Buried Child Character Analysis

Sam Shepard is the author of the play “Buried Child”. In this play, Shepard gives the audience a closer look inside of a dysfunctional Middle American family. Throughout the play the audience discover that the family has a secret. Each family member is peculiar in their own way, and each family tries to find their identity in order to cope with the secret.

Sam Shepard chose the title Buried Child to depict a catastrophic event that occurred amongst a family. In this play Buried Child the playwright expressed deeply about the falling out that a family can endure when you do not deal with things, but it is up to individual to be able to admit the truth and move on from it. For example there are two moments in the play were Shepard

To reference back to the play in Act One where the scene was set and there was light rain coming down. In the dialog Halie who happens to be Dodge Wife expresses her feelings about the rain. The story goes on and their son name Tilden comes in with an arm full of corn. Halie questions Tilden about where he received the corn from. Tilden attempts to explain that he picked the corn from in their backyard, but both Halie and Dodge have been blinded by guilt that they cannot see that the rain is allowing the crops outback to harvest. The second moment Shepard shows the audience is in Act Three. In Act three Dodge admits to his family, Dewis the preacher and Vince’s girlfriend Shelly that he did kill the child. He states in Act three that his son Tilden knew about it because he used to be the one to walk, sing and read to the baby. Soon after Dodge admits that he drowned the baby the rain cease and there was sun light. The play shows that Halie goes up stairs and looks out her window; where she see a field full of vegetables. She then calls out to Dodge to tell him that there son Tilden was correct

The first theme was failure and the absences of the American dream. Haile and Dodge felt as if it was their fault that Tilden turned out the way he is to today. Halie responds to her failure by telling Dodge in Act one that it is her and Dodges responsibility to take care of Tilden. She also go on the say that if they take care of Tilden that Tilden could watch after Dodge while she is gone to talk to Father Dewis. Another thing Halie blames herself for is the death of her son Ansel. She said that she believe Ansel should have dead an honorable death not in a motel. And how she wish she could have saved her son from marrying into the Catholics. Haile and Vince both thought of the family as an American Dream. They thought of the family as happy and very prosperous. However, the truth was that they was not because they were unable to admit their wrongs and let go of the past. The second theme was distinguishing between the past and present. In the play the family lived in the past rather than more in the present. One example of the family living in the past is when Halie always talks about her son Ansel. In Act one she convey about her youngest son Ansel, and how he was a bravo, strong genuine hero and that he would have taken of them. Also, she mentions how she is going to meet with Father Dewis to see if they could get a plank in remembrance of Ansel. Another example of the family living in