Dr. Hasan M.

Saleh
Department of English
College of Education for Humanities
University of Mosul
Modern Drama
The Second Term 2021/2022
Lecture: 1

The Theatre of the Absurd: Concept and

Meanings
Introduction

The theatre of the absurd appeared as a direct reaction to the breakout

of the Second World War and its tragic ramifications on the levels of life. That
total war changed the face of the world in general and Europe in particular.
People found themselves in a situation which made them ask "What is the outlet
of this baffling and horrible situation? In fact, they lost faith in the existence of
a guide or authority to bring them to the safe seashore. The problem of existence
has been a moot point in the Theatre of the Absurd. In this theatre, man is drawn
as finding himself in a sort of endless strife with this problem, saving no effort
to solve this dilemma. The modern man in that alienation-charged world
suffered much from an identity crisis. Writers and artists in turn were similarly
shocked by the horrors of war, and they had to demonstrate in their writings that
devastating atmosphere in such as a way to make people aware of what was
really going around them. Hence, the theatre of the absurd was a strong reaction
to the irrational act of war.

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 Martin Esslin: the Creator of the Term

The Hungarian critic Martin Esslin is generally known as the first who
used the term in his book Theatre of the Absurd (1961) to study and analyze the
plays of five famous playwrights: Eugene Ionesco, Samuel Beckett, Jean
Genet, Arthur Adamov, and Harold Pinter . They presented life in a tragic-comic
manner. Their dramatic works showed how existentialist thoughts coloured
people's lives and experiences in the 1950s. They were concerned with the
meaninglessness, the illogic of human existence, and man's search for freedom.

Esslin states that the word 'absurd' means "out of harmony," in a musical
context. Hence its dictionary definition: 'out of harmony with reason or
propriety; incongruous, unreasonable, illogical" (Esslin 23).

It is said that Esslin borrowed this term from the French writer Albert Camus
who mentioned it in his essay “The Myth of Sisyphus” (1942). Following are some
quotations from Camus addressing the idea of absurdity:

"A world that can be explained even with bad reasons is a

familiar world. But, on the other hand, in a universe suddenly
divested of illusions and lights, man feels an alien, a stranger.
His exile is without remedy since he is deprived of the
memory of a lost home or the hope of a promised land. This
divorce between man and this life, the actor and his setting, is
properly the feeling of absurdity"

"Does its absurdity require one to escape it through hope or

suicide—this is what must be clarified, hunted down, and

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 elucidated while brushing aside all the rest. Does the Absurd
dictate death?"

"The absurd is born of this confrontation between the human

need and the unreasonable silence of the world. This must not
be forgotten. This must be clung to because the whole
consequence of a life can depend on it. The irrational, the
human nostalgia, and the absurd that is born of their
encounter—these are the three characters in the drama that
incapable"

Closely examined, these three quotations show the most dominant aspects of
modern age such as the sense of alienation, hopelessness, the crisis of belief, just to
mention a few. They are quite indicative of man's meaninglessness of existence and
his futile attempts to reach self- realization. As Esslin put it, the Theatre of the
Absurd "strives to express its sense of the senselessness of the human
condition…"(Esslin 24).

For Camus, the feeling of Absurdity strikes man in one of the four ways: 1. The
mechanical nature of many people's lives may lead to question the value and purpose
of their existence;… 2. An acute sense of time passing, or the recognition that time is
a destructive force. 3. A sense of being left in an alien world, ..4. A sense of isolation
from others beings(Hinchliffe 35-36).

What is the Myth of Sisyphus?

This myth is of Greek origin. There are many versions of the myth
of Sisyphus. One version tells us that Sisyphus violated the rules of gods. Therefore,
Zeus ,the king of gods, decided to punish him for his act of violation. He had to
take a big rock to the top of a high mountain and he had to repeat the same action
every day. This rock rolled down every time he tried to bring it to the top. Such
repeated action made Sisyphus feel frustrated, bored, and hopeless.

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 Sisyphus pushing the rock to the top of the steep mountain

In the Theatre of the Absurd, man is portrayed as a Sisyphus-like figure who is

inextricably engaged in an absurd and illogical world. The modern man strongly
feels disintegrated, frustrated and alienated, because he/she finds their existence and
freedom threatened by unexplainable and irrational forces.

Existentialism and the Theatre of the Absurd

Existentialism is a philosophical movement which became most prominent in

France during WWII that focuses on the fact universe does not provide man with
clues which help him to live and lead a normal life. Its main figure is the French
philosopher Jean Paul Sartre whose statement " Existence precedes essence" which
means that one's identity(essence) depends on what that person has done. Such a
movement deals mainly with freedom and responsibility. It can be seen as man's
reaction to the sense of loneliness, the lack of faith, and the absence of personal

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identity in time of war. Both Existentialism and the Theatre of the Absurd dealt with
man's realization that life is meaningless.

Works Consulted
Esslin, Martin. The Theatre of the Absurd. Harmondsworth: Penguin
Books, 1972.

Galens, David(ed.), Literary Movements for Students(Two volumes).

New York: Gale, 2002.

Hinchliffe, Arnold P. The Absurd. London: Methuen, 1969.

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 Dr. Hasan M. Saleh
Department of English
College of Education for
Humanities University of Mosul
Modern Drama
The Second Term 2021/2022
Lecture: 2
The Theatre of the Absurd
Characteristics of the Theatre of the Absurd
 The Theatre of the Absurd: Characteristics
The theatre of the absurd is clearly marked by
general characteristics shared by most of Absurdist
plays:

1.Circular plot
2. Handicapped characters
3.Senselessness, hopelessness, & helplessness
4. Technique of repetition
5. Fragmented language
6. Time and place
7. Isolation
Circular Plot.1

Unlike the traditional plot, the plot in the

Theatre of the Absurd is circular in that it starts
and ends with the same situation. For example, in
Waiting for Godot, Vladimir and Estrogan start
the play waiting for Godot and end the play doing
so without taking any action.
Handicapped Characters .2

The characters are handicapped and they suffer

from physical and psychological problems and
deformities. Some are blind, deaf…etc. No
heroes exist in this theatre. Such problems affirm
the fact that they are unable to adapt themselves
to the world they live in.
Senselessness, Hopelessness and .3
Helplessness in Life
These are dominant themes in this theatre.
There is focus on the idea that life is meaningless,
irrational, and illogical. Things in life presented in
the theatre of the Absurd run counter to logic
and normality.
Technique of Repetition .4

There is a repetition of phrases, sentences,

and situations, a matter that creates a sense of
boredom. Waiting for Godot has many examples
that demonstrate the use of repetition. “Nothing
to be done” is repeated in different situations and
in different forms.
Fragmented Language .5
Language is subjectivity. It is the subjective facet of
the human identity. Language expresses particular
desire for particular things or persons. It is the
vehicle for conveying ideas to express the self's
concerns and to mix with society. But Lack of real
communication indicates the absence of language in
this theatre ; the language seems disconnected and
broken.
Time and place .6

Time and place are symbolically important in

the theatre of the Absurd. Setting is sparse,
indicating the sense of emptiness characters
encounter. See, for instance, the setting in
Waiting for Godot and its symbolic implications.
Isolation .7
One distinctive feature of modernism is isolation.
People felt isolated and alienated, a theme that
.frequently recurs in the Theatre of the Absurd
Dr. Hasan M. Saleh
Department of English
College of Education for
Humanities University of Mosul
Modern Drama
The Second Term 2021/2022
Lecture: 3

The One -Act Play

?What is a one -act play
⚫ A short play which runs from 15 minutes to
one hour without changing the scenery and
without a break.
⚫ It may represent “ a curtain raiser to another,
longer play…”(Mobley 104). Peter Shaffer’s
White Lies was performed before his Black
Comedy.
⚫ Synge’s Riders to the Sea is a good example of
this kind of play.
⚫ The difference between a one -act play and a
full -length play is one of limitation.
The Origin of One -Act play
⚫ The one –act plays became famous in the 20th
century especially with the emergence of little
theatre groups in America.
⚫ Those plays needed: low budgets, few actors,
and limited tools.
⚫ William Saroyan and Thornton Wilder
continued to popularize the form in 1940s.
⚫ In 1950s the theatre of the Absurd attracted
the audience and the one-act play was a means
for the Absurdist.
Characteristics of the one-act Play I

⚫ It deals with one a single dominant situation

with a view to producing a single effect.
⚫ There is one theme such as youth, alienation,
love, death, age, divorce, justice and other
issues.
⚫ Like the full-length play, the One-act play has a
beginning , a middle, and an end.
⚫ The three unities of time, place and action are
carefully observed.
Characteristics of the one-act Play II
⚫The characters are very limited in
number. There is no change happening to
them.
⚫Dialogue is a pivotal element in a one-act
play. The language of the dialogue should
be marked by simplicity, brevity and
easiness.
⚫ There is focus on the stage directions
which describe the minute details of the
scene to add a touch of realism.
 Works Consulted

Cuddon, J.A. Dictionary of Literary Terms

& Literary Theory. London: Penguin, 1998.
Mobley, Jonnie Patricia. NTC’s Dictionary
of Theatre and Drama Terms. Chicago:
NTC Publishing Group, 1992.
Tilak, Raghukul. Literary Forms, Trends and
Movements. New Delhi: Rama Brothers,
2004.
Dr. Hasan M. Saleh
Department of English
College of Education for
Humanities University of Mosul
Modern Drama
The Second Term 2021/2022
Lecture: 4

Edward Albee: an Introduction

Albee : Work and Life: 1
Albee (1928-2016) is much concerned with
the problematic issues of the American society
with special focus on the American dream.
His main plays include the Zoo story(1958), The
American Dream, The Sandbox, Who’s Afraid of
Virginia Woolf?, Peter and Jerry, and Me Myself
and I
In his early plays, he paid much attention to
identify the need for compassion, the necessity of
refusing “destructive egoism and corrosive
materialism for redemption which can only lie
in human relationships ”( Bigsby 253).
Albee : Work and Life: II

The deluded outsider or the rebel is a

prominent character in his plays , trying to find an
identity in a world replete with deadly conflicts.
Like Arthur Miller, Albee focuses on the Family
institution which is a victim for the American
system. He never hesitated to unmask all the
social dilemmas and ills.
The animals are vividly presented in his plays to
set a comparison with the human realm, a feature
which colors the modern era.
The Theatre of the Absurd in America
No doubt, the reason for the theatre of the
Absurd in Europe and American is
diametrically opposed: War in Europe vs.
the Failure of the American dream in the
new world.
Martin Esslin in his Theatre of the
Absurd(1961) expounds the reason for the
dearth of absurdist plays in America:
The Theatre of the Absurd in America
…the convention of the Absurd springs
from the a feeling of deep disillusionment,
the draining away the sense of meaning and
purpose in life…
[In America], There have been signs ,
particularly since the shock administered by
the Russian successes in the space race,
that the disillusion and frustration might
become a factor in the American
scene(301).
The Zoo story: Albee’s First Product
Edward Albee wrote his first play The Zoo Story (1959),
in three weeks. The play describes two characters,
working- class Jerry and middle-class Peter, who meet in
Central Park.
Jerry pours out his life story to Peter, and it is a life
characterized by loneliness, alienation, and failure.
Peter refuses to connect with Jerry and does not want to
hear any more of his tale.
Provoking Peter into a fight, Jerry kills himself on a knife
he gave to Peter, thus involving him, despite his objections,
in another’s death if not in his life.
The one-act play won an Obie Award in 1960 and
established its author as a promising American playwright.
 Works Consulted

Cuddon, J.A. Dictionary of Literary Terms

& Literary Theory. London: Penguin, 1998.
Mobley, Jonnie Patricia. NTC’s Dictionary
of Theatre and Drama Terms. Chicago:
NTC Publishing Group, 1992.
Tilak, Raghukul. Literary Forms, Trends and
Movements. New Delhi: Rama Brothers,
2004.