Oct 28 2012
Woah.
I also read John Steinbeck’s The Grapes of Wrath in eleventh grade, and when I read it in school, I read the book as part of an American literature course, and in turn, I saw the book as a part of American history. A story about a family in the Great Depression, in the great Dustbowl. Something that could happen in the olden days, but more unheard of today. Well, this play certainly changed that view. The juxtaposition of this classic novel with today’s current issues was so interesting for me, and gave me a new outlook on this novel. This work now has more of a timeless feel for me.
In both the older and modern economies, the antagonist is nature – the nature of the unrelenting Dustbowl, the refusal of crops to grow, and the nature of the economy that all work to prevent people from making a living, and living in peace and prosperity. No matter what era people live in, there are always hardships and challenges that we inevitably face, whether it is against other human beings, or against non-humans, such as “machines” or “the bank.”
The idea of people losing something dear to them, having to move, getting kicked out, is a powerful idea, and it is something that everyone faces at some point in his or her life. These two storylines display this idea on a grand scale, but perhaps every person faces this on some kind of level. I could feel the hard work of the actors, the depression and devastation of people who were losing things. I could see myself, and some of my own losses, mirrored in this play. Maybe that is the crucial point. To truly engage the viewer in the plot.
I thought this play was fantastic. The storyline was great. I loved how it jumped back and forth between these two vastly different yet simultaneously similiar stories. The message was clear, and it was easy to follow the transitions between the two different time periods. I always wonder what the original producer of a work of literature would think if he saw his work getting redone. Sometimes when work is redone, when books are made into movies, or books are translated or abridged years later, much of the content and meaning is changed or lost. But I think Steinbeck would have liked this.
I also think John Steinbeck would approve. His main point is for us to commiserate with those who have lost what they’ve sweated and toiled over to that nameless, forever ravenous entity, “The Bank.” Whether it happens during the Great Depression, or in the 21st century, it is equally heartbreaking. I think that House/Divided does an amazing job at forcing us to open our eyes to what is affecting those around us this very minute.