Location, Rural Coloration, Period and Language in Desire Under the Elms by Eugene O’Neill

In “Desire Under the Elms” O’Neill uses these elements in order to depict a tragic family story. All of
them serve a purpose of achieving authenticity of the characters who are more than just uneducated,
poor farmers in New England, but have deeper levels in them.

It is rather simple to determine the location in the play; all of the action takes place in a Cabot family
home, which is a typical New England farmhouse. In addition to formally setting a scene for the play,
farm offers an insight into the character through the way the surrounding affects them. At the
beginning of the play, all the characters fight over who will have the farm, but as the play progresses,
the reasons for this desire become clear and deeper than just pure materialistic value. They are all
dependent on the land and are influenced by it, one way or another.

Eben feels he must save the farm from Ephraim, in order to preserve the memory of his mother. He
feels her presence in the house, especially in the room where Abbie seduces him for the first time.
Ephraim on the other hand always feels cold in the house and is more comfortable in the stables. He
feels constricted at the farm and when he releases stock, he releases himself in a way. For Abbie, it is a
chance to create a new life.

There are few historical references, most notably to the California Gold Rush. Simeon and Peter accept
Eben’s offer to buy off their part of the farm so they could go to California and try to find gold there.
Besides that, Ephraim’s “hard God” who tests him and shapes him through his work is a prime example
of the Puritan’s understanding of God. This is most visible in the scene where he describes to Abbie the
hardships he has been through and how he went West to find a “soft God” but has returned to the farm,
unsatisfied.

Language of the play is very important as well. Dialect the characters are using is an indication of their
socio-economic status, period and location in which they live. However, although it is realistic, the
language spoken in the play lifts above just that. It is spoken from emotion and again, just like the
location, serves a purpose of further characterization of the protagonists in the play. Language shows
that, although they are people with quite limited possibilities for education and higher living, they are
capable of great emotions and passions, which will eventually destroy them. Imagery the characters use
is related to soil, farm, religion, all the things they are surrounded and familiar with, so it’s not too
philosophical or unrealistic. The language is rhythmic, which is achieved by broken phrases and
repetition of words.

Finally, author placed these characters in a very specific location and period, but the themes he
discusses through it are universal. Themes of domestic life, passion, lust and devotion are always
present in life and therefore in literature. What he manages to achieve, in very limited time and space, is
to create believable characters, who appear as if they could not be in any other time and space but
except the one they are shown in the play. Although they are constricted to their own time and space,
their story is timeless and always relevant.