The Theatre of Absurd History

Introduction

The theatre of absurd is attributed to the origin when a French philosopher Albert Camus through his myth which he wrote in 1942 did outline that the humans situation sand surroundings are in basic terms on no use, lacks meaning and are literally absurd From the movies that followed such as the play by Samuel Becket, Eugene Ionoso and Harold Pinter, its explicit that a man does works in an environment that he’s out of key and thematic concerns. The meaning of having man in the place he inhabits is full of deceit and the reasons of his presence in the place and the role he lays or his contributory factors are to a greater extent useless and without purpose. The origins are attributed to the Avante Garde experiment’s in art and the doughted influence by the world war two horrors which managed to depict that the lack of permanence in any of the values did lead to shakings in validity of any of the conventions and highlighted the human nature precariousness and the holistic meaning that is tinted by lack of meaning and arbitration. (Clausius, 1987). Moreover the theatre of absurd is seen as the response to the disappearance to the religious perspectives from the then contemporary life and the restoration of the importance of the mythical and ritual perspectives to our lives and age through the opening of mans minds and making him see the ultimate realities of all of his conditions. This was achieved by the reinstallation of the vanished sense of cosmic wonder and the primeval anguish. The absurd movies had to assume the unusual but very highly innovative form of the plays and movies which had the capability to directly amaze the viewers and drag him away fro the daily life of comfort, conventional life that he led day in day out. The theatre of absurd is an opposition to the conventional theatres and an antitheatre in its own points of view. It’s a system that is wholly surreal, lacking logical meanings and conflict and also meant to be without plot or outline to follow. In theatre of absurd, language was not taken as a means of communication and this led to making it a vehicle of conventional, fully stereotyped and exchanges that had no meaning with word having the lack of ability to give a thorough and direct essence of the human experience leave alone being not able to penetrate the issues backgrounds. This theatre mainly constituted the language onslaught by actually showing it has one of the most useless and unreliable, communication gadget that they preferred to ignore and instead did use the conventional speech, that involved the application of slogans, clichés and the techniques which had the power to create a distortion, build up on parodies and made things disintegrate.

Main body

The usage of objects is more than the application of language in the theatre of absurd and this is ground on the fact that what really happens does give the impression of what has been said and it is this hidden meaning implication of the words that has been able to be assumed basically in an absurd theatre. From the movies that have been written on the basis of absurd theatre such as the chairs and the bald soprano, it’s depicted that the particular drama does subvert the logical of the concerns. It does have the capability to bring out what is not expected and not easy on logical bases. Such capability according the Sigmund (1994), shows that their is some sort of freedom that we experience when we tend to move away from logic and by the segregation the absurd theatre does have the goal of bring down the walls of the enclosure from the conditions of human. By being illogical, absurd theatre is referred to as anti-rationalist and it negation from the concept of rationalism is supported by the fact that the logical concerns do deal with the superficial perspective of happening just like language while non sensible things on the other hand do offer a glimpse of the infinite, intoxicating freedom, draws one into contact with the life essence as well as being a source of some of the very astonishing and marvelous comedy like the chairs. Absurd drama is more or less of music which does communicate an atmosphere ground on the human situations archetypal experience, the theater by synergy it does use the lyrical abstract scene effects of which most are brought in through the modification of the popular arts such as the acrobatics and music hall clowning. Its inspiration comes from mute film and comedy and it stresses on the significance of objects and use of visual materials. The theater of absurd does aim at creation of the allegorical visionary, an archetypal one that is to a very greater level related to atmosphere of dreams (Clausius, 1987). From the literal meaning and origin of the theatre of absurd, its well depicted and implied that, it does give to the drama world the contests that are lacking the form of writing as defined by the grammatical creativity relative to the coming up with a movie, drama or a play. Drama and play written for the absurd theater do not have a meaning that is attributable to the instillation of sense and meaning to the human conventional life and the thematic concerns in most cases is a dramatization of an action that would be having a other meaning if written is the contest of substance and not drama. A critical assessing of the happening in the waiting for Godot,The chairs and The Bald Prima Donna comedies, to the most extreme manner it does build up on the meaningless, formlessness setting of the absurd theater drama and play. In the Bald Prima, which is a play written by Eugene Ionesco and influenced by the contents in the dialogues he used when attending some English classes through the Assimil method. The play revolves around an aged couple: the smiths who do invite the Martins to their home in London for an informal visit. The two families do keep themselves busy through a talk that has no meaning to any of them, tell stories and beyond this they do engage themselves in a poem that lacks sense to a very extreme manner. At one point or the other, Mrs. Martin does refer to her husband like a new person whom she has met and the chief does mention the bald soprano when he stands to leave and this creates a very unsettling impression and effect to the both families. Out of nowhere, Mrs. Smith give a replay that she makes her hair with the same style and after the chiefs exit, the whole thing turns into a series of drama that lacks resemblance to the normal conversation The chief has been able to change the earlier talk and has created the current victimization, one which has made the two families remain silent for some time and embark on talks that are not related to the normal one. At the end both couples are in unison shouting that “it’s not over here. It’s over here” Martin,2000.. The ending of this play creates a lot of comedy being in mind that one of the couple are mare visitors who even refer to each other as though they have met for the first time but they seem to have gotten into each other so fats that the have the energy to shout in a foreign home, comedy is extended by the testament of Mrs. smith that she makes her hair using the Bald soprano style yet she is an aged person who I think doesn’t need to apply such updated and current make ups. From such a play, it is possible for one to realize that it meant for the absurd theatre performance because of the meaningless talks that are coupled by poems without sense. Again the presence of Mary has no relevance whatsoever and this is an illogical setting of play and the discussing of the poems by aged families is not relative at all. According to this play, absurd theatre is seen to be lacking the rules of literature and writing. Waiting of Godot is another comedy that does depict the formlessness of the absurd theatre. This is a play by Samuel (1949), whereby two characters in the play are waiting for someone named Godot. The two devote two of their days waiting for someone they have never met before but they claim they shall be able to recognize him upon sight. For the sake of keeping them busy, they chose to eat, sleep and dance, getting them play games and having a suicide committing on contemplation. At the commencement of the play, Estragon who is one of the characters does struggle to remove a boot from his shoe but he surrenders and the second character Vladimir is dragged into the mood of surrender which meant that the two will spend the rest of their time doing nothing in the play. Upon succeeding, Estragon feels the inner part of his shoes and gets nothing and at the same time Vladimir has peered into his Hat and nothing seems to be showing. These are the incidents that are repetitive in the play. At one point, Vladimir comments on the lack of his conversational skills by his friend who instead remains mum while he goes and meets other people and manages to win all the talks and when Estragon feels hunger he offer him a carrot and they go on passing time by him telling of a story concerning a brothel which is interrupted by a urine press. Upon going and coming back, they exchange ideas on how to pass time and committing suicide is suggested but dropped on ground that one of them may not die which shall leave him with a lot of troubles. The two goes on waiting and a lot more happens before a boy come over in the evening ant claims to have been sent by Godot to deliver apologies but the following day he shall show up. Their agony continues in the second act and they seem to realize they are living one day like the other. When evening comes the same boy reappears to inform them that they should not expect Godot on that particular day. Due to this they reconsider committing suicide but unfortunately their rope which is a belt that belonged to Estragon breaks into two and his trouser go down but he don’t realize it till he’s told to pull it by Vladimir. They resolve to bring a better rope the following day and commit suicide if Godot does not show up or leave it all as an alternative but none seems to have the courage of taking the first step. This is a play that doe depict the absurd theatre ills on a very explicit angle. The character are waiting for nothing, engage in meaning less duties and have no predetermined target because they decide action a after the failure of the prior. The need of having to use the belt to hand themselves has no value and it left Estragon without something to hold his trousers up which has not solved their problem but has made it worse. Absurd theatre is a formless and without sense play and drama scene as proved by the plays. According to the play of Chairs, the same things are depicted. The writer use two performers, an Old man and woman, and introduces the play by having them make a set of chairs that shall be used by some invisible guests that shall attend the Old mans explanation of his realization of the true meaning of life according to his points of view. It’s supposed that the attendance shall involve all the people in the world as is the implication gotten by the mention of every one as well as the perception that such a happening shall be viable and capable of happening only in a post apocalyptic atmosphere. The old man delivers his verdict on and an audience that is not visible which gives a perception that they are the only people who are at that point existing in the planet, The couple does their cryptic reminisce concerning their lives as the audience continues on filing the theatre and the most valued section of the event is reached when an emperor though is not seen comes in. After the place his full the real orator comes to deliver his opinions which make a technical mix-up of the expectations that the Old couple had brought in. When this point come in, the couple through the window does commit suicide by jumping into the ocean because they have realized that after the world hearing of their revelation nothing much shall come up and happenings shall remain the same. Upon commencement of talking it is realized that the orator is deaf and mute and the play goes on till at the end when the audience noise fades in. The writer at this point says the climax of the play is achieved as the audience shall be staring at a deserted stage that will imply emptiness and sorrow which makes the chairs have a sense of life which shall upset the logical sections of the whole idea and the recreate fresh suspicions. From the contents of this play, a lot of happenings that are significant do come into happening. The play is able to keep the atmosphere that is relative to the whole scene in the theatre. One happening is followed by the other without repetition and lack of form. This is a play that does not follow the absurd theater categorization because it has a connection of one event to the other and even it’s likened to the ball room where after the music and dance the crown is left appreciating the performances. According to Eugene, 1989, Theatre of absurd has form and sense that has been implied by the play of chairs. Chairs is the only play of the three that has managed to show that the theater of absurd has some sense and order in and it does not host plays that are confused only. The use of the old couple in the whole introductory stage of the chairs play who manages to set expectations and visionaries of the next thing and then coming up of an expected orator and interrupts the initial set up is a thing that is well coordinated and planned. The couple decides to commit suicide to ensure that they shall not be there to face older life like in the other movies where issues have been repeated with no meaning and use. (Eugene, 1989).

The plays are to a larger extent definable as being absurd reasonably because they are having no focus of the logical happenings or the occurrences that are realistic nor do they follow the stipulated direction of the traditional characters development that has been used for a wide section of the play, they on the other hand give a focus on the human being that are held in a technical section as a result the happenings despite the level of the senselessness or the lack of logic in its extremist manner.Arbsurdism is the un changeable ideas ,purity and purpose degrading. The theatre of absurd despite having the feeling of lack of sense they are able to carry some information that is understandable.Different style have been used in the writing of various plays in the theatre of absurd and they are some of the underlying factors to the proving that the theatre is full of formlessness and meaningless actions that cannot be left without proper considerations when we are trying to prove the statement.( Nadeau,1989). To a larger extent the saying is very true due to the explicit writing styles that prove the three plays have an aspect of absurdness. Tragicomedy is the theme in which majority of the absurdist plays revolve. Writers have argued that there is nothing that is funnier in the world than the being of unhappy, the tragedy in a comedy can be brought out as a shocking moment in the time of action or it may be an abrupt abyss that comes in out nowhere and this makes the true absurd plays. From the play of chairs a comedy is brought out clearly that does show that the reality of absurdness in the play. Since the commencement, where the old couple is preparing the arena to their initial talking to the audience has it comes in and suicide that they commit because the world wont change after the delivery of their opinion as an aspect of comedy in it. A scene is introduced and the coming of the orator who is deaf blind makes it recreate the suspicions and the funny bit of it. Tragedy is also rampart in the play waiting for Gobot with Estragon and Vladimir trying to commit suicide with a belt that is cut into two and this happens after they had vowed not to do it because the death of one shall make the other suffer. This is a comedy that has a lot of absurdness in it and this makes it to assist us to draw a line to the truthfulness of the statement of the theatre of Absurd lack of form and meaning. Through the same play one of the characters is shown being active and attentive while the other is dull and careless. It’s the duty of Vladimir to control the manners of Estragon which create more comedy. The two leave in the life of yesterday and beyond their realization they are still looking for Gobot and the tree they were to meet under. This is a play that depicts a multiple of comedies that is relevant for the theatre of absurd. Existentialism is a terminology that is associated with the theatre of absurd and it does to almost higher percentage substitute absurdism as explained by Franz Kafka. The terminology was an influential bit during the rise of theatre of absurd in Paris and the referencing of the theatre as so made it have problems in many perspectives. This is a terminology that is associated with the absurd nature of theatre and it’s implied to a non measurable extent in the play of chairs and the Bald Soprano. With reference to the Triple plays, that is the Bald Soprano, Waiting for Godot and The Chairs, it is very easy to say that the theatre of absurd is formless and the meaning that it implies in the communication perspectives of it in general is meaningless to a greater extent though some of the writers have been able to argues that a certain form of understanding issues can be derived fro the same.( Gullette, 2009) Theatre of absurd does from the word go create comedy which are proven by the plays that are used in this case and gives implications of truth and certainty of saying that is without the stature that is a mandatory for other conventional theatres plus the derived meaning is not related to something that is of substance and useful to any member of the audience which is there though invisible to witness the unfolding of comedies in the play such as the Chairs. It’s right to say to lengthy limits this statement is true and need to be allowed to take charge of the absurd theatre because it does meet the demand of the happenings in the contest of the absurd theatre. It as beyond drought that the theatric concerns of absurdism lack form and formalities that are relative to proper functioning and as per the statement that we are seeking to justify its not arguable to object the reasons that are well shown by the plays that we have used. It’s proven that the lack of form and meaningless in communications is rampart in the theatre of absurd. According to Gullette, 2009, the terminologies that are used in the absurd theatre, the rule of absurdism has to be well shown for a particular play to qualify the definition of absurdism and be refer to has a full absurd theatre play. The plays can be able to show the status of what is happening by the depiction of tragedy in the play from the commenced of the play or at a particular moment in the scene. From the play of Bald soprano, tragedy comes in when local chief upon expressing a wish to leave mentions the Bald Soprano (Gullette, 2009). This make both families startled which is a scene bringing in suspicion and wanting to know that makes the audience be glued to the play. This is a situation that has managed to introduce a form of tragedy by ensuring that families at the end shout at each other though in unison and they seem to give each other an impression of suspense. The conclusion that is implied by the analysis of the plays is that the theatre of absurd does operate without the official codes of conduct and there are no outlined meanings that are derived from the communications used in each of the play.

Conclusion

Absurd theatre does use actions and symbols and does discourage the use of language in it. Since the time immemorial the absurd theatre has discouraged the use of language ant has preferred visual mechanisms to deliver its verdict though it said that it has no meaning in communicating the impressions it hold. The lack of meaning and form is to the tune of more than seventy five percent true in regard to the theatre of absurd.

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