"The Hairy Ape" by Eugene O'Neill

Eugene O'Neill's The Hairy Ape was first produced on March 9, 1922, by the Provincetown Players, a theatrical group that he co-founded. The Hairy Ape represented something of a departure for him, being an exploration into a more expressionistic style than his previous plays. Through “The Hairy Ape” , he shows us that our society should work together like a community to avoid an “every-man-for-themselves” mentality.

When Mildred, a rich girl, calls Yank a “filthy beast” (347), she is rejecting him because of fear and hate toward the working class. She cannot relate to him in any way because of their origins. Because of this, Yank is discouraged for being all that he can be: a working class member of society. Without prestige or education, Mildred cannot accept the man before her because she thinks less of him; this mentality keeps our society from working together as a community.

Vowing class revenge, Yank finds himself rejected wherever he turns: by the Fifth Avenue socialites he insults and by the unionised Industrial Workers of the World for whom he proves too explosive. Only in the Zoo, where he confronts a caged gorilla, does Yank meet a kindred spirit, but that too proves an illusion.

This piece of theatre sends a very powerful message that is linked heavily to O’Neill’s burning, socialist values. He used dialects that clearly represent the different class structures of the time. When Mildred and her aunt are speaking within the second scene, they insult each other and bicker almost the entire scene. Is O’Neill’s point that the upper-class has nothing better to do than to fight and argue? The juxtaposition between scenes one and two is a clear representation of what each class does when they are not working. The rich complain and argue because they have it all and the working class chants, “Drink, don’t think!”, and sings songs until the day is over. O’Neill is showing his audience that the upper class that doesn’t have to work does not lead as significant a life as the working class do. When one works hard, one enjoys the simpler pleasures of life more than those who don’t.

Within O’Neill’s “The Hairy Ape” , society is shown as a cruel world where the upper-class mentality believes in fending for themselves while the working class is more inclined to share his wealth and lead a more significant life. This life may not bridge classes, but within its class, a person with purpose can lead many to live better lives.

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