The Last Task

I have seen a filmed performance of Rhinoceros presented by The Baltimore Annex Theater (the first part of it is shown in the article It's happening now!). This adaptation was very entertaining. Compared to the written drama, it was definitely more funny and less serious, and now I am not talking about the fact that it is always more entertaining to watch the drama than to read it. What I mean is that the producer has approached the play in a different way. It seems to me that he mainly wanted to amuse the audience, rather than convey the message of futility and conformity. Which is not bad, not at all. Moreover, the actors don't always use the words exactly as they are written in the play and their communication is more present-day. In general, I have the feeling that even though the performance is strongly based on Ionesco's book, it is completely different in the interpretation. 

In this scene is extremely impressive!! The sounds, Jean's insanity and his incredible transformation into rhinoceros...The whole play is entertaining, but this scene is especially worth watching. 

Five Quotes

Jean: Life is a struggle, it's cowardly not to put up a fight! (p. 20)

• This quote is extremely interesting because it probably shows Ionesco's life approach. It is even more interesting when we realize that it is said by a man who finally goes through the metamorphosis as one of the first ones. Thus we can say that he does not put up any fight at all. By choosing this sentence, Ionesco probably wanted to show that words we say don't often correspond to the state of mind of ours.    

Berenger: Sometimes one does harm without meaning to, or rather one allows it to go unchecked. (p.97)

• As I said before, Ionesco used the play as an allegory for the uprising of fascism in Romania during the 1930s. For sure, he must have been shocked by the behavior of his friends who joined the fascist movement. Moreover, from what I've read, he must have also felt guilty for not doing anything about it. Thus, we may say that this quote reveals his feelings about the cowardly behavior of people who see that something wrong is happening, but do not do anything to change it. 

Daisy: After all, perhaps is we who need saving. Perhaps we are the abnormal ones. (p. 103)

• Daisy says this sentence at the end of the play when she and Berenger are the only human beings left among the rhinos. It is an interesting turnaround in the situation: at first she is against the rhinos and wants to stay normal; after saying this sentence it seems that she starts to doubt her normality and incline to the side of the <previously> abnormal ones. 

Berenger: What is my language? Am I talking French? I can call it French if I want – and nobody can say it isn’t, I am the only one who speaks it.(p. 107)

• Here we can see how brittle the human definitions of things are. We have all agreed that the language Berenger speaks is French, but it is only a name. Ionesco wanted to show that the names we give to things loose their meaning if we cannot use them in a meaningful conversation. 

(by the way, the language is English, as you might have noticed, but it wasn't changed in the book so I must leave it as it is). 

Logician: If you take six paws from the two cats, how many paws are left to each cat? 

Old Gentleman: We could have one cat with 6 paws <and> one cat with no paws at all.

Logician: In that case, one cat would be especially privileged.

Old Gentleman: And one under-privileged cat deprived of all paws. (p. 21-23)

• I chose this quote to show the absurdity of communication between people, which is nicely visible in the whole play. I was trying to find something more grotesque and absurd, but it is actually impossible to present the absurdity in just few sentences. These conversations usually take about 3 pages in the book and I cannot copy the whole thing here. Anyway, here we can see that the Logician, who is supposed to be rational and reasonable, spends his time talking about nonsense. 

Reference: Ionesco, Eugene. Rhinoceros by Ionesco. New York: Evergreen Original, 1960. 141. Print.

I have finished the play...

...and I have realized an important fact. When I firstly read about the plot of the play, I fell in love with the idea of people changing into rhinoceroses. I was delighted to think about the aspects of human behavior, the complicated nature of human mind, the almighty group pressure and the definitions of normality. The play has given me numerous questions that entertained my mind and soul. However, since I have read everything about the masterpiece before reading the masterpiece itself, I wasn't that overwhelmed when I was finally reading it. Doesn't is also spoil your joy from reading, when you know the ending? Well, if the book is nicely written, it doesn't. However, I have never read a nicely written drama. Drama is here to be acted on stage, not to be read for entertainment. I believe it is only the producer who should read it and make it worth watching. Of course, we were supposed to take the role of a producer. Thus, it is only natural that we had to read the play. What I am trying to say is that I admire Ionesco and his motivations, but I cannot praise the way the book is written.
 (the first half of task 9)

TASK 8 (what a lovely title!)

Stockholm Syndrome

Rhinoceros, Eugene Ionesco’s masterpiece about people’s reaction to group pressure and their supposedly strange behavior, is formidable (but not pompous) play which is still up-to-date. Joe Penhall’s review of the play is quite thorough and contains many interesting observations. 

  As it was mentioned several times on this blog, the play itself is full of hopeless interactions between people, the feeling of futility of being and the absurdity of life. Because of this, Penhall compares Rhinoceros to The Plague written by A. Camus, claiming that they are both based on the existentialism. Interestingly, both Camus and Ionesco were against the ‘existentialist’ label and preferred their works to be called absurdist. Nonetheless, it cannot be doubted that the ideas of existentialism appear in their plays more than often. Finally, absurdity is part of existentialism and they cannot be clearly separated in this context.

  In his review, Penhall mentions the Stockholm syndrome, a psychological phenomenon in which the captors are admired by their hostages and the hostages cooperate with them and accept their views and positions. This idea is brilliant in the association with the play. Even though they were the evil creatures at the beginning, everybody finally accepts the rhinos and joins them, which is a nice manifestation of such syndrome. It is somewhat natural, because ‘most children know that the smart thing is to side with the biggest, baddest bully in the playground’ (Penhall). 

  Concerning the relevance of the play, it is true that Ionesco stays quite general, so as to emphasize that the theme of his play is applicable to any society. In the words of the reviewer of this play:  “Perhaps Ionesco deliberately eschewed Camus' specificity and embraced generality in the hope that for all its antic lack of sophistication, bluster, bustle and loquaciousness, Rhinoceros would remain contemporary and universal.” 

REVIEW: 

Penhall, Joe. "Ionesco's Rhinoceros is as relevant as ever."Guardian. (2007). Web. 21 Mar. 2012. <http://www.guardian.co.uk/stage/theatreblog/2007/oct/03/ionescosrhinocerosisasrele>.

Protagonist and Antagonist

I'd like to describe these two roles as they appear at the end of the play, as their conflict is most visible there. Obviously, Berenger is the protagonist and his primary motivation is to save the human kind. He stands against the group of rhinoceroses, whose behavior has probably no motivation at all. Thinking about the conflict they face, the rhinos are not the ones that should be blamed for it. Deep inside, they are good and they don't mean any harm. It seems that they just want to live normally, without problems. Berenger is actually the only one who feels some kind of tension. He is the one to start the conflict because he feels endangered by the animals.

..A strange thought has just entered my mind... Having considered the fact that Berenger starts the conflict whereas the rhinos live peacefully side by side, shouldn't we say that Berenger is antagonist and the rhinos are protagonists; and not vice versa??

As it is written in the book: "Who can say where the normal starts and the abnormal begins? Can you personally define the conceptions of normality?" (p. 84) And I am asking: Who can say which side is good and which is bad? Can I personally define the conceptions of goodness and badness? Do I say that the human Berenger is the protagonist just because I am human, too? Why do I think that something which is normal is also good? Why do I think the rhinos are antagonists, just because their existence is something I would call 'abnormal'? Finally, maybe they are the heroes of the play!

It's getting too complicated and this article gives more questions than answers... But I am desperate - As I now incline to the rhino side, am I the same as all the other people in the play? Does it indicate that in that situation,  I would also become a rhinoceros?

Somebody help me! Who is the good one and who is the bad one in this play??!!

TASK 6 (is not really addressed in this article)

Research the author: I have already published the basic information about Eugene Ionesco and I believe it's enough. I don't see the point in rewriting encyclopedias or copying boring information from Wikipedia. Nobody will ever remember these facts, anyway. I am more interested in finding out what kind of person Ionesco was and what his personality was like. Therefore, I found and watched an interview with him on YouTube (see the link below).

Discuss any relevant information about the author and what his or her motivations behind writing this piece were or might have been. Support. Well, this topic is addressed in the article 'It's happening now!'. 
 What interests me now is Ionesco's motivation for writing in general. Why did he write those drama plays? Why did he make them so absurd? This video probably gives us the answer. It starts to be quite thoughtful from 1:57, when he describes his first inspirations. Then he continues to explain what life means to him. Having read two of his plays, I can say that his philosophy of life that he presents in here is very apparent in his works.

The Main Themes

ABSURDITY

I've said it already and I'll say it again, so that you will remember: Eugene Ionesco is Master of the Theatre of the Absurd. And of course, Rhinoceros is full of absurdity. In addition to the fact that people change into rhinos, there are even more situations that leave me perplexed. The best examples of these are the conversations of the (supposedly) reasonable people. They try to use logic and intellect but their arguments always lead to a dead end. Finally, the issue is not solved but even more complicated  I will publish some of the quotes in one of the next posts to make you understand what I mean. As Ms. Helebrantová once mentioned in our lesson, the Theatre of the Absurd is sort of existentialism in drama. Let me quote the almighty Wikipedia which says that existentialists have the "sense of disorientation and confusion in the face of an apparently meaningless or absurd world" (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Existentialism). I believe that this is what Ionesco felt when writing this play. 

TRANSFORMATION

Here I don't want to discuss the obvious human-rhino transformation; I just want to say that there are also some changes in people’s minds, their behavior and their characteristics. Let’s start with the main character Berenger – at the beginning of the play he is just a man with no visible interest, not caring about what happens around him. As the play proceeds and all of his friends change into beasts, he starts to freak out. I mean, who wouldn’t? But Berenger is a special case, because at first he was not surprised by anything, not even by the rhino in the streets of a French town. He just didn‘t care. At the end, not only does he care, he also changes into the saviour of the human kind. Moreover, he starts to feel responsible for what’s going on around him.

Another example of transformation is his biggest friend Jean who seems to be very balanced and rational. In the first act, he keeps persuading Berenger to „exercise more will-power and not surrender to life's pressures“ (http://www.sparknotes.com/drama/rhinoceros/themes.html). However, as we all know, it is finally Jean who surrenders to life’s pressures, whereas Berenger acquires a strong will and fights against the majority.

CONFORMITY

If you want to know more about this theme, please read my posts from February 8 and February 15 =).

"There are many sides to reality. Choose the one that's best for you." (Ionesco)

So that's how you change an actor into rhino on the stage!
It's actually not necessary for the play. The numerous rhinoceroses that are involved in the performance never appear on the stage. They are only somewhere in the background, making noticeable noise and attracting all actors who always start to scream: “Oh, I rhinoceros!” They probably do so to draw the audience’s attention to the non-existent beasts. Anyway, the idea presented in this picture is simply clever!


Today I should talk about the plot and the major events that happen in the play, but I have talked about this many times before. And I also know the ending, so I cannot make any speculations or guesses about it. Instead I wanna post a short video which  summarizes the main events and describes Ionesco's life. 

It's happening now!

We don't know the time period Rhinoceros is set in, but that is not essential for the understanding of the play. Generally accepted opinion is that Ionesco wrote this play as an allegory to the rise of fascism in Romania. It is quite possible that he got the inspiration from his home country, and that the masses of rhinoceroses represent the masses of people who joined the Romanian movement Iron Guard during the 1930s. However, I believe that it can be understood in a broader context and applied to our world as well. It happened many times in the history - one ideology (or even a simple idea) became powerful and attracted thousands of people. No matter how irrational the idea was, it had soon many followers. In extreme cases, the followers started to suppress other people (like the communists in Czechoslovakia). And then it is simple - you're either with us or against us. There is no middle way. In these cases, most of the people give up and join the movement, because it is much easier than to fight against the movement with the minority.

And let's make it even simpler - it's not concerning just the massive ideologies. It' happening all around us, in our society. Once there is a general trend, the majority of people starts to follow. Of course, there are more 'outcasts' who don't go with the crowd than in the case of political movements, because these 'outcasts' don't have to be worried and afraid of capital punishment, prison, or some ingenious methods of torture. If you don't follow, you are only considered 'out'. Anyway, even this punishment - the exclusion from the society - is usually strong enough to make you act as the rest of the peers act. Just to give an example -- when I was in grade 2 or 3, there was a huge trend among all girls. They started to use the elastic ribbon to jump over it,with it, under it and through it in various ways. The whole series of jumps were invented and numbered from 1 to 15 according to their difficulty. The girls were jumping during the breaks and in the afternoons and at homes and outside -- and I was jumping, too. I succumbed to this general trend and joined the masses of 8-year old girls. I, too, became rhinoceros.

You see? Rhinoceros is not a strange nonsensical play. The described events are quite realistic. It was always happening and it always will. It's happening now!

If you were bored, watch this. It is the play performed by the The Baltimore Annex Theater and watching it is much more entertaining than reading the book.

All cats die. Socrates is dead. Therefore Socrates is a cat.

The main character of Rhinoceros is BERENGER. Even though he is good-humored and bright, he is also a desperate drunkard who can't get used to life. On the contrary, his friend JEAN is the man who thinks logically, practically and who is always prepared for everyday things. These two guys meet at the cafe for a friendly talk. However, their debate becomes rather monotonous and develops only in one direction --> Jean criticizes Berenger in everything he does and advises him how to live and what to do to be more normal. Berenger trusts his friend and wants to change, but 'that's not so easy' (p.21). He can only see the obstacles in his way. In this discussion they actually  share their most fundamental opinions on life.

Their debate is often interrupted by the LOGICIAN and THE OLD GENTLEMAN who discuss even more banal issues. The Logician is trying to teach his logic to the Gentleman, who learns quickly and eagerly. They are both devoted to their discussion. However, the logic they practice is absolutely absurd and useless -- if you want an example of it, read the title of this article. 

Anyway, all of these people are disturbed by a huge rhinoceros running in the town. It's not an animal that escaped from the zoo, it's one of the citizens who has decided to become a rhinoceros. As I mentioned before, all of the citizen will eventually go through this transformation, except of Berenger. Even his reasonable friend Jean succumbs to this general trend. Most likely, Ionesco wanted to express his fear of conformity to society. He wanted to show that even the most rational people can act like sheep and follow the crowd. I think he wanted to say that no matter how normal you are, you can be considered freak if the rest of the society is abnormal.

Don't you feel it is still relevant in today's world?

What is it about?

Rhinoceros, written in 1959, is a play about one man watching all the people around him changing into rhinos without any reason or purpose. Finally, the man ends up as the only human being against the army of rhinoceroses. It takes place in a small nameless French town. The main character is an everyman figure (yep, I have just learnt a new word!!). 

This signifies that the situation that arises in the play can happen to everyone and everywhere in the world. Well, deep in my mind, I don’t really think that anywhere in the world people may go through a metamorphosis and change into rhinos... But of course, that’s just an allegory. I need to read the book and look up some extra information to find out what the author meant by this story...

Ionesco: I just can't get used to life

When I hear the name Eugene Ionesco, I associate it with absurdity, bizarre situations and plays that seem to lack sense; but actually have a hidden meaning. I don’t know why but Ionesco amazes me. He was one of the main authors of the Theater of the Absurd; one of the guys who thought that life had no sense and who tried to express that idea through drama plays by creating grotesque and illogical situations. Eugene Ionesco was partly French and partly Romanian and spent his life in Paris and Bucharest. He lived in the twentieth century which was full of major historical events as well as many acts against humanity. He’s seen the society getting rotten, the destructive influence of ideologies on individuals, the meaningless conflicts among people. No wonder that the playwright was desperate from the world. He said:

“For me, it is as though at every moment the actual world had completely lost its actuality. As though there was nothing there; as though there were no foundations for anything or as though it escaped us. Only one thing, however, is vividly present: the constant tearing of the veil of appearances; the constant destruction of everything in construction. Nothing holds together, everything falls apart.”

In some of his plays (e.g. The Bald Soprano), he wants to emphasize the futility of communication among people.

-         

    Why do people talk just to say something, 

    even though it’s not worth saying?

         Why do they follow empty conversations?

-    We will die, anyway, so why the 

    heck do we talk about weather??

      The themes he develops in his other plays are various, but in all of them we  can feel the people’s vanity, the absurdity of human behavior, or the fear of power of society. The last mentioned topic is clearly visible in his play Rhinoceros. And more or less, this blog is about that play, so get excited and keep reading! 


SSources:  
"Rhinoceros." Themes, Motifs, and Symbols. N.p., n.d. Web. 22 Feb 2012. <http://www.sparknotes.com/drama/rhinoceros/themes.html>.
 "EUGENE IONESCO QUOTES." Notable Quotes. N.p., n.d. Web. 22 Feb 2012. <http://www.notable-quotes.com/i/ionesco_eugene.html>.
AND THE KNOWLEDGE FROM THE CZECH CLASSES...