The drama of the absurd: genre features

Abstract

The paper provides a study of genre features of the Absurd drama. Theaim is to analyze innovative ways of communicating the authors’ message. TheAbsurd drama cannot be interpreted in terms of reason. Direct incarnation ofthe idea of the Absurd at the level of the text is the source of the overwhelmingeffect of the Absurd.In traditional literary texts there is always a kind of concordance betweenthe author of the text and it potential reader which is believed to be achievedthrough the so-called addressing program built into the text. This programoptimizes perception and interpretation of the literary text by the addresseethrough harmonizing their consciences. In such a way the author’s message issuccessfully communicated to the reader. The situation is quite different withthe Absurd drama. The Absurd writers are not inclined to make their dramasunderstandable. According to H. Pinter the play is to be «the thing in itself».Surprisingly enough, a similar idea was expressed by a Russian poet AnnaAkhmatova. Pragmatic disconnection with the audience is a very importantfeature of the Absurd drama which underlies some other features.Another important genre feature of the Theatre of Absurd is constant lackof information for understanding situations and dialogues. The spectator feelsas if not knowing something essential for adequate interpretation of what isgoing on. In the long run informational gaps remain unfilled which leads to anopen number of presuppositions about the situation. Informational gaps alsounderlie the phenomenon of permanent cognitive dissonance, a state of psychological discomfort of the recipient of the Absurd plays, because of notbeing able to reach concordance of thought in the process of drama perception.One more strongly genre marked element of the Absurd drama is itsdialogue. The Absurd dialogues are based on distorted aspects ofcommunication: complete ignoring situational needs, absence of the topic of theconversation, constant groundless change of topics, total absence of thereaction to the interlocutors’ words as well as attempts to cloak real feelingswith senseless words.Absence of logic is one more genre marked feature of the Theatre ofAbsurd. It manifests in many aspects. First of all, it is seen in characters of theplays. Besides being unable and unwilling to communicate, they act quiteillogically. As a result actions turn to be futile attempt to change their miserablesituations. Moreover, the situations tend to get worse. Most characters aremarginal persons, miserable tramps, disabled people. Their appearances areunpleasant, even repellent. Dressed with carelessness, old and ugly, they arepresented with naturalistic details. The general tendency of characters’development is physical and moral collapse. Groundless loss of sight, mind orother functions of the characters is quite frequent.Absurd dialogues in this genre of drama are accompanied by absurdactions of the characters. In some cases these may be monotonous actions:doing or undoing up shoes, putting them on and off, tearing paper, futileendless searching for something. The last case bears some naturalistic touchwhen it takes time to find a thing. Alongside with the dialogues deprived ofsome aspects of communication, endless actions symbolize futile efforts tochange the depressive situation.Another feature of the Absurd drama is a peculiar way of presenting timeand place of the events. The place is usually separated from the rest of theworld. The images of an empty shabby room as well as an endless road arecharacteristic to the genre. The category of time manifests in the domination ofstagnation of plot development. One more feature is the absence of prospectiveand retrospective links. That is why the reasons for miserable state of thecharacters are never known. Nothing is also known about their groundless fearsand the roots of characters unexpected cruelty.Thus, the genre features of the Absurd drama are based on peculiar waysof basic categories actualization: their absolutization, vagueness and distortion.As a result some elements of the Absurd drama are strongly genre marked: theplot, time and place of action, images, ways of characters’ communication,their actions as well as inner state. Innovative ways of reflecting reality andpresenting authors outlook determine the genre features of the Absurd drama