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Simple Moments Of Life In The Play Our Town By Thornton Wilder

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Our Town
Human beings often neglect the seemingly simple moments of life. Thornton Wilder portrays this idea through his play, Our Town. Our Town depicts a small American town in the early 1900s. The plot puts emphasis on the profound simplicity of daily life. Emily Webb goes through life in her small, intimate town and lacks appreciation for the simple moments that appear in her everyday life. It is only through death that she recognizes what she has missed. Thornton Wilder encourages his viewers to appreciate the seemingly simple moments of life and to recognize their beauty.
Through the script and execution of the play, Thornton Wilder is able to portray the beauty in the simple moments of life. “No curtain. No scenery” (Wilder 3). Wilder purposely wrote a play with limited props and scenery in order to draw the viewer's attention to the characters and the events taking place, rather than to the unnecessary adornments of the theater. This is in order to put emphasis on the hidden beauty in everyday life. People are blinded by the unnecessary frills that they often miss what is truly important. By incorporating a minimalistic theater style, Wilder is able to focus on the beauty of simplicity. …show more content…

Thornton Wilder expresses this idea throughout his play. “You're twenty-one or twenty-two and you make some decisions; then whisssh! you're seventy: you've been a lawyer for fifty years, and that white-haired lady at your side has eaten over fifty thousand meals with you” (Wilder 62). Life goes by quickly, yet most people do not stop and acknowledge the simple moments in their daily lives. It is only through the forthcoming of death that one realizes the transience of life. Ultimately, one will realize that the true beauty of life lies in the simple, slow

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