way that, in many other theater of the absurd plays, the characters don't, and would regard another character's death with a casual indifference.


DEATH OF A SALESMAN!!!!
oh willy.
in class, we discussed many a question, including (but not limited to):
  miller's use of nonrealistic techniques, 
 linda's role as not only a wife but as a mother figure to willy,
 the difference between success and happiness, 
 what commentary is miller trying to make about society,
 the possibility of having the "wrong" dream,
 being "well-liked" vs. being "respected"
 some things i got out of the discussion::

 willy's flashbacks provided not only insight for us as readers, but also posed the interesting topic to be explored: could willy be mentally unstable, or merely the product of a man drawn in by the "evils" of a capitalist society?


 linda definitely served as a mother figure to willy. (willy.. why not will, william, bill? why do they constantly call him "kid"? why is he always being told to grow up? why is he so narcissistic? why is linda constantly offering him.. miiiiiilk?) it's because willy more of a child than his sons, creating an odd dissonance in the relationships.

 success does not necessarily equal happiness. biff wasted a large portion of his life trying to figure out what makes him happy, having been indoctrinated with these unhealthy ideals by willy. he finally comes to the realization that he does need money to be happy, he does not need a "respectable" job or fancy material items. he enjoys the taste of food, the ability to sit down and have a smoke, the little things. biff will ultimately be happier in life while happy is doomed to repeat willy's mistakes.

we also discussed these things in the forum.
stressed the father/son relationships-- the biff/willy one we can now add to our claudius/old hamlet/hamlet one and our laius/oedipus one. in these forums we also discussed the maternal relationships, and other gender-related issues in western literature. read the forums, they can actually be quite interesting.

i guess we have to list our homework too.
basically, we just had to do those forums and annotate death of a salesman.

:)