The Search For Self Through The Eyes Of A Madman Essay

The Search for Self Through the Eyes of a Madman In the play King Lear, written by William Shakespeare (2000), the main character King Lear only comes to true realization of his relationships, self, and society after he is driven to madness. His comfortable life as king is quickly replaced with a fight for his identity after rash decisions lead him to be controlled by the evil forces that he put into power. Despite his fall to madness, he gains the ability to see himself and the society he lives in through clearer eyes. Lear only faces his true self due to his blinded relationship with his daughters, his senility in old age, and his death of power in the violent storm. Lear places more importance in the simple, shallow appearances than the underlying truths when making decisions for himself and others. His madness begins to surface at the opening of the play with his inability to look past outer appearances, leading to rash decision making and reinforcing his tragic fate. A quick decision to divide the kingdom amongst his three daughters is the first indicator of Lear’s fall to madness which is inspired by the realization of his aging body. Using his daughters as puppets to boost his already large ego, he insists that his daughters must use flattery through fancy speech to prove their love for him in order to inherit their share of the kingdom. Goneril and Regan, the two oldest daughters, are quick to use fancy words to prove their love for their father. â€Å"As much as childShow MoreRelated Symbolism and Irony in The Tell-Tale Heart Essay2249 Words   |  9 Pagesthe old man is motiveless, and unconnected with passion or profit (212). But in a deeper sense, the murder does have a purpose: to ensure that the narrator does not have to endure the haunting of the Evil Eye any longer. To a madman, this is as good of a reason as any; in the mind of a madman, reason does not always win out over emotion. Edward H. Davidson insists that emotion had a large part to play in the crime, suggesting that the narrator suffers and commits a crime because of an excessRead More The Evil Eye Essay784 Words   |  4 Pages The Evil Eye Edgar Allen Poe shows us the dark part of human kind. Conflict with in ones self, state of madness, and emotional break down all occur within this short story. The narrator of the story is a mad man that is haunted by his idea that the old man has an evil eye. Through the first person narrator, Edgar Allan Poe’s quot;The Tell-Tale Heartquot; illustrates how man’s imagination is capable of being so vivid that it profoundly affects people’s lives. The manifestation of the narrator’sRead MoreThe Journey of the Mind in Shakespeares Hamlet757 Words   |  3 Pagesphysical journey lasts the course of a day, his mental journey originates at his own birth, where his own internal passage spans all the way back to his origin. The conflict that arises from the circumstances surrounding this lead into the encompassing self-tribulation that will be the theme of his journey, with his inner shifting subconsciousness affecting the outer events of his journey. The journey’s catalyst was his decision to seek the murderer of the prior king, leading into his confrontation withRead More Moby Dick - Ahabs Pride, His Evil Vehicle to the World Below1709 Words   |  7 PagesAhabs Pride: His Evil Vehicle to the World Below      Ã‚  Ã‚   In Herman Melvilles Moby Dick the reader embarks on a journey narrated by a man in search of his soul and led by a man in search of the destruction of evil. Captain Ahab of the whaling ship the Pequod is a man whose heart is driven by revenge and a monomania that brings on the destruction of the Pequod and all but one member of her crew. He is looking to destroy the abominable White Whale, the Evil of the Earth, Moby Dick. This driveRead Moreâ€Å"Laughter Through Tears† in Chinua Achebe’s Girls at War and Other Stories7412 Words   |  30 Pagesinto a naà ¯ve protagonist narrator. The fallible character is not presented as a naà ¯ve person in the beginning, however s/he manifests â€Å"a failure of insight, viewing and appraising his own motives, and the motives and actions of other characters, through the distorting perspective of his prejudices and private interests.† (Abrams 81-2) In the fourth subcategory, irony does not rely on a character ( narrator or protagonist). What appears is a string of ironic situations that dominate the narrative andRead MoreEssay on The Portrayal of the Creature in Mary Shellys Frankenstein1431 Words   |  6 Pagesgood but through watching the behaviour of humans he learns from their violent rejection of him, what it is to be human. He learns about the emotions of hate, anger, revenge and does not see the advantages of happiness and love. The message of Shelly’s novel is that through upbringing and socialisation, humans become monstrous and full of prejudice toward others different to themselves. Shelly’s trip to the Alps gave her the idea of â€Å"the sublime† and granted her inspiration through huge andRead MoreUse of Language in How the Garcia Girls Lost Their Accents by Julia Alvarez2432 Words   |  10 Pagesfirst experience taught her there was no other that you could count on; the second that there was no self to count on either. She had no center, no speck around which to grow (Morrison 118-119). For Sula, there is no other against which she can then define herself. Having rejected her community and her family, she wanders, trying somehow to define who she is. Sula turns to Shadrack, the local madman, at first because she worries that he saw what happened to Chicken Little, but then because hisRead MoreCatcher in the Rye Archetypal Analysis3753 Words   |  16 Pagesparents, teachers, and school. I wanted to discover what the roots of this controversy are. The main character, Holden Caulfield, tells about his life before and after he was kicked out from Pencey Prep. The novel was told in first person through the eyes of the narrator, Holden. He recalls the events as a series of flashbacks placing the setting of the story in his mind. I was bored by the novel, but dutifully finished reading it anyway, I suppose so that I could say that I had. It wasntRead More An Analysis of Edgar Allan Poes Psychological Thriller Essay3707 Words   |  15 PagesInterpretation b) b) Theme V. Finale I. Prelude During the whole of a dull, dark, and soundless day in the autumn of the year, when the clouds hung oppressively low in the heavens, had been passing alone, on horseback, through a singularly dreary tract of country; and at length found myself, as the shades of the evening drew on, within view of the melancholy House of Usher. I know not how it was --but, with the first glimpse of the building, a sense of insufferable gloomRead MoreComparing Hamlet And Oedipus Rex1868 Words   |  8 Pagesindecision. As Hamlet plots and decides on laying the trap for the new King Claudius, he is procrastinating to commit what he must, in order to avenge his fathers murder in order to solve his self-doubt about the situation. He must be certain and have his facts correct if he is going to be able to go through with the plan and double check that the ghost he saw was absolutely his own father. Although the king gives himself away at the performance of the play within a play, Hamlet is still in misbelief

Financial Issues For The Health Care System Of The United...

Background Pozgar (2012) defines healthcare fraud as an unlawful act, which purpose is for personal gain through deception. It consists of a vast number of illegal acts and irregularities resulting from intentional deceptions. It is no surprise that healthcare fraud is difficult to combat and causes extensive financial issues for the health care system of the United States. This brings us to define what fraud is and how it relates to healthcare. Fraud generally defined as knowingly and willfully executing, or attempting to execute, a scheme or artifice to defraud any health care benefit program or to obtain (by means of false or fraudulent pretenses representations, or promises) any of the money or property owned by, or under the custody†¦show more content†¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¢ Providing or conducting procedures that are not ultimately required or needed in order to obtain insurance payments. †¢ Illegally representing treatments or procedures that are not covered in insurance plans as medically necessary treatments that are covered by the insurance. This type of fraud is done to receive payments from patients insurances. †¢ Illegally changing or falsifying a patient’s diagnosis in order to justify any test, surgeries or other procedures that are not required or deemed as a medical necessity. †¢ Taking a procedure and breaking it down into steps and then billing each of these steps as if it were an entirely separate procedure. This is known as unbundling. †¢ Ignoring the terms of a managed care contract and billing a patient for more than what is required for the co-pay amount for services that was already paid for by the benefit plan of the patient. †¢ Illegally accepting kickbacks (receiving a form of payment) or paying for patient referrals. †¢ Providers who may waive a patient’s co-pay or deductible for and health care service provided and over-billing the insurance carrier or benefit plan of that patient. This can only be done under special circumstances, for example Medicare will allow the payments of co-pays or deductibles if the patient is under considerable financial hardship. Healthcare fraud is an issue that needs to be addressed. There are several different methods and solutions to reduce the occurrence of fraud in healthcare

Literary arguement Free Essays

Good writers write about life and someone living it, while great writers write about living itself and a living out a struggle that not only captures one person, but it also captures the soul of having a struggle in general. Although story of The World According to Garp has received its fair share rant and rave reviews by the judging public, what makes this book a great read is that it gives us something to talk about. It’s so powerful, that you only either hate it or love it. We will write a custom essay sample on Literary arguement or any similar topic only for you Order Now The storyline is so compelling, that it will you’re your eyes into looking more in the problems not only in the characters of the story, but also the struggle that we face in general. May it be in struggles of classes, or gender and most importantly, fighting for your rights. In the story of the The World According to Garp, from the very opening of this novel, it was pretty evident that the story was not for the weak of heart. It was obvious that the novel was to be dealing with the harsh realities of life that will really grip your attention, not only because of the drama but more importantly; because the story depicts something that we see in the streets and sometimes even our lives itself. What can we read in the novel that is so gripping that it has caused a craze in its time of release? The answer is struggle. From the very beginning â€Å"This was shortly after the Japanese had bombed Pearl Harbor and the people were being tolerant of soldiers, because suddenly everyone was a soldier, but Jenny Fields was quite firm in her intolerance of the behavior of men in general an soldiers in particular. (Iriving 1976, page1)† The story revolves around exactly this; how men, in general was a threat to women like Jenny. Unfortunately, in the harsh reality presented in the book, very few women were empowered to fight against abuses of men. Predictably, like most novels, women were once again depicted as victims and the men were the antagonists whom inflicted pain and suffering to women roles in this novel. What sets this story of story apart though is the level of stress the author took in the brutalization of sex as one of the major sources of oppression for women. Irving has been known to write about this topic not only in this novel, but also in his other works like the â€Å"The Hotel New Hamshire†. Irving has been notorious about putting stress in this issue that a number of book reviews coming from columnists like Doane and Hodges notices that Irving views a great strength in male power and he not only sees it as a day to day occurrence, but more importantly, that he found it as one of the things that are inevitable in the present day scenario. In the perfect words, he explained how he viewed brutalization of sex in The World According to Garp: â€Å"We are all terminal cases. Imagining something is better than remembering something. In this dirty-minded world, you are either somebody’s wife or somebody’s whore — or fast on your way to becoming one or the other. Between men and women, only death is shared equally. Lust makes the best men behave out of character.† In this statement, Irving caught perfectly in words how the scenario is with women and their battle against any abuse coming from the opposite sex. He capture the scenario its utmost reality to the core of why it was considered as one of the inevitable battles known to women. He dared say what was lying right under our noses but refuse to talk about, human nature at its utmost real and brutal sense. I guess to a certain extent, he had to do it to stress a point, someone had to point a finger to that problem for people to start facing the possibility of finding a solution to how men generally treat women. Even though some feminists responded to his novel with great retaliation to how he depicted women in his novel, what most feminists failed to notice was that his intentions in painting color to brutalization in sex into his novels was intended not to put down women to accept such roles, but rather to fight it. Unlike most authors who make women roles the typical traditional roles that box up women to be submissive and weak, Irving’s intention of writing about women in that light was to point out a problem that women face to come up with the end result of inspiring readers to do something about it. He took a man’s role and a woman’s role and torn all its clothes out to the point where in it was completely naked for us to pick on what was wrong with the picture that we have always been presented to but never really had a chance to look at. If you ask me, I think no author has ever done that simply for the reason of having people get the wrong impression of what he was trying to say. It’s a pity that very few try this tactic, coz you know if you have a great novel in your hand if your only allowed to have two of the varying reactions to reading it; you either hate it or love it. Why is this so? Because in the two varying ends of the pole, the book achieved what it’s author’s intention was to begin with; stir your emotions and strike a chord. As for Irving’s Goal in stressing a point in exposing brutalization in sex in his novel, I think he pretty much achieved it by simply stirring an outburst of public opinion in the feminist movement. Even though the general reaction to the context of his novel may initially be bad for women in the feminist movement, eventually true colors came up to float and women now realize the real point of Irving’s writing about how painful it is to be a woman. On the contrary, by showing women’s weaknesses in his novel, he achieved the exact opposite by illustrating how strong women are by coping with it, this is pretty evident in the story and characters of the women in the novel, especially Jenny References: Irving, J., Mc Caferrey, L. 1982, ‘An interview with John Irving’, Contemporary Literature 23, no. 1, winter, pp.1-18. Irving J., The World according to Garp [online] 1996, Available: http://cqu.edu.Au/arts/humanities/listud/naff/naff7irving.html[2007, October 17] Larson J., ‘The World According to Garp’ and ‘The Hotel Hampshire’ [online] 2005, available: http://epubl.ltu.se/1402-1773/2005/090/LTU-CUPP-05090-SE.pdf [2007, October 17] How to cite Literary arguement, Essay examples

The Stranger By Albert Camus Essay Example For Students

The Stranger By Albert Camus Essay In The Stranger, Albert Camus portrays Meursault, the books narrator and main character, as aloof, detached, and unemotional. He does not think much about events or their consequences, nor does he express much feeling in relationships or during emotional times. He displays an impassiveness throughout the book in his reactions to the people and events described in the book. After his mothers death he sheds no tears; seems to show no emotions. He displays limited feelings for his girlfriend, Marie Cardona, and shows no remorse at all for killing an Arab. His reactions to life and to people distances him from his emotions, positive or negative, and from intimate relationships with others, thus he is called by the books title, the stranger. While this behavior can be seen as a negative trait, there is a young woman who seems to want to have a relationship with Meursault and a neighbor who wants friendship. He seems content to be indifferent, possibly protected from pain by his indifferen ce. Meursault rarely shows any feeling when in situations which would, for most people, elicit strong emotions. Throughout the vigil, watching over his mothers dead body, and at her funeral, he never cries. He is, further, depicted enjoying a cup of coffee with milk during the vigil, and having a smoke with a caretaker at the nursing home in which his mother died. The following day, after his mothers funeral, he goes to the beach and meets a former colleague named Marie Cardona. They swim, go to a movie, and then spend the night together. Later in their relationship, Marie asks Meursault if he wants to marry her. He responds that it doesnt matter to him, and if she wants to get married, he would agree. She then asks him if he loves her. To that question he responds that he probably doesnt, and explains that marriage really isnt such a serious thing and doesnt require love. This reaction is fairly typical of Meursault as portrayed in the book. He appears to be casual and indifferent about life events. Nothing seems to be very significant to him. Later on in the book, after he kills an Arab, not once does he show any remorse or guilt for what he did. Did he really feel nothing? Camus seems to indicate that Meursault is almost oblivious and totally unruffled and untouched by events and people around him. He is unwilling to lie, during his trial, about killing the Arab. His reluctance to get involved in defending himself results in a verdict of death by guillotine. Had Meursault been engaged in his defense, explaining his actions, he might have been set free. Meursaults unresponsive behavior, distant from any apparent emotions, is probably reinforced by the despair which he sees open and feeling individuals experience. He observes, for example, Raymond cheated on and hurt by a girlfriend, and sees his other neighbor, Salamano, very depressed when he loses a dear companion, his dog. Meursaults responses are very different, he doesnt get depressed at death nor does he get emotionally involved. He appears to be totally apathetic. Thus, he seems to feel no pain and is protected from lifes disappointments. Sometimes a person like Meursault can be appealing to others because he is so non-judgmental and uncritical, probably a result of indifference rather than sympathetic feelings. His limited involvement might attract some people because an end result of his distance is a sort of acceptance of others, thus he is not a threat to their egos. Raymond Sintes, a neighbor who is a pimp, seems to feel comfortable with Meursault. Sintes does not have to justify himself because Meursault doesnt comment on how Sintes makes money or how he chooses to live his life. Even though Meursault shows no strong emotions or deep affection, Marie, his girlfriend, is still attracted and interested in him. She is aware of, possibly even fascinated by, his indifference. Despite the seemingly negative qu .u66db502d78ac814b35946a97b70fb011 , .u66db502d78ac814b35946a97b70fb011 .postImageUrl , .u66db502d78ac814b35946a97b70fb011 .centered-text-area { min-height: 80px; position: relative; } .u66db502d78ac814b35946a97b70fb011 , .u66db502d78ac814b35946a97b70fb011:hover , .u66db502d78ac814b35946a97b70fb011:visited , .u66db502d78ac814b35946a97b70fb011:active { border:0!important; } .u66db502d78ac814b35946a97b70fb011 .clearfix:after { content: ""; display: table; clear: both; } .u66db502d78ac814b35946a97b70fb011 { display: block; transition: background-color 250ms; webkit-transition: background-color 250ms; width: 100%; opacity: 1; transition: opacity 250ms; webkit-transition: opacity 250ms; background-color: #95A5A6; } .u66db502d78ac814b35946a97b70fb011:active , .u66db502d78ac814b35946a97b70fb011:hover { opacity: 1; transition: opacity 250ms; webkit-transition: opacity 250ms; background-color: #2C3E50; } .u66db502d78ac814b35946a97b70fb011 .centered-text-area { width: 100%; position: relative ; } .u66db502d78ac814b35946a97b70fb011 .ctaText { border-bottom: 0 solid #fff; color: #2980B9; font-size: 16px; font-weight: bold; margin: 0; padding: 0; text-decoration: underline; } .u66db502d78ac814b35946a97b70fb011 .postTitle { color: #FFFFFF; font-size: 16px; font-weight: 600; margin: 0; padding: 0; width: 100%; } .u66db502d78ac814b35946a97b70fb011 .ctaButton { background-color: #7F8C8D!important; color: #2980B9; border: none; border-radius: 3px; box-shadow: none; font-size: 14px; font-weight: bold; line-height: 26px; moz-border-radius: 3px; text-align: center; text-decoration: none; text-shadow: none; width: 80px; min-height: 80px; background: url(https://artscolumbia.org/wp-content/plugins/intelly-related-posts/assets/images/simple-arrow.png)no-repeat; position: absolute; right: 0; top: 0; } .u66db502d78ac814b35946a97b70fb011:hover .ctaButton { background-color: #34495E!important; } .u66db502d78ac814b35946a97b70fb011 .centered-text { display: table; height: 80px; padding-left : 18px; top: 0; } .u66db502d78ac814b35946a97b70fb011 .u66db502d78ac814b35946a97b70fb011-content { display: table-cell; margin: 0; padding: 0; padding-right: 108px; position: relative; vertical-align: middle; width: 100%; } .u66db502d78ac814b35946a97b70fb011:after { content: ""; display: block; clear: both; } READ: Animal Satire Essay

Arguing Both Sides- Gay Marriage free essay sample

The issue of gay marriage stirs up controversy, which makes it a national problem. Although some states, and many people, now accept gay marriage, gays still face many obstacles. Now that gay marriage Is allowed, the fight to legalize gay adoption grows. Even though the Idea of gay couples has become more accepted across the united States, gays adopting children remains a major controversial Issue. Occurring since American colonial times, adoption provides children for childless couples. Back then, adoptive parents were protected from dealing with infertility and acing the differences between being a parent through adoption versus being a parent by birth. Objections to adoption did not exist during colonial times as long as adoptive parents provided care and support for the child. Therefore, parents who properly care for adopted children were assured no judgment or speculation would rise. The primary objection to gay adoption today is that it goes against nature, which says the primary caregivers for children should be the man and woman who created the child. We will write a custom essay sample on Arguing Both Sides- Gay Marriage or any similar topic specifically for you Do Not WasteYour Time HIRE WRITER Only 13.90 / page In cases where a child constantly switches to dfferent foster homes as pposed to a stable home run by a gay Individual or couple, a caring person must choose the latter. The only method of conception for human beings requires Involvement of both a male and a female. Gays and Infertile heterosexual couples turn to child adoption when wanting to start a family. Opposers of gay adoption believe that marriage without the potential to reproduce is a sin. Discriminants think that if you cannot reproduce naturally, you are not meant to have children. People against gays refer to the bible which says a man will be united to his wife. However, God created gays as well and anti-discrimination laws declare that gays and heterosexuals should be treated equally. As stated in the Declaration of Independence, all men are created equal. Adoption means to legally bring someone into your family and raise them like you would your own child. Adopting a child involves the creation of a parent-child relationship between individuals who are not naturally related. A childs best interests are the most Important factors considered during adoption. The type of person allowed to adopt children, however, continues to cause heated debates. In the essay Counterpoint: In Defense of Gay and Lesbian Parents, John Pearson provides support for gay couples wanting to be parents. Pearson is a novelist who was educated at Kings College School. The essay Point: Children Suffer with Same-Sex Couples, written by Lynn-nore Chittom and co-written by Geraldine Wagner, opposes what Pearson supports about gay adoption. Chittom is a self-employed freelance writer. Wagner is a graduate of the State university of New York at Fredonia, teaching sociology and technical and professional writing. Pearson states, A huge number of Americans that might make excellent parents are being enied the legal right to adopt (Pearson, par. 5). There are many different types of families In the United States. Some examples are as follows: step families, single parent families, and adoptive families and so on. Therefore, Pearson wonders why heterosexual families and Individuals should be thought to be able to provide better care and surroundings for a child than a gay or lesbian couple. Nearly 520,000 children await adoption in foster care, but each year only 50,000 find permanent adoption by gays could potentially raise the number of children who find a home. When making a decision on adoption, Pearson believes aspects like a familys lifestyle and ability to care for a child should be more important than the sexual preference of who wants to adopt the child (Pearson, par. ). On the flip side of the argument, Chittom talks about how children are best reared in environments with both a mother and a father, referring to the Fifth Amendment which clearly states Honor your father and your mother. (Chittom, par. 4). However, many gay couples form more stable relationships than heterosexual couples. Pearson opposes Chittom with he idea gays may be even better at child-rearing because gays are n ot raising a child conceived on accident, but rather one fought to obtain. Opposers of gay marriage strongly believe gay partners cannot care for a child as well as heterosexual partners. Meanwhile, activists strongly believe gay partners are able to care for a child Just as well, or even better than heterosexual partners. Whereas, sociologists and psychologists question whether or not children exposed to only one gender will be raised with a balanced understanding of gender roles and personal gender identity Chittom, par. 6). Children with a single heterosexual parent face the same situation. Even so, some argue children raised in a family with parents of only one sex are more likely to become gay when older. Gay adoption puts children who are already compromised from their experience in the foster care system at even greater risk of trauma (Chittom, par. 1). Pearson maintains there is nothing to support that children being raised in a loving family are harmed in any way by their parents sexual orientation. Pearson believes no child should be denied a home Just because of the exual orientation of the parents wanting to adopt.

Confusing Passed with Past

Confusing Passed with Past Confusing Passed with Past Confusing Passed with Past By Maeve Maddox Reader Peggy Lanahan asks Is it correct to say, â€Å"how does the food always get passed the bib? or past the bib†? The frequent confusion between the words passed and past is understandable. They are pronounced alike and have similar meanings. Careful writers need to find some trick for remembering the difference. Both words derive from the same Latin noun: passus step, pace. From that noun came a Vulgar Latin verb passare to step or to walk. English took the word from Old French passer. The form passed is the past participle of the verb to pass. Pass can be used transitively: I passed the church on my way to the store. or intransitively: He passed through life without a care. Intransitive pass is also used as a euphemism for die, as in When did your father pass? The word past can be used as an adjective: Dont hold grudges for past offenses. as an adverb: I thought he would stop, but he just ran past. and as a preposition: How does the food always get past the bib? For more on Past vs Passed, read this post by Ali. Want to improve your English in five minutes a day? Get a subscription and start receiving our writing tips and exercises daily! Keep learning! Browse the Misused Words category, check our popular posts, or choose a related post below:English Grammar 101: All You Need to Know40 Synonyms for â€Å"Lie†12 Misunderstood and Misquoted Shakespearean Expressions

Selfawareness and career management feedbaack Essay

Selfawareness and career management feedbaack - Essay Example Personal Career Strategy The personal career strategy will discuss about my personality type and the career that will match my personality. There are various tools and techniques to understand personality characteristics of a person. In this paper, ten tools and techniques have been explained to understand what type of personality characteristics match a person’s career. 1.1 Four Overlapping Career Competency There are five competencies for career development. It includes accountability and ownership, which means that at the individual viewpoint, it needs initiative and presumes personal accountability for objectives, results and deadlines. The individuals need to develop specific work goals in order to attain business results. Another competency is analytical thinking that means the ability to consider critically as well as systematically information related to the job. ‘Challenges the status quo’ is another competency which refers that growth and development of an individual along with organisation is based on the capability of the employees to modify their conventional thinking. The competency collaboration or integration denotes that for developing opportunities across the whole organisation, the individuals are required to think and work collaboratively. Communication or persuasion refers that for success of an individual, strong communication along with skill are essential (Nash, 1998). I have experienced this gradual development of career opportunities throughout the five years during which I had been working in the HR department for an organization. My experience taught me the lesson that realizing the personal career competencies is more important than anything else for an individual. In the development process of career opportunities, we should focus comprehensively on the identification of our competencies. 1.2 Holland Hexagon John Holland’s hexagonal model describes the relationship between the personality types of a perso n related to the environment. There are six key personality types which include realistic, social, artistic, investigative, enterprising and conventional. People who select their work environment in relation to their personality are likely to be more successful than others (Career Key, 2011). Realistic refers to the people who possess high-quality of physical skill but they may face trouble while communicating with others. They provide preference over things rather than dealing with people or ideas. Investigative people are task oriented and provide interest to take responsibilities that provide them with opportunities in their work. Artistic people prefer to work in artistic environment and are extremely structured. Social personality types prefer to contact with others and want to solve problem through discussion. Such people are good leaders and are cheerful and take responsibilities that provide them opportunity to relate to others. Enterprising people are energetic, self-confid ent, dominant, challenging and prefer to work in expensive setting. Conventional personality typ

Homework Assignment Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 250 words - 11

Homework - Assignment Example For example a person who is in a bad financial situation will not be interested with the energy drink. Psychological factors include things like attitude and perception. For example, some people view energy drinks as unhealthy and un natural hence such people will not be interested in the drink. As a marketer, it is my duty to take advantage of these influences to make sure the energy drink gets a lot of consumers. I will do this by packaging the product in such a way it appeals to all social classes. This will ensure that all people from all social classes buy the drink. Considering the current economic times, I would also set the price of the energy drink to be as low as possible. This is to allow for people to afford it as it is certain that many people are facing economic hardships at this time. Hence the energy drink will attract a lot of consumers While advertising the product I will also make sure that all details of the drink are included in the advertisement. This includes sugar levels if any and advantages of the drink. This is to make sure that people understand the drink fully. This will help deal with psychological perception people have about energy

BINGE DRINKING Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1500 words

BINGE DRINKING - Essay Example The effects of binge drinking are harmful not only to the social and professional life but also to the physical health of a person. Hence, preventing young people from developing the habit of binge drinking is extremely essential. It is important to note that the study of risk factors have shown that binge drinking is more of a lifestyle related problem. Binge drinking is considered as a ‘courageous’ and ‘macho’ thing to do and hence, is taken as a challenge by aggressive young people. It is the desire to live a thrilling life that leads to binge drinking. Hence, if binge drinking is to be reduced or prevented among adolescents and young adults, then immediate and essential steps are needed to be taken by authoritative bodies to make changes in the college environment, and form some strict rules as it is the desire of enjoying a rash and dangerous lifestyle that leads young people to indulge in binge drinking. Definition Throughout the world, binge drinking is defined differently (Tischler 29). In Sweden, binge drinking is defined as â€Å"drinking a half bottle of hard liquor or two bottles of wine on one occasion† (Tischler 29). For Italians, having even eight drinks a day is not binging (Tischler 29). English people think that a person can be called a binge drinker only when he has 11 or more drinks on one occasion (Tischler 29). This shows that the definition of binge drinking differs on the basis of the amount of alcohol consumed on one occasion. In 1994, social psychologist Henry Wechsler defined binge drinking as â€Å"five or more drinks for men and four or more drinks for women† (Watson 98). According to Wechsler, when men take five or more drinks in one sitting and women take four or more drinks in one sitting, then they are said to be indulging in binge drinking (Watson 101). However, some groups refused this definition as they say that the factor of amount of time over which the drinks were consumed is not ref lected in the definition (Watson 101). This definition was modified to include the factor of short time in binge drinking. According to the National Institute of Alcoholism and Alcohol Abuse, binge drinking is defined as â€Å"5 or more drinks for males and 4 or more drinks for females in a 2-hour period† (Kearney and Trull 249). From the definition, it is clear that when alcohol is consumed in large amount on one occasion, then it creates fatal results. The effects of binge drinking are extremely dangerous. Effects of binge drinking Studies have shown that binge drinking affects young people in very serious way. It not only affects their performance at schools, colleges or work, but also prove to be life threatening. Binge drinking is known to kill people as it has the potential to affect the functioning of the body in serious ways. Some of the negative effects of binge drinking are discussed below. Negative impact on academic performance One of the wrong understandings that lead to binge drinking is the idea of ‘occasional drinking.’ Young people tend to forget that it is by getting into a trap of ‘occasional drinking’ or ‘few drinks’ that one usually becomes addicted to binge drinking. People lose control and never realize when they crossed the limits of ‘few drinks’ or ‘once in a while’ (Alagna 29). It has been found in one of the national studies that the rate of educational, social and health problems are higher in students who

The Street | A Rose for Emily | A Story of an Hour | Themes

The Street | A Rose for Emily | A Story of an Hour | Themes The process of evaluating and interpreting literature is to understand what type of philosophy it presents and to compare our own values with the text. Since literature enlightens and entertains, the text draws readers into its artistic worlds. In addition, certain factors in literature affect the readers assumption about the reading, such as character, setting, or theme. This paper will address a theme comparison between one poem and two short stories. Evaluations and interpretations are essential tools, which are constructive aspects in the literary connection process. More importantly, these viewpoints help us to think critically about the text details and dialect (DiYanni, 2007 p. 7). According to Octavio Pazs The Street, William Faulkners A Rose for Emily, and Kate Chopins A Story of an Hour, isolation was the common theme within their stories. Moreover, these literary works consist of feelings of lonesomeness in the major characters within their text. For example, the theme for these three literary works depicts lonely thoughts and isolated settings. The following characterizations are based on comparing literary works: observing and interpreting. Although there are themes that are mutual in various literary works, what type of connection and distinction do they share? The Street, A Rose for Emily, A Story of an Hour Similarities Observing and comparing literature is to explore the similarities of the stories. For instance, the poem The Street has a similar thematic idea of loneliness, to the following two short stories, A Rose for Emily and A Story for an Hour. In The Street, the poet describes a feeling of a mans journey down a dark street. The passage, Everything dark and doorless, only my steps aware of me (DiYanni, 2007), illustrates that the atmosphere was gloomy and lack privacy. Since it is not clear why this character was alone in the street, some thoughts/questions did come to mind, such as was this person homeless, was this person mentally challenged or did this person just in need of alone time? Moreover, an illustrative phrase in this poem somewhat describes the characters frame of mind. For instance, if I run, he runs, I turn: nobody, (DiYanni, 2007). A general assumption of this wording would be; was someone actually following him or was it only his shadow? In general, this characters role in T he Street encountered an emotive stroll down a long and still street, which appears to be an illustration of a solitude tone. Similar to the solitude theme of The Street, the concept of loneliness and isolation are revealed in the short story, A Rose for Emily as an expressive description of Emilys life after death of her father and lover. The writer expresses how Emilys attitude transformed, physically and emotionally. Emily, the major character, experienced isolation after the death of her father. For instance, the authors language suggested that after her fathers death, Emily did not care to interact with other people in the community and decided to live in her only little world. DiYanni (2007) state that After her fathers death she went out very littleà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦people hardly saw her at all (p. 80). According to this phrase, isolation was Emilys innermost mind-set, which was her way of coping calamity. In comparison with character in The Street, the thought of mentally challenge or insane came to mind when Emily wanted to buy a toxic item from the pharmacist. Since Emily never mentioned why she need ed the poison, and since Emily remained indoors often after her fathers death, her actions did trigger a curious question-what was Emily planning to do with such a deadly element. Ideally, living a lonely and isolated life could cause an emotional way of thinking. Another story that shares the solitude theme as in the short poem The Street is A Story of an Hour. The writer tells a story about a woman who isolated herself after hearing the news that her husband has died in a train accident. Ms. Mallard, the main character, expressed her emotions after the news of her husbands death. Hence, Ms. Mallards reaction to the report caused a feeling of isolation-similar to The Street and A Rose for Emily character, a solitary event. After Ms. Mallard breaks down and cries, she goes to her room to be alone. DiYanni (2007) notes that When [her weeping was over,] she went away to her room alone. She would not have no one follow her (p.38). The Street, A Rose for Emily, A Story of an Hour Differences As for another method for comparing these three literary works is to detect their theme differences. A noticeable distinction that did stand out among all three literary works, were the characters gender. The major characters in A Rose for Emily and A Story of an Hour are women; however, the major/solo character in The Street was a male. Although the author of The Street made no clear reference of the name of the main character that was walking in the street alone, the writers of A Rose for Emily and The story of an Hour, Emily and Mrs. Mallard were the names of main characters who shared a period of aloneness and sadness within their life. Furthermore, the ending of these literary works are different as well. The character in The Street remains in the street alone with no suggestion of a specific destination. As (DiYanni, 2007) points out, Poems stimulate our imaginations (p. 6). Therefore, the author- leading the outcome as a cliffhanger, implies guessing what happens next. Unlike the characters in A Rose for Emily and The Story of an Hour, their destination ends in death. Conclusion In summary, since the common theme in The Street, A Rose for Emily, and The Story for an Hour involves a feeling of aloneness as with the framework, the concept of being alone could be described in different ways. In other words, in comparing these themes, the isolated reactions of these characters derive from specific issues, such as sickness or death. Moreover, à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦to characterize the relationship of [literary works,]à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦the cause leading to effect [and] external event triggering [the] internal response ((DiYanni, 2007, p. 7), should determine their similarities and differences. On a final note, the most interesting idea among the three preceding literary works was how the author expressed the characters emotions through their thoughts and actions. In other words, the writers intention is to emphasize what the event would say, which would eventually reveal his or her goal-the theme of the story. Similarities  · Is similar to  · Both  · Also  · Too  · As well  · Like Differences  · On the other hand  · However  · But  · Although  · Unlike  · While Cue Words Cue words and other tips To help your reader keep track of where you are in the comparison/contrast, youll want to be sure that your transitions and topic sentences are especially strong. Your thesis should already have given the reader an idea of the points youll be making and the organization youll be using, but you can help her/him out with some extra cues. The following words may be helpful to you in signaling your intentions: like, similar to, also, unlike, similarly, in the same way, likewise, again, compared to, in contrast, in like manner, contrasted with, on the contrary, however, although, yet, even though, still, but, nevertheless, conversely, at the same time, regardless, despite, while, on the one hand à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦ on the other hand. For example, you might have a topic sentence like one of these: Compared to Peppers, Amante is quiet. Like Amante, Peppers offers fresh garlic as a topping. Despite their different locations (downtown Chapel Hill and downtown Carrboro), Peppers and Amante are both fairly easy to get to. Like in any essay, finish your essay by summarizing the points you made in the body. Ex: Although each is a commercially grown tree fruit, growing temperatures and differences in processing apples and oranges clearly makes a distinction between the two fruits. Appropriate use of transitions and cue words help make your essay conclusion easy to summarize. Writing a contrast and compare and essay is as easy as comparing apples and oranges!

The Israel-Palestine Conflict Essay -- Middle East Politics History

Judaism and Islam are two of the world's oldest, and largest monotheistic religions. These religions share a variety of customs, beliefs, and practices. At the same time, there are enough differences that make these two clash. Even those similarities between the two have been the source of conflict for thousands of years. Although there are many conflicts going on in this particular moment in the middle east, I have chosen the ongoing conflict involving Israel and Palestine, primarily due to the death of Yasser Arafat. Primarily, I believe that unless there is a resolution of this conflict, there will never be peace in this portion of the world, and there will always exist a threat to world stability and peace. The history of the Palestinians and the Israelis date back many centuries. Judea was the home of the Jewish ancestry. Judea was conquered by the Romans and renamed Palestine. Palestine was later conquered and inhabited by the Arabs for over a thousand years. The Zionist movement arose to restore the Jews to Israel ignoring the existing Arab population. Towards the end of World War 1, the British government decided to endorse the creation of a Jewish home in Palestine. The decision was made public in a letter from Lord Arthur Balfour addressed to a lead British Zionist, Lord Rothschild. The contents of Balfour's letter which became formally known as the "Balfour Declaration." The Balfour Declaration was drafted with the assistance of United States Presisent Woodrow Wilson, who was a strong supporter of Zionism. Britain saw the need to protect the sea route to India, where most of Britain's economy relied upon. Supporting Zionism was known to be the easiest way of securing lasting British influence of the east regi... ...ty that existence can't be proven, there aren't many options for peace and soverignity. I agree excessively with Mr. Nabil Abuznaid. It takes his kind of optimism and aspirations for both sides to work in unison with each other in solving this world travesty and conflict. I strongly believe that the holy lands held by Israel and Palestine must be shared respectively and held with freedom. In order to do so, terrorist fundamentalists can not be tolerated. With the fall of Yasser Arafat, Israel must continue to rule with a leader of optimism. The United Nations must do all that is needed to work in concert with those of Israel and Arab countries. What we all must do, is educate ourselves to try to accept those of different religions and continue to look for some sort of compromise. Without doing this, there will not be a resolution to withhold world stability and peace.

Columbine Book Report (1-100)

Columbine by Dave Cullen (pages 1-100) I. Summary Columbine High School (CHS) is a suburban public school located in Jefferson County, Colorado. Frank DeAngelis, a middle aged man who had previously coached football and baseball for sixteen years at Columbine, was the principal of the close-knit high school. He was loved by his students and admired by his staff for his ability to address his students as mature adults. The student body looked up to him and appreciated his truthfulness and lack of sugarcoating when serious topics were being discussed.Three days before prom an assembly was called to strengthen the awareness of the dangers of driving under the influence of drugs or alcohol. Instead of just lecturing the students Mr. DeAngelis used his own life experiences to teach and guide the students along the safe paths that still allowed for occasional goofing off. The author, Dave Cullen, then jerks the focus of the book to the teenage boys who would later kill twelve students, one teacher, and severely wound twenty-three of their peers.Eric Harris and Dlyan Klebold were the typical high school students, albeit they had some distinctive quirks that set them aside from the rest of their peers. Eric Harris was a psychopath; this fact allowed him to commit a terrible crime without feeling empathy or remorse for his victims. However, on the outside he was anything but antisocial (or criminal). Eric smoke, drank, dated—all within a close circle of friends. Yet, he was excellent at manipulation. His lies were so finely tuned that even his ex-military father suspected nothing. Eric received a slew of A’s from his teachers; every single one of them considered him a â€Å"good kid†.No one ever suspected that anything as devastating or horrifying could erupt from such a well-rounded kid from a nice family. This is why Dave Cullen’s description of Dylan Klebold who â€Å"tried extremely hard to emulate Eric† was not mistaken. Although Dylan was considerably smarter than Eric, Eric seemed to have a hold on Dylan’s authentically shy demeanor. Dylan, being more self-conscious, latched onto Eric’s strong personality that radiated confidence. Moreover, Dylan was suicidally depressed, which left him vulnerable to Eric’s manipulative ways. II. AnalysisUnderstanding who the perpetrators were behind the Columbine shooting continues to be the most compelling theme dictated throughout the entirety of the first one hundred pages of Dave Cullen’s masterpiece Columbine. Eric Harris and Dylan Klebold were both unbelievably smart teens who had shared an impossible friendship held together by a mutual dislike of society. Although sharing this bond, by no means were they alike—which is why their association with each other astounds investigators to this day. Neither of the boys came from broken families or had diagnosed issues that could have raised a red flag to anyone paying close enough attent ion.Eric had a small police record for blowing up illegal fireworks, but that was the extent of his â€Å"criminal† records. Dylan was even less on the (philosophical) radar. He was naturally quiet, yet more aware of his surroundings. If Dylan had not known Eric, it is guaranteed that the damage he did would only be to himself. Dylan never would have taken the lives of other people if he had succeeded in taking his own life first. This is thoroughly discussed by the author for a significant amount of each chapter. Eric’s initial influence on Dylan drastically increases when they start making plans for the massacre.The now copious amounts of time the boys spent together deepened the influence they had on each other, but Dylan seemed overwhelmed throughout the entirety of the author’s writing. Dylan’s clothing style, taste in music, taste in girls, and his general interests appeared to mirror Eric’s as progression through the hundred page section was made. Dylan inevitably lost what little he had of his individuality. III. Personal Opinion I am thoroughly enjoying Dave Cullen’s Columbine. This book took ten years to write; I completely understand why he waited and appreciate the time he took to methodically research the Columbine Massacre.The way Cullen embeds his research into a fast paced storyline is flawless and it continues to inspire me to learn and use the same technique. By clearly writing â€Å"But nothing separated the boys’ personalities like a run-in with authority. Dylan would be hyperventilating, Eric calmly calculating. Eric’s cool head steered them clear of most trouble†¦Ã¢â‚¬ , Cullen clearly illustrates subtle personality differences in a way that also depicts what kind of lives they led. I'm not saying that run-ins with the police happened frequently (it’s actually quite on the contrary), however the clarity is refreshing.A reader can move along without tripping over words t hat are weakly juxtaposed together. One aspect of Dave Cullen’s writing intrigues me more than anything. The way he smoothly transitions between the past and present allows for careful plot lines to thoroughly develop into an interesting piece of careful, intelligent research that includes incredible diction. In a passage on page nineteen Cullen writes â€Å"Most nights included an open-mike period, where you could watch an aging drunk strum ‘Stairway to Heaven,’ segue into the Gilligan’s Island theme, and forget the words. , Cullen’s dry tone brings humor to the carefully written sentence. IV. Quote Response â€Å"Eric was always a dreamer, but he liked them ugly: bleak and morose, yet boring as hell. He saw beauty in the void. Eric dreamed of a world where nothing ever happened. A world where the rest of us had been removed†¦. Anger turned inwards equals depression. Dylan Klebold was not a man of action. He was conscripted by a boy who was. † (page 45) This quote accurately describes each of the boys’ personalities in a simple yet dignified way.Analyzing the boys themselves becomes easier when you have a glimpse into their psyche. Part of Cullen’s research actually included reading journals written by Eric and Dylan, so theories that are drawn or compiled by Cullen are that much more reliable. Although these are still opinions there is hard evidence that this quote developed from, which is why it is the most important quote within the first one hundred pages. Knowledge that Eric was considered â€Å"a dreamer† is particularly helpful to the reader.Habitually being in your own world (head) leads to some level of development of an antisocial demeanor, however Eric was anything but antisocial. This is an interesting variable that further complicates the question of Why?. Conversely, Dylan was shy and not as confident. Cullen does not state this in the quote specifically. When Cullen writes Dyla n â€Å"was conscripted by a boy who was†, the interpretation is partly left to the reader’s understanding of the phrase â€Å"a boy who was†. Dylan was just there; no purpose or goal, he just was†¦.

Absurdism

1 This thesis has been approved by The Honors Tutorial College and the School of Theater Dr. William F. Condee Director of Studies, Theater Tutorial Program Thesis Advisor Dr. Angela Ahlgren Visiting Assistant Professor Thesis Advisor Jeremy Webster Dean, Honors Tutorial College 2 HAPPY DAYS: A MODERN WOMAN’S APPROACH TO ABSURDISM THROUGH FEMINIST THEATER THEORY A Thesis Presented to The Honors Tutorial College Ohio University In Partial Fulfilment Of the Requirements for Graduation From The Honors Tutorial College With the degree of Bachelor of Fine Arts in TheaterBy: Rachel Collins 3 Table Of Contents Introduction †¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦.. †¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦4 On Absurdism†¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦ †¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦ 6 On Beckett†¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦ 10 Happy Days Production History†¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦. 16 Feminist Theater†¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦. †¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦18 Beckett and Gender (Happy Days)†¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦. 23 Happy Days in Performance: A Feminist Perspective (Process)†¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦. 34 Happy Days in Performance: Reflection†¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚ ¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦ 40 Conclusion†¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦48 Annotated Bibliography†¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦. 52 Creative SupplementaryMaterials†¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦ †¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦59 Happy Days Rehearsal Notes†¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦. †¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦ †¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦.. 59 Happy Days Rehearsal Script†¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦. †¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚ ¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦74 Happy Days Program and Event Flier†¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦ 92 Happy Days Production Photos†¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦.. 94 4 Introduction This thesis examines the character of Winnie in Samuel Beckett’s Happy Days through performance and the lens of feminist theory and critique. In the wake of the Second World War, a number of artists in Europe attempted to find meaning in what some considered a meaningless world.The war had ravaged Europe, and it was difficult to find hope across the continent. Many artists during this time were concerned with existentialist ideas. These new social constructs led dramatists to experiment with new forms, which dealt with these existentialist philosophies through a dramatic medium. These forms experimented with l anguage, de-railed linear plotlines, and placed characters in bizarre situations. Martin Esslin, the producerjournalist turned scholar, coined the phrase â€Å"the Theatre of the Absurd† in his book of the same title. One of the major writers of this new form of drama was Samuel Beckett.Since Beckett’s plays began to be performed in the 1950’s, theater critics have typically viewed performances of Beckett’s works through the lens of existentialism, and his style prompted many to consider him an absurdist. Absurdist theories were able to frame the dramatic works for that time, but as the social constructs of Western culture, especially those concerning women, have changed, so has dramatic criticism of women. As half a century has passed since the initial writing of Beckett’s plays, it is important to consider them, especially those with strong female characters, through a modern feminist critique.Beckett’s writing took place during the second women’s movement. The Second World War had changed people’s views on morality, and society was forced to 5 redefine its standards. Before the First World War, class structure in Europe was rigidly defined. People â€Å"knew their place† and the gap between the rich and the poor was almost un-crossable. The war created opportunities for the lower class to advance in social position, but once it was over, society attempted to return to its pre-War structure. This cycle happened again after the Second World War.During the war, oppressed peoples in Europe were allowed to do things that they hadn’t been able to previously, but once it was over they were expected to return to their place in society. In Europe these people, including racial and religious minorities, the working class, and women, were fed up with these constraints. Women in particular strove to gain more equality in the job market and other venues. Beckett was in the interesting position of writ ing in the midst of this social revolution. In many ways, he was very familiar with the old world and traditions, where women’s place in society was subservient to her husband.But he was also looking forward to what the future could bring. His work in many ways anticipated the second women’s movement. Beckett’s early dramatic works are filled with male characters. Each of these men is attempting to answer the most basic of life’s questions: Who are we and why are we here? However, it was not until 1961 with Happy Days that he gave the stage over completely to the voice of a woman. In Waiting for Godot, Endgame, and Krapp’s Last Tape, women were not given a strong voice on the stage’s playing space. With Happy Days and the character of Winnie, Beckett gave women a voice in his work.Traditionally, Happy Days has been viewed through an existentialist lens, much in the same way that Beckett’s other works are 6 viewed. This study, however, attempts to re-frame Happy Days through a new set of scholarly examinations: the ideas of feminist theory and theatrical performance. Through scholarly research and performance of the piece, I looked at this important work from a new perspective. In the twenty-first century, an actress cannot approach the part with the same background as a woman playing the role in the early 1960’s.While it is important to look at plays within the historical context and tradition in which they were originally performed, this view limits the performer. If one was to only look at a piece of work historically and not interpret it using modern approaches, theater would, I believe, eventually become stale and no longer relevant to the world other than from a historical museum. Happy Days needs a new evaluation. It is time to examine it through the eyes of a modern-day woman, because that is the person who will be performing this role today.On Absurdism Absurdism was a deviation from traditional F rench theater but not conscience movement in itself. At the beginning of the twentieth century the avant-garde movement was regarded in the same vein as the symbolists of the late nineteenth century: their art was attempting to achieve the same results. Symbolists were reacting against the naturalist and realist forms of art and believed that the only way to represent the truth and meaning of life was to do it indirectly, instead of through exact imitation of reality.Much of the world was trying to recover after two large-scale wars. During the late 1940’s and the 1950’s, the French were interested in looking at the past for inspiration for their drama. Myths, legends, and symbols were primarily 7 used as subject matter. Particular emphasis was placed on the structure of language, for â€Å"the ‘poetic avant-garde’ represent[ed] a different mood; it is more lyrical, and far less violent and grotesque† than the theater of the absurd (Esslin 25). Prod uctions tackled the mystery of dreams and desire through traditional dramatic conventions.Paris, which has been the cradle of a number of new artistic movements, was the birthplace for new schools of thought, and the avant-garde of Paris drama â€Å" is this part of the ‘anti-literary’ movement of our time, which has found its expression in abstract painting, with its rejection of ‘literary’ elements in pictures; or in the ‘new novel’ in France, with its reliance on the description of objects and its rejection of empathy and anthropomorphism† (Esslin 26). Theater artists realized that this was an important advancement for their art form as well, and began to experiment with these forms through dramatic constructs.Esslin choose the word â€Å"absurd† to describe these plays based on the word’s definition, which means â€Å"out of harmony with reason or propriety; incongruous, unreasonable, illogical† (Esslin 23). The work of the absurdist playwrights, including Samuel Beckett, Eugene Ionesco, Harold Pinter, Edward Albee, Tom Stoppard, and David Mamet, carry these attributes. Most of these dramatists claimed they are not trying to be â€Å"absurdist. † Even Esslin, who coined the phrase, states that â€Å"the writers in question [are] individuals[s] who regard themselves as lone outsiders, cut off and isolated in his private world† (22).This phrase has, however, been accepted widely to describe plays of this type, because the authors in question â€Å"can be seen as the 8 reflection of what seems to be the attitude most genuinely representative of that era in style, execution, and philosophy† (Esslin 22-23). Esslin borrowed these notions of existentialism from the ideas of Jean-Paul Sartre and Albert Camus. Camus’ essay â€Å"The Myth of Sisyphus† (1942) deals with existential issues, such as a lack of a God or omnipotent presence and fixed moral standards. Thro ughout the essay he stages an argument around suicide to examine what he considers the absurdity of life.In short, he believes that â€Å"the absurd enlightens [himself] on this point: there is no future† (Camus 58). He delves into the idea that life has no true purpose, and even when many humans discover how mundane life is, they still choose to continue living. Esslin quotes Camus: A world that can be explained by reasoning, however faulty, is a familiar world. But in a universe that is suddenly deprived of illusions and of light, man feels a stranger. His is an irremediable exile, because he is deprived of memories of a lost homeland as much as he lacks the hope of a promised land to come.This divorce between man and his life, the actor and his setting, truly constitutes the feeling of absurdity. (Camus qtd. in Esslin 18) With these ideas of man’s insignificant place in the world, humans, not God, determine their own existence. In the absence of the influence of a h igher power, there is no longer any certainty in an afterlife, or in anything, as humans are fallible beings. This then creates a philosophy that is based more on the individual versus the collective. Sartre on the other hand explains a more hopeful interpretation of existentialism.While Camus stresses the human’s inability to break the cycle of absurdity, Sartre asserts that humans are absurd because their free will always puts 9 them in complete control of their fate. In his book Existentialism and Human Emotions, Sartre asserts: Man is condemned to be free. Condemned, because he did not create himself, yet, in other respects is free; because once thrown into the world, he is responsible for everything he does. The existentialist does not believe in the power of passion. He will never agree that a sweeping passion is a ravaging torrent which fatally leads a man to certain acts and is therefore an excuse.He thinks that man is responsible for his passion (Sartre 23). A person is therefore in complete control of his or her own destiny. There is no God, so there is no set of doctrines or moral code to follow. The only thing that one has to rely upon is his or herself, and that reliance is what creates absurdity. Life has no meaning, because â€Å"before you come alive, life is nothing; it’s up to you to give it a meaning, and value is nothing else but the meaning that you choose† (Sartre 49). Therefore, life is meaningless unless one chooses to give it meaning.The philosophies of Camus and Sartre are critical to understanding the existential elements of the absurdist works. Another aspect of absurdism is that it attempts to create a world that accentuates the strange and bizarre. In short, it â€Å"strives to express its sense of the senselessness of the human condition and the inadequacy of the rational approach by the open abandonment of rational devices and discursive thought† (Esslin 24). It has a chaotic structure that creates th e illusion of an irrational universe. The plots are unclear, as well as the relationship between the characters.There is ambiguity in space, time, and relationships between characters. Words and phrases are repeated so that language itself becomes inadequate and incomprehensible. Reality is skewed so that the viewer does not know the difference between fact and fiction. Plays tend to be 10 cyclical in that they end in the same place they started. These never-ending cycles create an illusion of despair, and remind the audience how continually hopeless life can be. There is also a strong vaudevillian presence within absurdist drama: this creates an element of humour that therwise might be absent, and also highlights that as desperate as life can be, there are still moments of laughter within misery. The plays are funny and tragic at the same time, and they utilize traditional clowning techniques as well as orchestrated pauses to convey their messages. Therefore, â€Å"the Theatre of the Absurd has renounced arguing about the absurdity of the human condition; it merely presents it in being† (Esslin 25). Although absurdism is a widely defined genre, Beckett is considered by many scholars to be one of the pioneers of the form.When considering other playwrights and plays as absurdist, many scholars to this day compare the writers and works to Beckett’s canon. Therefore Beckett, although he does not consider himself to be an absurdist writer, is one of the major contributors to this style of theater. His works are numerous and his unique style is what brought absurdism to the forefront of dramatic movements of the late twentieth century. On Beckett Samuel Beckett was born in Dublin, Ireland in 1906 to Protestant middle-class parents. After he pursued his education in Ireland he was offered a teaching fellowship in Paris, which he accepted.There he met James Joyce and a variety of other artists. Joyce, impressed by Beckett, stated that â€Å"he thought Beckett had promise–a rare 11 gesture for him† (Alvarez 12). It was during the late 1940’s and into the early 1950’s that Beckett â€Å"began his lifelong association with Paris† and his fascination with the French language and linguistics in general. It was then that Beckett began writing; he published his first novel Murphy in 1938. After spending time in Ireland with his mother, Beckett returned to Paris when World War Two began.He volunteered for the Red Cross and was involved in the war in many ways, from helping with wounded soldiers, to joining radical political groups and trying to aide France’s war effort. He was forced to flee Paris when friends in a radical political group were arrested. Once the war ended, Beckett returned to Paris. It was during this post-war period that he wrote a number of dramatic works, including his most famous play, Waiting for Godot (Bair 381). After Godot Beckett wrote Endgame (1957) and Krapp’s La st Tape (1958). Shortly after the premier of Krapp he began writing Happy Days in October of 1960.Happy Days came at an interesting time in Beckett’s career: because of the success of Godot, Endgame, and Krapp, â€Å"celebrated playwrights, [and] other dramatists who studied his plays wanted to share their ideas, and in most cases, to pay him homage† (Bair 527). His new fame also caused rifts in Beckett’s personal life. He and his partner Suzanne Deschevaux-Dumesnil were planning on getting married, but wanted to keep the ceremony under wraps. They were making their relationship official because Beckett had realized current French law would not allow Suzanne to inherit the estate or his money if he were to die.They wanted to get married in England because â€Å"as an Irish citizen whose financial affairs were concentrated in 12 England, he had to be married there to insure the legality of the ceremony and Suzanne’s right to inherit his estate† (Bai r 530). However, since Beckett and Suzanne had been living in Paris, he had to reside in England for two weeks before the ceremony was legal, according to English law. During these few weeks, Beckett hid himself from the public eye in the Bristol Hotel and worked on his Happy Days manuscript. Like his early plays, Happy Days is an examination of life in an absurd situation.A woman, Winnie, is buried alive in an ant hill in a scorched landscape, while her husband Willie prattles around behind the landscape. Winnie is first buried up to her bosom and then to her neck in a large hill (presumably an abandoned ant hill, as one single emmet wanders the mound). She spends her days chatting about seemingly mundane nonsense, all with the hope that Willie might just be listening to her. While Winnie endures blistering heat, increased immobility, and a strident bell that keeps her from falling asleep, â€Å"she remains to the bitterest end, implacably optimistic and talkative† (Alvarez 108).Her unfailing hope in the future is both depressing and hopeful. It is her optimism that causes so many audience members to be moved by Winnie. In one Beckett biography, Diedre Bair asserts that as a result of Beckett’s increasing fame, Suzanne found it more difficult than usual to deal with her new husband. According to Bair: She resented his fame and felt that he should have made a more public acknowledgement of her important role in bringing it about. She wanted to be known as the helpmate who had made his success possible.He wanted nothing at all known about himself, least of all details which he considered of no more 13 than domestic import. He felt he had demonstrated his gratitude to her by marrying her when both considered the ceremony a mockery. (533) Bair believes the couple grew apart as the years passed: â€Å"They had nothing in common anymore, but neither thought of parting. Beckett began to envision their relationship as one in ineluctable bondage, and fr om then on, veiled references to their situation began to appear in his writing† (Bair 534).It is conceivable that much of the Happy Days plot was derived from his personal life, because it was written during the events surrounding his secret wedding. Other biographers, including James Knowleson, assert that Beckett and Suzanne had a loving relationship. While they were having problems in their small apartment, they felt if they moved to a bigger space they would have more time to live independently of each other. Therefore, Knowlson notes â€Å"the [bigger apartment] allowed them to live parts of their lives independently-without one disturbing the other, if he or she did not want to be disturbed† (423).Knowlson also mentions in this biography that Beckett had a mistress named Barbara during this part of his life, but that Beckett still felt (even though he waited almost a quarter of a century to marry her) that he was committed to Suzanne. In this account the marriage was troubled, but the couple was working through their problems. Because of their fiercely independent personalities, both wanted and desired independent space: their union worked best when there was a good combination of time together and time apart.It is this examination of Beckett’s married life that is pertinent to Happy Days, as Beckett’s view on the institution of marriage and lifelong commitment is explored throughout the text. 14 As Beckett is from Ireland and his English dialect is influenced by that country, Happy Days has Irish undertones in plot and form. While Beckett spent a majority of his life in France, his strongest ties were to his Irish roots. He was fascinated by the old ways or the old words that the Irish used, such as emmet (an ant). The way Beckett manipulates language is particularly Irish.Beckett’s use of the language is distinctive, utilizing traditional Irish techniques of â€Å"repetitive . . . words or sentences; . . . transforma tions, division, contraction, shortening and lengthening of words; and the minimization of the number of different words per sentence, but also exaggeration through redundance† (Van Slooten 48). Beckett also was very attached to music in the Irish tradition. He wrote to utilize â€Å"vocal techniques and sound effects [including] the sound of vowels and consonants and the alternately winded, syncopated, and pounding rhythms† to shape his texts† (Van Slooten 48).What is most interesting about this concept is the life and mobility that the Irish language gives to a piece like Happy Days, where the central character is trapped in a hill. The dialect itself requires a wide range of emotion and tonality in its expression, so that â€Å"stage directions such as ‘sad’, ‘suppliant’, ‘very excited’, ‘irritated’, ‘laughing’, ‘explosive’, ‘melancholy’, and the individual diction for d ifferent characters indicate how much importance [Beckett] attached to these matters and show how his words should be voiced† (Van Slooten 58).Because of the nature of the language in Happy Days, it is important to evaluate it through the Irish musicality to find the momentum of a play that contains little to no stage movement otherwise. 15 This â€Å"Irishness† can be seen in a London performance of Happy Days at the Old Vic Theater in 1975 (later transferred to the Lyttleton Theater in 1976). In this production, Dame Peggy Ashcroft played Winnie, Harry Lomax played Willie, and Peter Hall directed. Despite Ashcroft’s positive reputation, this particular production received a number of mixed reviews.One reviewer, Rosemary Pountney, believed that Ashcroft’s biggest weakness was her lack of vocal range. She believed that while Ashcroft had a great vocal capacity, Pountney loathed the Irish accent that Ashcroft attempted: Her greatest strength as an actress, the marvellous flexibility of her voice, was flattened and deadened in an attempt to convey an Irish accent—not a strong Irish accent, but, much more difficult for a non-Irish woman, the suggestion of one. A ‘non-accent’ accent resulted, with Dame Peggy’s superb voice not merely out of tune but restricted in its range, as though straitjacketed.Thus Winnie’s fluctuations of mood†¦ were dulled and Act 1 seemed to lack impact (Pountney). Although Ashcroft did not do the dialect justice, Pountney addresses that Beckett had written a musical quality to his dialogue, which in many cases is what â€Å"scores† the actress through the piece. The repetitions in the script work as guidelines and create the score of the production. Pountney was impressed by understanding of the Irish nature of the piece, but not so much their enactment of it.It is important to note that Happy Days was originally written in English, whereas most of Beckett’s w orks were previously written in French. Beckett stated that his reasons for writing in French were because it gave him a strict structure around the language. Because French was not his native language he was forced to be selective when he chose words, he chose words selectively, and did not inadvertently 16 embellish the language (Van Slooten 48). Although he translated all of his plays himself from French to English, there is still an element of sparseness to the language.Since Happy Days was originally in English, the style of the writing is different. Although there are pauses in the dialogue, the sentence structure flows differently than the sparse language of Godot or Endgame. Therefore, Beckett’s use of the English language in my production is paramount to understanding it through performance. Happy Days Production History Happy Days was performed for the first time on September 17, 1961 in New York at the Cherry Lane Theater. The production starred Ruth White as Winni e and John C.Becher as Willie; Alan Schneider directed the production. Schneider and Beckett had a long career as collaborators. Schneider directed a number of Beckett’s plays, including the American premier of Waiting for Godot, and Film? among many others. Because of prior commitments Beckett was unable to come to New York to supervise direction of this production. The two men therefore corresponded in letters to relay information, and according to Bair â€Å"Beckett's letters could easily become a textbook for Happy Days should [anyone] ever decide to publish them† (536).As with any Beckett performance, the directions given to the actors were thoroughly specific, as Bair describes: They are long and painstaking, filled with minute directions for action and how it should correspond to speech; detailed descriptions of lighting, even to the physical properties, brand name and positing of each individual bulb; and a series of drawings in pen and ink done by Beckett to s how exactly how he wanted Winnie and her mound to appear, and what the position of Willie should be at all times in relation to her. (536) 17At many times throughout the process, Schneider was worried that he was not doing Beckett or his script justice, since the directions were so specific. He remained worried until the show opened to an eager audience. The reviews of the play were mixed, as they had been for many Beckett plays before, but the reviewers who liked the production were not shy in their praises. In The New York Times, Howard Taubman praised the performance, especially White’s, stating that she: conveys a profound sense of the dark, empty spaces of Winnie's life. She uses her voice to achieve a remarkable range of nuance.Her eyes, her lips, the very lines in her face suggest mood and feeling. She fusses bravely with the black shopping bag that seems to contain all her worldly possessions. Her attempt to be invincible turns into a pitiable failure. At the end, wit h the silly, feathered little hat atop the head projecting out of the mound, she seems like a puny, weary Earth Mother of a mean, despairing world. (Taubman) The performance was praised for its ability to not only inspire viewers to look at life’s deep existential and sometimes disheartening questions, but also to reveal compassion, which is rare in Beckett’s works (Taubman).Ruth White’s performance was so revered that she received a 1962 Obie Award for Distinguished Performance. While the first few performances were received well, they were still looked at from a primarily masculine perspective. The majority of theater reviewers were male, and so the comments on the productions came from a male perspective. At this time however, a different group of artists was exploring theater from a feminist perspective. They experimented with dramatic forms to ighlight the female experience, which they believed to be lacking in society. It was during the late 1950’s and early 1960’s that feminist theater began to be produced. 18 Feminist Theater For many centuries the theatrical arts were dominated by men. Notable feminist scholar Sue-Ellen Case states that when the second-wave feminist movement began in the early 1960’s, â€Å"the singular term ‘feminism’ was often employed to describe a variety of political and critical realms. This term was interchangeable with the term ‘the women’s movement’† (62).The feminist movement was divided into a number of philosophies. In the theatrical world, there are two major approaches that scholars have identified as self-conscious approaches to feminist work: that of the radical or cultural feminists and that of the materialist feminists, otherwise known as socialist or Marxist feminists. Both of these groups influenced how the experiences of women were presented on stage. The most common form of feminism in the United States and democratic European count ries was what Case identifies as radical feminism.This particular form of feminism â€Å"is based on the belief that the patriarchy is the primary cause of the oppression of women†¦ the patriarchy represents all systems of male dominance and is regarded as the root of most social problems† (Case 64). Radical feminist performers and theater practitioners have concerns with the style of realism, because of â€Å"the nature of realism as a conservative force that reproduces and reinforces dominant cultural relations† in which man is superior to woman (Dolan 84).They believe that most male playwrights write about the male experience from a male perspective, even if writing female characters, and that the male experience is directly linked to patriarchal society. According to Jill Dolan: 19 By rejecting both realism and the genderized posturings of the of the maledominated experimental theater groups, the new feminist theater meant to create woman identified production s. This work, created by women for women, focused on woman’s experience with one another and their connections to each other through gender and sex.Identifying with each other as women was meant as an antidote to their oppression under patriarchy (85). Radical feminists believe that realism is inherently patriarchal, so they want to create a new form of realism for the female spectator so she â€Å"can find a coherent identity in the mirror image they hold up† (Dolan 99). It was the continual oppression of the feminine gender that most radical feminists wanted to examine. One of the most significant oppressions that women felt was that of sexual oppression from a maleoriented society.For centuries, â€Å"male culture made women’s bodies into objects of male desire, converting them into sites of beauty and sexuality for men to gaze upon† (Case 66). Many women as a result were afraid to discuss intimate details about their biology or their sex lives and des ires. Radical feminists wanted to challenge social norms and allow for women’s issues to rise to the surface, to reclaim women’s place in history. They wanted to portray women’s collective struggles against the â€Å"patriarchal backdrop on which women have been victimized,† to highlight the centuries of male dominance in the theater (Dolan 88).In radical feminist theater, Brechtian and Artaudian techniques were often utilized. The Verfremdungseffekt, otherwise known as the distancing effect, is a technique Bertolt Brecht used in his epic theater to ensure that the audience would not become emotionally attached to the characters and could serve as an external political observer. In contrast, Antonin Artaud believed that the theater should contain an aspect of cruelty. He did not intend cruelty to mean causing physical pain for an actor 20 r audience, but cruelty in the way of making violent or disturbing actions on stage so the audience member is forced t o deal with uncomfortable topics. Brechtian techniques are used in feminist theater to alienate the audience and Artaudian to make them feel uncomfortable as they are faced with the breaking of cultural norms. Radical feminist performances, however, differ from those traditions in that radical feminist performances generally consist of a ritualistic element, which created the illusion of timelessness. This differs from Brecht’s usual usage of historical events to urround his plotlines. These performances also highlighted the biology of women and the power they held as a result, whereas Brecht largely concentrated on the politics and Artaud on the cruel intentions. While this was the intention, often â€Å"the body is curiously lost in [performance], perhaps because truly considering the body in space means dealing with the representational apparatus, which the feminine aesthetic is inadequate to handle† (Dolan 97). This struggle between rejecting and embracing realism is used as a means to advance feminist ideologies through performance.Dolan and Case discuss one other type of feminist performance: that of the materialist feminist. The major idea materialist feminism expounds is that all oppression comes from societal construction, and that capitalism is the major determinant in this construction. This can be seen through a historical labor production as Dolan explains: Production is the central human action played out in the market place and, for women, in the domestic sphere. The organisation of the forces of production and the role of wages create the situation of the worker.In the market place, the woman worker has generally been paid lower wages than the man and retained in a subordinate position without upward mobility. In the domestic sphere, unpaid housework and unpaid 21 reproductive and child-rearing labour have been instrumental in shaping the condition of women. The nuclear family is perceived as a unit of private property, in which t he wife-mother is exploited by the male as well as by the larger organisation of capitalism (Dolan 83). Therefore, the materialist feminists believe that there should not be a distinction between genders, but that all genders should be treated with equal weight.Instead of viewing women as a gender, they are treated as a class, much like middle class, upper class, or working class. In short, the woman lives in a system that provides free labor to her husband or her employer. She provides free labor for her husband â€Å"by producing future workers as babies and by preparing the labourer for each day’s work† (Case 84). As a result, this form of feminism has been most prominent in European countries, as the class structure is more defined in those countries than in North America.The only way that a woman can liberate herself from this structure, according to this form of feminism, is to enter the workforce. According to Simone de Beauvoir1 in her revolutionary text The Se cond Sex (1949), when a woman receives employment she is liberated from her husband and can be her own member of the social structure. She then â€Å"ceases to be a parasite [and] the system based on her dependence crumbles; between her and the universe there is no longer any need for a masculine mediator† (Beauvoir 679).In patriarchal society, men have the liberty of having their occupation not determined by their gender. Women who try to deviate from this norm are subject to oppression, as â€Å"the woman who does not conform devaluates herself sexually and hence socially, since sexual values are an integral feature of [a patriarchal] society† (Beauvoir 682). Materialist feminists believe that by changing the economic structure, 22 the social structure will soon follow. If women are given equal opportunities in the workplace and are treated as men, they will not be sexualized and demoralized as before.Therefore, in performance, materialist feminists do not see it nec essary to portray women as accurately as they would in life, because that is not the aim. The aim is to see women as a class, not as a performer of gender. Materialist feminists believed that the theater could be used to advance their gender in society, but they felt that the radical feminists were slightly misguided. They felt that if women were still working under the constraints of a male society, they were weakening women until she could only exist as a representation on stage.Therefore, the materialist feminists wanted to discover â€Å"how to inscribe a representational space for women that will point out the gender enculturation promoted through the representational frame and that will belie the oppressions of the dominant ideology it perpetuates† (Dolan 101). The materialist feminists deviated from the idea that â€Å"patriarchy is everywhere and always the same and that all women are ‘sisters’† and instead used their theater to underscore â€Å"t he role of class and history in creating the oppression of women† (Case 82).The most successful way to make their points, they believe, is by highlighting the arbitrary nature of gender and its performance in society, and to assert that all real differences between individuals are the results of class inequalities, which in turn manifest in gender inequality. They wish â€Å"to reveal the complicity of the representational apparatus in maintaining sexual difference,† and prove that it is not as important to maintain these differences on stage as it had been in works of realism (Dolan 101). 23It is through the performance ideologies of radical and materialist feminism that most feminist theater of the late twentieth century can be categorized. Also, many subsequent forms of feminist theater have been widely influenced by these theories, either directly or because the performers choose explicitly to deviate from the feminist theater norm in order to make their own points on gender in society. However, even today, much of feminist theater employs techniques of distancing, alienation, highlighting differences between sexes.They are less concerned with making sure gender is represented accurately on stage in accord with realism, or talking about issues that are traditionally considered feminine, such as women’s sexuality, body, and life experiences due to gender. Beckett and Gender (Happy Days) Beckett is often criticized as being sexist. This claim comes mainly from the way the Beckett Estate, which is in control of all of Beckett’s works, deals with gender when giving out performance rights to companies. Beckett has made it very clear that only men are allowed to perform the roles for men, and women are allowed to perform the roles for women.His estate has filed a number of lawsuits on companies trying to change the gender roles in his works and has been successful in most instances (Jeffreys). Though some have gotten angry at the iron grip that the Beckett Estate seems to have on Beckett’s works, there is a logic to the demand that each gender represented in a play must be played by an actor of that gender. Beckett intentionally wrote a part for a man so a man could play it, in the same way that he wrote a part for a woman to play. He wrote very clear male and female voices. The female voice 24 specially that of Winnie, is inherently unique. She does not speak about herself or her troubles in the way that Vladimir and Estragon do in Godot. She does not speak about prostates or having an erection, she speaks about lipstick and quotes Shakespeare. Therefore, it is imperative to explore gender and choice of language in Beckett’s works, because he was so deliberate with gender in his productions. In many ways, Beckett has represented his women stereotypically. Throughout his writing career, however, Beckett began to challenge his original notions and began to portray women more diversely.At the beginnin g of his career, when he was focusing on prose, most of Beckett’s women were overbearing and clearly antagonistic to men. For example, in his first novel Murphy, the main female character, Celia, is a prostitute that Murphy lives with. Celia makes many demands of Murphy, and is portrayed as an overbearing woman throughout. On the other hand, Beckett did move away from some established theatrical gender roles. In traditional gender roles, young women were often sexualized and are portrayed as â€Å"beautiful, chaste, and usually static† (Bryden 18).Some say that Beckett does not conform to this gender stereotype because most of his women are loud, overbearing, in grotesque circumstances, and older. For example, in Happy Days, Winnie is continually overbearing toward Willie, especially when giving him specific directions on how she wants things done. He cannot even go where he wants without Winnie screeching, â€Å"Do as I say, Willie, don’t lie sprawling there i n this hellish sun, go back into your hole† (Beckett 25). Winnie has lost much of her vitality, and in a way is so far removed from it she is no longer bound to the stereotypes of youth.Instead, Winnie is 25 confined to stereotypes of age, as many older women are portrayed as meddling, controlling, and loving, just as Winnie is. Another gender stereotype would be the care that Winnie takes in preserving her appearance. Throughout the beginning of the play, Winnie is focused on making sure she keeps up her physical appearance. The act of obsessive grooming and the placement of value in physical appearance tend to be regarded as feminine traits. At the beginning of the play Winnie is following her morning routine. She brushes her teeth, checks herself in the mirror, and begins to apply lipstick.She is also concerned about the appearance of her hair. Winnie is in the middle of a thought when she anxiously cries out, â€Å"My hair! Did I brush and comb my hair? I may have done, n ormally do† (Beckett 22). In a number of productions of Happy Days, the design takes into account the idea that in Act II Winnie is unable to move her arms any longer. Therefore she is unable to tend to her personal appearance. In the 2007 production of Happy Days at the Royal National Theatre in London starring Fiona Shaw, the actress had blackened teeth, mussed hair, and a dirtied face at the onset of Act II.This showed that Winnie was unable to take care of herself, and this choice is even supported in the text when Winnie mentions, â€Å"Willie, look at me. Feast your old eyes, Willie. Does anything remain? Any remains? No? I haven’t been able to look after it, you know† (Beckett 62). Willie, as a man, does not tend to his appearance in the same vein at all, and to that effect does not help Winnie keep up her looks when she is no longer able. Winnie must give him orders on how to take care of his 26 appearance.Therefore, Beckett places the female in the stere otypical role of taking care of her appearance, while the male is placed in the role where he does not. Winnie is also obsessed with her declining looks. It is clear that she spends much of her time trying to impress Willie and feels that because she has lost her looks, she has lost what makes her desirable to men. She states, â€Å"Was I lovable once, Willie? Was I ever lovable? Do not misunderstand my question, I am not asking you if you loved me, we all know about that, I am asking if you found me loveable at one stage† (Beckett 31).Winnie believes that her lovability is directly attached to the past, and therefore her youth. It is generally considered typical of women, rather than men, to be obsessed with their own youth and beauty. Women are typically cast off as undesirable when they reach a certain age, whereas men have a much longer time frame before society deems them too old to be physically attractive. Winnie also remembers her beauty from before she was in the mou nd, stating: and now? The face. The nose. I can see it†¦ the tip†¦the nostrils†¦breath of life†¦ that curve you so admired†¦ if I stick it out†¦the tip†¦suspicion of brow†¦eyebrow†¦imagination possibly†¦.Cheek†¦no†¦no†¦ even if I puff them out†¦ no†¦no†¦damask. (Beckett 52) She truly believes that her looks are the only reason that Willie could have ever loved her, and now that they are gone, she has no means of attraction. It is stereotypically characteristic of a woman to have these thoughts, and the preoccupation fits the gender stereotype. Winnie is also a stereotypical woman in the way she remembers her past lovers. For example, she is very sentimental about the memories of her first ball and her first kiss. It was with â€Å"a Mr.Johnson, or Johnston, or perhaps I should say 27 Johnstone. Very bushy moustache, very tawny. Almost ginger! Within a toolshed, though whose I cannot conceive† (Bec kett 16). According to most gender stereotypes, it is typical of women to be obsessive over past relationships. Winnie’s memory is no exception. She also remembers another lover before Willie named Charlie. It is a fleeting memory, where she contemplates the situation, stating, â€Å"Ah yes†¦ then†¦now†¦beechen green†¦this†¦Charlie†¦ kisses†¦this†¦all that†¦ deep trouble for the mind† (Beckett 51).Clearly, Winnie is saddened in her memories but clings to them because she has little left that she can value as a result of her situation in the mound. Holding onto her past lovers represents Winnie’s desire to hold onto her rites of passage, including her first sexual experiences. Beckett explores a number of other stereotypes, including the purse Winnie carries. A purse is traditionally considered a feminine object to carry and generally is filled with trinkets that women are prone to using or carrying around.For example, the bag that Winnie uses is filled with such objects as a compact mirror, a handkerchief, a bottle of medicine, lipstick, a brush and comb, and a nail file. Although it can be argued that Winnie is bound to her purse because of her lack of mobility and things to occupy her time, it can also be seen as a comment on the female gender and their stereotypical dependence on the purse or bag that they carry. Winnie has great faith in her bag, and is protective of and dependent on it, stating: There is of course the bag. The bag. Could I enumerate its contents? No.Could I, if some kind person were to come along and ask, What all have you got in that big black bag, Winnie? Give an exhaustive answer? No. The depths in particular, who knows what treasures. What comforts. (Beckett 32) 28 Winnie is so attached to her bag she believes that the objects themselves carry not only meaning, but life. In the second act Winnie contemplates, â€Å"It’s things, Willie. In the bag, outside the ba g. Ah yes, things have their life, that is what I always say, things have a life† (Beckett 54). This materialistic view has been attributed to women in many instances.Someone who marries a person for their money or resources is more likely to be a woman than a man (even though it is a stereotype for both genders), as women are seen as a lower class, and to escape their place in the class structure they marry into their wealth as they are not as privileged to earn it themselves. There is, however, one stereotypically masculine object in the bag: the revolver. In many cases, the revolver is a symbol of power and dominance over others. In the past, men typically carried firearms on their person and were given guns to use in war, an arena that has only recently been occupied in a standard capacity by women.The shape of the gun itself can also be considered phallic. The gun, considered as a phallic object, can also be seen as a castration of Willie. Winnie has essential ownership o ver his manhood. This can be supported by one of Willie’s few lines, in which Winnie asks him what a â€Å"hog’s setae† is, to which he replies, â€Å"Castrated male swine. Reared for slaughter† (Beckett 47). Willie clearly sees himself as someone who is no longer in control of his masculinity and has fallen so far that his status is reduced to that of a pig. He is also so far gone that he is ready to be killed. He is on his deathbed, waiting to go to the slaughterhouse.This viewpoint is very alarming, and does shed a slightly negative light on women. Winnie, in many ways, 29 can be seen as a monster for having power over the gun and therefore Willie’s masculinity. It is again remarkable to note that Winnie, not Willie, is the owner of the gun as it suggests that Winnie is in possession of the masculine object, and thereby the power. It is in her bag, and though she seems repulsed by the idea of a gun, she is also somewhat fascinated and consoled b y its presence. When considering the gun, Winnie states, â€Å"oh I suppose it’s a comfort to know you’re there, but I’m tired of you.I’ll leave you out, that’s what I’ll do. There, that is your home from this day out† (Beckett 33). It is also unclear whether or not Willie is attempting to reclaim the gun from Winnie or not. At the play’s end, when Willie comes out â€Å"dressed to kill† and comes to Winnie on the mound where the gun is resting near her, Beckett makes sure that Willie’s last lunge towards the mound is ambiguous (Beckett 61). One is unsure whether or not he is trying to reach for Winnie, or for her gun. Regardless of his motive, one thing is certain: he does not attain the gun; it remains in Winnie’s possession.It is fair to assume that if the play’s narrative would have continued, Willie would never have gotten the gun from Winnie. Therefore, though Winnie is considered stereotypical with the use of her purse to carry trinkets and her attachment to her purse, she also is the wielder of a surprisingly masculine object, and the male character is unable to have it for himself. Another notable point is that commonly arises in Beckett plays is the lack of mobility women usually have, which suggests that women have little room for advancement in this world.Scholar Mary Bryden points out that â€Å"in these plays, stasis 30 has more in common with aspiration than with condemnation,† meaning that those who are not moving have aspirations that are static, not that they themselves are condemned to some sort of hell (90). Nell in Endgame lives in a trash can. The women in Play (1963) are trapped in urns. While this lack of mobility can be seen in male characters as well (Nagg in Endgame, the male in Play), the effect is different. Other men are given mobility in Beckett’s works, when women are less likely to be given movement.Hamm is able to move, as is Krap p, Vladimir, Estragon, Lucky, Pozzo, and most notably Willie. Willie is given the option of mobility, whereas Winnie is not. Winnie is actually happy with her lack of movement, stating, â€Å"What a curse, mobility! † (Beckett 46). She is aware that at one time she used to be mobile, but blissfully unaware at how much easier her life was when she was mobile. She was able to hold a parasol above her head with ease instead of with pain and discomfort. She was not the object of spectacle when others passed by. She was independent in many ways because she was not bound to the earth.She even dreams of leaving her situation, and dreams that â€Å"if I were not held–in this way–I would simply float up into the blue. And that perhaps someday the earth will yield and let me go, the pull is so great, yes, crack all round and let me out† (Beckett 33). Winnie recalls these things many times and acknowledges that mobility would be best for her. But she remains complac ent about her situation and still finds happiness in her utterly dependent state with Willie, because her aspirations cause her to stay immobile. Her mobility is in direct relation to her ambitions.Since her dreams are not going anywhere, neither is Winnie. 31 In other ways Beckett does break standard gender stereotypes when portraying his women. In a patriarchal society the wife is supposed to be the servant to the husband. While Winnie is holding up her parasol and her arm tires, she asks his permission to put it down, stating, â€Å"bid me to put this thing down, Willie, I will obey you instantly, as I have always done, honoured, and obeyed† (Beckett 36). It seems that Winnie is a woman who is completely dependent on her husband, and in many ways she is because of her situation in the mound.However, Willie is the one who serves Winnie. Willie is the one who brings her items when she demands them, answers to her voice when she calls out to him, and essentially does whatever she demands. Winnie, in effect, has not taken the role of the stereotypical married woman. She mentions that she serves her husband and is bound to do so. Therefore she does not leave because of her duty and her vow of marriage and her situation in the hill. Willie, in the same vein, is not trapped in the hill as Winnie is. He is able to leave the harsh environment whenever he would like and essentially let fate take Winnie.He doesn’t leave, however. He takes the abusive phrases from his wife and he stays with her until presumably the end of her days. In much the same way, sex in Beckett plays is just as forgotten and elusive to men as it is to women. Characters in Beckett plays remember that sex, at one time, existed. But now it is so far in the past that it is almost forgotten. Winnie’s only memories of sex seem to be poor, as she states â€Å"sadness after intimate sexual intercourse one is familiar with of course. You would concur with Aristotle there, Willie, I fancy† (Beckett 57).Ironically, the Aristotle quotation actually refers to men, 32 stating â€Å"the exhaustion consequent on the loss of even a very little of the semen is conspicuous because the body is deprived of the ultimate gain drawn from the nutriment †¦ [so] as a general rule the result of intercourse is exhaustion and weakness rather than relief† (Alexander). It is extremely interesting that Winnie, as a woman, references such a masculine viewpoint on sexuality. However, she does seem to agree with this overtly masculine philosophy. Through her condition in the hill, Winnie’s sexuality is gradually covered up.Cooker, or Shower, as Winnie is hard at remembering, has made numerous comments about her sexuality in regards to the mound. Cooker and/or Shower is a man and his wife, that occasionally pass Winnie and Willie, and make rude comments about the state that Winnie finds herself in. Beckett was well versed in German, and used these English names a s a play on words. In German, the word â€Å"schauen† means to look, and â€Å"gucken† to watch: naming his onlookers Shower and Cooker was highly suggestive. The mysterious onlooker is curious as to whether her body is still good looking, stating, â€Å"can’t have been a bad bosom†¦in its day.Seen worse shoulders†¦in my time. Does she feel her legs? . . . has she anything on underneath? † (Beckett 58). She is infuriated by the comments, yelling, â€Å"let go of me for Christ sake and drop! Drop dead! † (Beckett 58). But her condition in the mound makes it impossible to defend herself. While man and woman are both foreign to sex, it is the woman who is trapped and made a fool of, and has no way to defend herself because of the condition the playwright has placed her in. Dolan makes a point to discuss this in her work, commenting on the role that sexuality plays in performance.She believes that â€Å"if power adheres in sexuality, and cul tural feminists 33 assume power leads to violence against women, it becomes politically and artistically necessary to attempt to disengage representation from desire,† meaning that in feminist theater practices, women have to be presented as women, not the object of male sexual desire (Dolan 61). In Beckett’s production, Winnie is literally trapped and gaped at, proving Dolan’s point that in most of the modern canon, the representation of woman on stage is synonymous with desire.One of the scenes in Happy Days that concentrates most on sex is that in which Winnie discusses Mildred, commonly referenced as Milly, and the mouse. The story is quite frightening and underlines the idea that sex for women and for Winnie in particular has been terrifying and un-gratifying. In the second act, Winnie describes Mildred, a little girl who could have been Winnie as a young woman. She has been given a wax doll named Dolly. Milly sneaks out of her room to the nursery to undress Dolly, as she seemingly has been â€Å"forbidden to do so,† then suddenly out of nowhere a mouse appears and crawls up Milly’s leg (Beckett 55).She screams, and the entire household comes running to see what the matter is. It is at that moment that Winnie stops her story, and is too overcome to finish. It is clear from the language, that the story is one of Milly’s, or perhaps Winnie’s, first memories of sexuality and perhaps her own sexuality. Clearly the experience frightened her in regard to her sexual nature, because she abruptly stops her story by warning Willie that he â€Å"may close [his] eyes, then [he] must close [his] eyes- and keep them closed† (Beckett 59).While Winnie’s sexuality has shifted and her sex drive has been affected by her entrapment in the 34 mound, it is clear that even from a young age she was not accepting of her sexuality, or able to properly deal with it because she felt violated. Throughout Beckett’s w ork, gender stereotypes are present. However, these stereotypes are accompanied by a number of gender deviations from the stereotypical norm. Therefore, when considering the work of Beckett, it is valid to assert that although Beckett conforms to gender stereotyping, he is not bound by them.Even though his work is informed by a world on the verge of the second-wave feminist movement, he is beginning to break gender stereotypes that are inherent in his earlier works of prose and even drama. Therefore, Happy Days is an appropriate and interesting play to look at from an absurdist feminist perspective. Happy Days in Performance: A Feminist Perspective (Process) When mounting a production there are a number of individuals involved, and they all have a certain role to play.Actors, directors, producers, and the production design team all work together to create a final performance. In the fall, I spent most of my time researching the production and writing the preliminary part of my thesi s. In the production, I held two roles: that of producer and lead actress. As a producer, it was my responsibility to be in charge of the logistical elements of the production. I was responsible for coordinating the space rental, finding rehearsal spaces, making the program and fliers, and essentially all of the production aspects of the performance.Some of my duties I gave to my director and stage manager to handle, which in a typical performance would not happen; however, since I was also taking on the role as the lead actress, I had to divide my time. In that role I was expected to memorize all of 35 my lines, have character ideas, personalize emotional responses and relationships, and have a set of actions to achieve my objectives. This role proved to be the most time consuming, as the Beckett script was repetitive and convoluted, making it difficult to memorize.Winnie is essentially the only character who speaks (meaning there are no other actors to rely on for help with lines and following the through line of the script, or the journey of the character throughout the play), and the nature of absurdist work makes it difficult to discover objectives and relationships. One of my first duties as producer was to assemble a production team. First, I chose a performance faculty advisor. I asked Professor Shelley Delaney because of her work with one-woman performances and her knowledge of the craft of acting.After making this choice, I was informed that Professor Delaney would not be able to help direct me in the production. I knew that as an actor I would not be able to assess my progress without the help of a director. Therefore, I asked Arielle Giselle Rogers to direct me. She graduated from Ohio University’s School of Theater with a BFA in Acting in 2011, and she is very experienced in directing and performing in onewoman shows, especially feminist works (she is the founding member of F-Word, a feminist theater performance group on Ohio Universityâ₠¬â„¢s campus).I also needed a stage manager; someone to handle the day to day operations of rehearsal. For that I choose Jacob St. Aubin, a junior BFA stage management major because he is an impeccable organizer and very talented. I then needed a set designer to help with the construction of the hill that Winnie is buried in. I chose Ryan Myers, a senior BFA production design and technology major who specializes in set design, based on his 36 previous design and portfolio work.For costumes I turned to Megan Knowles, a senior BFA production design and technology major who specializes in costumes, because I had worked with her before and she has a very impressive portfolio. For the sound design I asked Aaron Butler, a graduate student in the School of Music, because of his work in other School of Theater productions in which he utilized minimalist soundscapes and experimental music. For the lighting design I asked Keri Donovan, a BFA production design and technology major who speciali zes in lighting design to create the effect of the fire and generally light the show.Finally, I solicited help from one other faculty member, Laura Parrotti, who was my vocal coach throughout the process. Professor Parrotti has been a vocal coach on a number of professional productions, as well as the main voice coach for the School of Theater students. Her advice on how to handle the Beckett text from a vocal standpoint was instrumental to the process. Rehearsals for Happy Days began January 9, 2012. The cast consisted of me (Rachel Collins) as Winnie and Sean O’Brien as Willie.Rehearsals were coordinated through a joint effort between Jacob and me, but he facilitated the rehearsal reports, space rental, and coordination of meetings with the production team. The first week of rehearsals consisted of table work, which was run by Arielle. Table work is generally the term used for the first week of rehearsal, in which the actors go through the script beat by beat and look at th e academic and theoretical aspects behind the script that would inform the performance. Sean and I read through the script while Arielle gave notes. Then the three of us would discuss the scholarly background of the play, 7 characters, motivation, and my take on the thesis, etc. , with the group and began to come up with character ideas and how to shape the piece. The main aspect we discussed through these workings was the idea that Winnie is a woman who i