ENGLISH 1C06 Lecture Notes - Lecture 9: Parable Of The Prodigal Son
5 Apr 2017
School
Department
Course
Professor
Document Summary
Characters; the household at the start: max- patriarch, lenny and joey- sons, sam- max"s brother. Prodigal son ted and wife ruth enters the household. Shows men without women vs men with a woman: system of belief at the time- men without women act in certain primitive ways; men with women are civilized, primitive instincts channelled. Play is metaphorical- primitive man vs civilized man (brought into civilized culture/atmosphere: the play challenges this belief, especially at the end. Environment does not change by bringing in a woman. Another character"s presence felt- jessie, the mother of the sons/max"s wife: jessie slept with someone max did business with- sam reveals this in the final sequence, max may have therefore been the same person with jessie. 2 ways arguing the play: ruth is very feminist at the end of the play- she makes demands, etc, really she is just identifying with the male dominance system- she.
