This Bear Is Up a Tree

This Bear Is Up a Tree
photo by Scott Granneman

Monday, October 19, 2009

Emperor Jones - What does it say about mankind?

Today's NY Times reviews a revival of a Eugene O'Neil play. The Emperor Jones is about a Pullman Porter who leaves the United States and takes control of a West Indies island; it premiered in 1920. Jones was played by Charles Gilpin, the first African American to appear in a leading role in a white theater. How weird is that sentence? Gilpin received rave reviews, but he found it very difficult to play to role as written because of the offensive language (which he changed, much to the consternation of the author). In fact, if you Google the play, Baylor's filter won't let you see all the Wikipedia entries. It's a painful play to read or watch. O'Neil was a provocative playwright. Looking back, we can see that he made bold attempts to bring the discussion of race in the U.S. out into the open. Baylor Libraries have a video of the filmed version starring Paul Robeson. The play was awarded a Pulitzer Prize, but it is often viewed as embarrassing or too shocking for polite company today. If you should have the opportunity to write a paper on this play, whatever you do - don't use the papers you find online. They are dreadful and perpetuate all kinds of outdated and stereotypical thinking.

3 comments:

  1. This play sounds quite interesting and the fact that Baylor's filter won't let you see all the Wikipedia entries is ridiculous. I remember being in the dorm and having that filter... but if the play is that bad, then I find that quite interesting. What I also find very intriguing is the fact that the play had provocative language and that "it is often viewed as embarrassing or too shocking for an audience today! I mean, have you seen some of the things people watch now? I know nothing about this play, but I highly doubt that it could be that terrible. Then again... maybe I should look it up and then decide.

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  2. The provocation stems from racial concepts, not sexual or vulgar or heretical.Here's a link: http://eoneill.com/texts/index.htm

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  3. I am in theatre appreciation and this sounds like a very interesting play considering the time it was released. I will definitely take some time and check it out.

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