Our Town
Our Town
“Our Town”, by Thorton Wilder tells a story about life and the people of Grover’s Corners, New Hampshire. The choice of Grover’s Corners is meant to typify every small town or community in America. Grover’s Corner is Anytown , U.S.A. It is a simple place and this reflected in the physical setting of the play. Basically, Our Town is about Grover’s Corners and its people, particularly the Gibbs and Webb families. It takes the audience through the stages of life, in a simple way, with a message about life in the end. One of the characters of the play, the Stage Manager, acts as the narrator and guide. The stage setting is very simple. There are very few props, little scenery, and no special lighting or special effects. This is in keeping with one of the central themes, which is that the simple everyday things in life should be appreciated. It also forces the audience to focus on the characters, the dialogue and the themes of the play. The characters, while interesting, are not terrible complex.
They do simple everyday things, like eat breakfast, go to work or school, smell flowers and chat with their neighbors, the milkman or the paperboy. They do things that people everywhere, everyday, do as well. Our Town is divided into three acts and shows the stages of life, birth, love and marriage, and death. At the beginning of the play we learn that Dr. Gibbs has delivered twin babies. In Act II, George and Emily date and get married. Emily’s funeral takes place in Act III and Emily, although dead, returns to view the living. The themes of Our Town are tied into the division of the play, too. They deal with daily life, love and marriage, and death. The primary theme of Our Town is humanity's failure to appreciate and treasure each and every moment of life. As we go through our daily routines, we often fail to recognize or appreciate the things or people around us. The play tells us to value even the most uneventful,
“Our Town”, by Thorton Wilder tells a story about life and the people of Grover’s Corners, New Hampshire. The choice of Grover’s Corners is meant to typify every small town or community in America. Grover’s Corner is Anytown , U.S.A. It is a simple place and this reflected in the physical setting of the play. Basically, Our Town is about Grover’s Corners and its people, particularly the Gibbs and Webb families. It takes the audience through the stages of life, in a simple way, with a message about life in the end. One of the characters of the play, the Stage Manager, acts as the narrator and guide. The stage setting is very simple. There are very few props, little scenery, and no special lighting or special effects. This is in keeping with one of the central themes, which is that the simple everyday things in life should be appreciated. It also forces the audience to focus on the characters, the dialogue and the themes of the play. The characters, while interesting, are not terrible complex.
They do simple everyday things, like eat breakfast, go to work or school, smell flowers and chat with their neighbors, the milkman or the paperboy. They do things that people everywhere, everyday, do as well. Our Town is divided into three acts and shows the stages of life, birth, love and marriage, and death. At the beginning of the play we learn that Dr. Gibbs has delivered twin babies. In Act II, George and Emily date and get married. Emily’s funeral takes place in Act III and Emily, although dead, returns to view the living. The themes of Our Town are tied into the division of the play, too. They deal with daily life, love and marriage, and death. The primary theme of Our Town is humanity's failure to appreciate and treasure each and every moment of life. As we go through our daily routines, we often fail to recognize or appreciate the things or people around us. The play tells us to value even the most uneventful,