The zoo story as an absurd and reality
International Journal of English and Literature (IJEL)
ISSN 2249-6912
Vol. 3, Issue 2, Jun 2013, 139-144
© TJPRC Pvt. Ltd.
A STUDY OF THE ZOO STORY AS AN ABSURD AND SOCIALLY REALISTIC DRAMA
SHIPRA MALIK
Associate Professor, I.I.M.T Engg. College, Meerut, Uttarpradesh, India
ABSTRACT
The article is an attempt to bring into light the elements of absurdism and social criticism in the play, The Zoo
Story written by Edward Albee. Throughout the play the dramatist has adopted certain absurdist techniques to expose the artificialities and absurdities of the degenerating values of American society. Through the various themes in the work likethe lack of communication, the feeling of isolation, the lack of understanding and the spiritual and social degeneration of the values along with the existential dilemma of life and the lurking materialism etc. Albee tries to present a realistic picture of the contemporary American society.
KEYWORDS: Zoo Story an Absurd Drama, "Isolation" as a Principle Theme in Edward Albee Plays, Death-in-Life
Existence in The Zoo Story
INTRODUCTION
Edward Albee is an American playwright whose works rank among the finest in the contemporary theatre. He is the incarnation, almost the living archetype of the angry adolescent who revolts against the bourgeois milieu in which he grew up and the corrupt society with which he refuses to be integrated.
Through the various themes in his works like-the lack of communication, the feeling of isolation, the lack of understanding and the spiritual and social degeneration of the values along with the existential dilemma of life and the lurking materialism etc. Albee tries to present a realistic picture of the contemporary American society. "Edward Albee",
Rutenberg asserts, "writes reformist plays of social protest which unflinchingly reveal the pustulous sores of a society plagued with social ills."1 Thus, Albee is mainly a social critic who exposes through his plays the artificial values of
American society
ISSN 2249-6912
Vol. 3, Issue 2, Jun 2013, 139-144
© TJPRC Pvt. Ltd.
A STUDY OF THE ZOO STORY AS AN ABSURD AND SOCIALLY REALISTIC DRAMA
SHIPRA MALIK
Associate Professor, I.I.M.T Engg. College, Meerut, Uttarpradesh, India
ABSTRACT
The article is an attempt to bring into light the elements of absurdism and social criticism in the play, The Zoo
Story written by Edward Albee. Throughout the play the dramatist has adopted certain absurdist techniques to expose the artificialities and absurdities of the degenerating values of American society. Through the various themes in the work likethe lack of communication, the feeling of isolation, the lack of understanding and the spiritual and social degeneration of the values along with the existential dilemma of life and the lurking materialism etc. Albee tries to present a realistic picture of the contemporary American society.
KEYWORDS: Zoo Story an Absurd Drama, "Isolation" as a Principle Theme in Edward Albee Plays, Death-in-Life
Existence in The Zoo Story
INTRODUCTION
Edward Albee is an American playwright whose works rank among the finest in the contemporary theatre. He is the incarnation, almost the living archetype of the angry adolescent who revolts against the bourgeois milieu in which he grew up and the corrupt society with which he refuses to be integrated.
Through the various themes in his works like-the lack of communication, the feeling of isolation, the lack of understanding and the spiritual and social degeneration of the values along with the existential dilemma of life and the lurking materialism etc. Albee tries to present a realistic picture of the contemporary American society. "Edward Albee",
Rutenberg asserts, "writes reformist plays of social protest which unflinchingly reveal the pustulous sores of a society plagued with social ills."1 Thus, Albee is mainly a social critic who exposes through his plays the artificial values of
American society