The Zoo Story
written by Adward Albee is an absurd play and hence deviates from the
conventional drama. Absurd play is a form of drama that emphasizes the
existentialist philosophy of the absurdity and meaninglessness of human
existence.
The main
characteristic of absurd plays is to show that life is essentially meaningless, hence
miserable. There is no hope, because of the inevitable futility of men’s
efforts. Man is fascinated by death, which permanently replaces dreams and
illusions. There is no action or plot. Very little happens, because nothing
meaningful can happen. The final situation is absurd or comic.
The Zoo Story is a seminal
work in that it introduces themes which recur in almost all of Albee’s plays.
The principal is the lack of contact between human beings and the reluctant
apathy, indifference, self-destructiveness and cruelty. The point is brought
home by a meeting between two characters, Jerry and Peter. The whole action is
in the form of a conversation between them until it culminates in death of
Jerrry.
Traditionally
audiences expect the "well-made" play-life-like, psychologically
realistic characters, witty dialogue, and well-crafted, causal plots with
neatly tied up beginnings, middles, and ends. But the theater of the absurd
subverts these expectations at every turn. The term "theater of the absurd" was
coined by the critic Martin Esslin, who in his book “The Theatre of the Absurd”
asserts that these dramatists write from a “sense of metaphysical anguish at
the absurdity of human condition”.
Though the
Absurdists’ deal with differing styles, they do have some common stylistic
precursors. Following are some of the features that are common in an Absurd
play.
1. Essential traits
a)Actually the
Absurd play departs from realistic characters, situations and all of the
associated theatrical conventions. b) Time, place and identity are ambiguous
and fluid, and even basic causality frequently breaks down. c) Meaningless
plots, repetitive or nonsensical dialogue and dramatic non-sequiturs are often
used to create dream-like or even nightmare-like moods.
Though all these
happen in an Absurd play, there is a fine line between the careful and artful
use of chaos and non-realistic elements and true, meaningless chaos. While the
title seems to be quite random and meaningless on the surface, an underlying
structure and meaning is usually found in the midst of the chaos
2. Characters
The characters
in Absurdist drama are lost and floating in an incomprehensible universe and
they abandon rational devices and discursive thought because these approaches
are inadequate. Many characters appear as automatons stuck in routines speaking
only in cliché. Characters are frequently stereotypical, archetypal, or flat
character types as in Commedia dell'arte. In the play there are two characters
Peter and Jerry. Both of these characters are almost same from the beginning to
the end. There is no character development in the play. The dramatists give
hardly any effort to portray their psychological development
3. Language
Despite its
apparent nonsense language, much of the dialogue in Absurdist plays is
naturalistic. The moments when characters resort to nonsense language or
clichés– to Esslin, when words appear to have lost their denotative function,
thus creating misunderstanding among the characters –make Theatre of the Absurd
distinctive. Language frequently gains a certain phonetic, rhythmical, almost
musical quality, opening up a wide range of often comedic playfulness.
4. Plot
Traditional plot
structures are rarely a consideration in Absurdist plays. Plots can consist of
the absurd repetition of cliché and routine. Often there is a menacing outside
force that never reveals why. Absence, emptiness, nothingness, and unresolved
mysteries are central features in Absurdist plots.
Thus,
the play “The Zoo Story” contains almost all the elements of an absurd play. The
play depicts the irrationalism of life in a grotesquely comic and non-consequential
fashion with the element of "metaphysical alienation and tragic
anguish." At the time of
production, there were two distinct opinions about the play; some called it a
hoax and others called it a masterpiece. Nevertheless, “The Zoo Story” has claimed its place in literary history as
a masterpiece that changed the face of twentieth century American drama.
The Zoo Story is an absurd play. It explores the life situation of
the modern man, the pointless and absurdity of human situation. The overall
breakdown of values, the other incapacity for creative action and the ennui of
routine life are seen as the manifestations of the malaise of the modern man.
The absurdist viewpoint and generalized questions relating to existence self
have been at the very heart of the play’s inspiration. It is also possible to
read the play as a picture of the problems and conflicts of an existential
character.