TheTheme of Purity in a Cross-Section of Plays by Jean Anouilh
In the Introduction, several previous interpretations of Jean Anouilh’s concept of “Purity” are compared. Leonard Cabell Pronko concludes that Anouilh has moved from tragedy to despair to the idea of life as absurd; John Harvey maintains tha Anouilh’s art form and desire to amuse have become more important but that he has lost his earlier idealism; pol Vandromme compare Anouilh to Moliere. With these interpretations as background, I have analysed representative works by decade and by type, arriving at my own conclusions. Purity for Anouilh means the ideal aspiration unhampered by considerations of reality or compromise. The plays are an evaluation of man confronting his Ideal and his life situation.
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