The purpose of this paper is to interpret the essence of suicide through the various examples of suicide depicted in modern American plays, such as Albee’s The Zoo Story. Although suicide has been a taboo throughout most of history, literature has seriously dealt with suicide as a form of death, the one of eternal propositions about the nature of human existence, even during the periods when suicide was not permitted. As a result, suicide currently has become one of the most prominent interests in literature. Suicide in literature, although fictional, can be described much more freely and more specifically than in reality, encompassing various mechanisms of actual suicide. Even in the 20th century American plays, suicide was portrayed as the most extreme conclusion of the agony of the period, and frustration and despair due to damage to an individual’s value and dignity. Albee also considers a rupture in human relations caused by materialism, unlimited competition, and extreme individualism, the social ills in a modern capitalist society. Through Jerry’s suicide in The Zoo Story, Albee stresses the need for genuine communication and contact between members of society in order to overcome alienation and disconnected human relationships which are the main impulses of suicide in modern society.
한국중앙영어영문학회 [The Jungang English Language And Literature Association Of Korea]
설립연도
1968
분야
인문학>영어와문학
소개
본 학회는 영미어문학의 학술연구와 이에 부합하는 아래의 사업을 기획 수행하며,
또한 회원 상호간의 친목을 도모함을 목적으로 한다.
1. 학회지 발간
2. 연구 발표회, 강연회, 공동연구
3. 영미어문학 관련 도서출판
4. 영미어문학 관계 도서 및 자료의 모집 및 비치
5. 기타 본회의 목적 달성에 필요한 사업
간행물
간행물명
영어영문학연구 [The Jungang Journal of English Language and Literature]