An Analysis Of John Osborne's Look Back In Anger

713 Words3 Pages

Yes, definitely John Osborne’s Look Back in Anger can shock us today. In a time when society is fighting for women’s right and when every day we learn about violence against women, the play is still relatable. And it is true, all violence is bad. The first production of John Osborne's Look Back in Anger in 1956 generated a great controversy because its graphic vocabulary of class warfare, squalor and resentment. And, at the time, it broke the mould when talking about opening the doors of theatres for all the succeeding generations of writers – it was the foundational work of the genre for which the term “kitchen¬ sink drama” was coined.
Although the play describes 1950s life in an East Midlands bedsitting room among the underemployed graduate …show more content…

Nowadays, it still has the power to shock, such as when Jimmy, unaware of Alison's pregnancy, says the part quoted in the question. And Alison is forced to accept Jimmy's rages. Just like when one sees the news and ask oneself “why do they accept that treatment?” Osborne has often been criticised for not explaining more carefully the crisis in which Jimmy finds himself. However, I think that this does not justify Jimmy’s anger and behaviour. But it is plausible in dramatic terms, especially how the couple behave.
Allison occasionally begs Jimmy to stop his verbal tirades, but he refuses:
ALLISON. All I want is a little peace.
JIMMY. Peace! God! She wants peace! [hardly able to get his words out] My heart is so full, I feel ill — and she wants peace!
But, at some point, she defends Jimmy’s cruelty. She says to his father “You're hurt because everything is changed. Jimmy is hurt because everything is the same. And neither of you can face it. Something's gone wrong somewhere, hasn't it?” This is totally plausible and it still can be seen today. The woman justifying the man. Personally, I think that that is terrible, back in the 1950s and now.
Look Back in Anger’s portrayal of society, marriage and love shocked the majority of older audiences in London. I think that now the play can be read and, maybe, cannot shock us because of the violence theme, but it is shocking that the situations portrayed still exist, that it is still applicable to present-day

Open Document