The Tragedy of Eugene O’Neill’s Play, The Hairy Ape Essay -- Hairy Ape

The Tragedy of Eugene ONeills Play, The Hairy Ape Eugene ONeills The Hairy Ape is the story of an alienated, low-class stoker named force. Yanks life becomes a whirlwind when Mildred, the daughter of a wealthy steel owner, looks at Yank like he is a hairy ape. This action creates the withdrawal Yank exhibits. The remainder of the play is Yanks journey to find his place in societys realms. He searches for his place in a stokehole, at Fifth Avenue, and in jail. Ultimately Yanks trek ends as a gorilla squeezes the life out of YankONeills clue that Yank can only belong in death (ONeill 57). Eugene Gladstone ONeill was born on October 16, 1888, in New York City. His father, James ONeill, was a popular actor, and introduced Eugene ONeill to the theater at an early age. After being expelled from Princeton in 1906, ONeill worked as a gold prospector in Honduras and later as a seaman in the New York area. Soon ONeill became a regular at bars and clubs in New York City. In 1912, ONe ill assure tuberculosis. It was during his recovery that ONeill began to write plays. He wrote many plays and is one of the greatest American dramatists. ONeill won four Pulitzer PrizesBeyond the Horizon (1920), Anna Christie (1922), Strange entracte (1928), and Long Days Journey into Night (1957). Eugene ONeill also received the 1936 Nobel Prize for Literature. ONeill was given the Nobel Prize, for the power, honesty and deep-felt emotions of his dramatic works, which embody an certain concept of tragedy (<http//nobelprizes.com/nobel/literature/1936a.html). Some critics point to The Hairy Ape as a satirical play. These critics suggest that clearly ONeill is a critic of American society and ... ...mploys a chorus, and has an evident tragic flawhubris. Works Cited Alexander, Doris. Eugene ONeill as Social Critic in ONeill and His Plays. Oscar Cargill et. al. eds. NY New York University Press, 1963. Colley, Bryan. Eugene ONeill. <http//www.kc.net/bryanc/apebackground.ht m. ONeill, Eugene. Memorandum on Masks in ONeill and His Plays. Oscar Cargill et. al. eds. NY New York University Press, 1963. ONeill, Eugene. The Hairy Ape in Four Plays by Eugene ONeill. New York Signet Classic, 1998. Rollyson, Carl E. Eugene ONeill The Drama of Self-transcendence in Critical Essays on Eugene ONeill. James Martine, ed. Boston G.K. Hall and Co, 1984. The Nobel Prize Internet Archive. Almaz Enterprises. <http//nobelprizes.com/nobel/literature/1936a.html. Turner, Ron. Rons Place. <http//www.connect.net/ron/oneill.html.