the chairs, a guide

8/13/2019 The Chairs, a guide

1/19

The Chairs

In A Nutshell

Eugene Ionescowas a late bloomer as far as playwriting goes. He was in his forties when

his first play, The Bald Soprano, was produced in 195. !his ama"ingly weird, ama"inglyawesome play was inspired by English language primers. It didn#t ha$e much success until itwas disco$ered by some bigwigs in %aris#s a$ant&garde theater mo$ement. 'efore long,Ionesco was an international theatrical superstar. The Chairswas produced in 195(.!hough it was critically acclaimed, )amuel 'ec*ett#s famous Waiting for Godotstole thespotlight that year. )till, Ionesco continued to grow in popularity and influence. +any thin* hereached his playwriting pea* with Rhinoceros, in 19.

In 19( +artin Esslin wrote a little boo* called The Theater of the Absurd, which basicallydefined an entire genre of theater. Esslin placed se$eral playwrights, including Ionesco,)amuel 'ec*ett,-ean enet,Arthur Adamo$, and later Harold %interunder this label.

!hough some of the playwrights disli*ed being labeled as any one particular type of writer,you can definitely see similarities in their wor*s. All of them seem to ha$e been inspired by,or at least to sympathi"e with, the famousAlbert /amus#s idea of the Absurd. /amusoutlined his philosophy in his essay, The Myth of Sisyphus. !o ma*e a long story short, heproposed that life is meaningless and therefore e$erything humans do is essentially Absurd.

Ionesco and his Absurdist buddies used similar techni0ues to epress the idea of theAbsurd. In many of their plays, characters are trapped in repetiti$e, meaningless situations,spea* in clich2s, and eist in decidedly unrealistic realities. Absurdist plays also often useclowning techni0ues borrowed from $aude$ille and the films of /harlie /haplinand 'uster3eaton.All of these elements are present in The Chairs.

Ionesco *ept writing plays way into the 194s, but none of them e$er seemed to roc* 0uiteas hard as his early stuff. He died, at age 4, in +arch 199. !hough his body lies in a %arisgra$eyard, his influence li$es on. Harold %inter,!om )toppard, Edward Albeeand manyother famous playwrights all owe a debt to our buddy Eugene. His horrifically comic anti&plays helped redefine the theater. Ionesco and his Absurdist buddies changed the languageof drama fore$er.

Why Should I Care?

The Chairsis a play for anyone who#s e$er wondered, 67hy86 )cratch that. +a*e it, 67hy87H:8WHY?!6

Here#s an eample; it#s


2/19

=oice; 7hy am I doing this8irl; 'ecause I need good grades.=oice; 7hy8irl; 'ecause I want to get into a good college.=oice; 7hy8

irl; )o, I can get a good >ob.=oice; 7hy8irl; I want nice things.=oice; 7hy8irl; 'ecause...I want to be comfortable.=oice; 7hy8irl; I don#t *now, I mean, that#s what people want.=oice; 7hy8irl; 'ecause we#re made that way.=oice; 7h&&irl; -ee", shut up I#m trying to study here

=oice; -ust as*ing.irl; 7hy8=oice; ?on#t you start

Has your mind e$er gone down a similar path8 Eugene Ionesco definitely spent some timethin*ing about the great big 67hy86 His plays ha$e been labeled as !heater of the Absurd,and many Absurdist plays seem to be based on the on the Eistentialist idea that humanli$es ha$e no meaning. 7e#re born@ we do whate$er it is we do@ we die. !hat#s it. ame o$er.!he Absurdists thought that since there was no great meaning to life, e$erything we do to fillour days is ultimately ridiculous or absurd.

?epending on your point of $iew, this philosophy might seem either totally depressing ortotally liberating. Absurdists belie$ed that if there#s no larger uni$ersal meaning, then each ofus gets to decide what#s meaningful for oursel$es. If the ghost ofEugene Ionescohappenedto be passing through the bedroom of our poor confused girl, he might answer her 0uestionof 67hy86 with 67hy do youthin*86 If he happened to be standing behind you right now andyou turned around and as*ed, 67hy should I care about The Chairs86 he might say, 6!hat#ssomething you#ll ha$e to decide for yourself.6

The Chairs Summary

How It All oes ?own

!he play begins with an ld +an and an ld 7oman chilling in their house, which isapparently completely surrounded by stagnant water. 7e#re not eactly sure why their houseis in the middle of an ocean, but we get the idea that >ust maybe the whole world has cometo an end. 7e learn that the ld +an has been wor*ing his entire life on a message to all ofhumanity. It#s ne$er clear what eactly this message is, but apparently it contains themeaning of life.
http://www.theatrehistory.com/misc/eugene_ionesco_001.htmlhttp://www.theatrehistory.com/misc/eugene_ionesco_001.htmlhttp://www.theatrehistory.com/misc/eugene_ionesco_001.htmlhttp://www.theatrehistory.com/misc/eugene_ionesco_001.html


3/19


4/19

eluctantly, he does as she as*s, but reminds her of how much he li*es to loo* atthe water.

!he ld 7oman can#t understand why@ the stench of it ma*es her feel lightheaded. !he ld +an sits in the 7oman#s lap. He recollects that it used to get dar* much later than it does now. !he ld 7oman agrees and compliments him on his fine memory. He says it#s dar* because the earth *eeps spinning round and round, sin*ing deeper

and deeper. )he compliments him on his intellect and tells him he could ha$e been a general. !he ld +an replies that he is a general, a 6general factotum6 B1FC G an employee

who does a little of e$erything. !he ld +an complains that he#s bored. !he ld 7oman suggests that they play ma*e&belie$e. !hey argue o$er whose turn it is to ma*e belie$e. !he ld +an tells her to drin* her tea, but there in none. He calls her by the name of )emiramis. B)emiramis was a legendary Assyrian 0ueen, with a reputation for being slea"y.C )he as*s him to imitate the month of Debruary. He replies that he doesn#t li*e the months of the year. !oo bad, she says, they#re the only months we ha$e for now. !he ld +an does an impression of Debruary, which for some un*nown reason

in$ol$es scratching his head li*e )tan aurel Bof the famous comic duo aurel andHardyC.

)he#s $ery impressed and says he could ha$e been head general. He reminds her again that he#s a general factotum. !he ld 7oman begs him to tell a story that begins, 6!hen at last we arri$ed6 BC He complains that he#s been telling the story e$ery night of their F5&year marriage. )he begs him some more, saying that it#s her story too. eluctantly, the grumpy ld +an agrees. He recalls that they were $ery cold when they first arri$ed. !hey went through a garden and on the other side was a $illage. !he ld 7oman as*s the name of the $illage. He says it was %aris@ it was a city of light, but now there#s nothing left of it. !he 7oman says that her husband could#$e really been something but now all hope

is washed down the drain. )he begins to laugh in a demented way. !he ld +an laughs too and continues his story. It#s pretty garbled because he#s laughing so hard, but it has something to do with an

idiot arri$ing with rice stuc* to his belly. B:eah, pretty weird.C Apparently, whate$er incident the two are recalling is hilarious, because their

laughing gets e$en cra"ier.

!he ld 7oman eclaims that %aris was wonderful. )he says again that he could#$e really done something and suggests that perhapshe#s wasted his life.

!he ld +an replies that they should be happy with what they ha$e. He brea*s into tears, calling for his mother. !he ld +an whines that he#s, 6an orphan...dworfan6 BF5C. He wonders where his mother is. His wife tells him she#s in Hea$en. !he ld +an cries.


5/19

!he ld 7oman tries to comfort him. )he reminds him that he has a message to deli$er, something he#s always wanted to

say. !he ld +an buc*s up. He wipes his tears and declares that he is special because he has a message for all

of humanity. His wife tells him that he would#$e gotten farther in life if he#d learned to get along

better with people. !hey sit for a while in silence. )uddenly the ld +an begins to tal* again about the lost city of %aris. He tries to remember more but *eeps getting befuddled. !he ld +an complains that he has trouble epressing himself. )he says it#s his duty to get his message to humanity. )he#s proud of him because he#s finally going to spea* to the heads of the entire

world. He corrects her, saying that he#s hired a professional orator to spea* for him. !he ld 7oman gets ecited. )he can#t belie$e that tonight is the night. It seems the ld +an has in$ited e$ery *ind of person in the entire world to hear the

rator spea* his message. !he guests should be arri$ing any minute. !he ld 7oman worries that the whole thing might ma*e them too tired. !oo late, though... !hey hear the sound of a boat outside G the first guests are arri$ing. !he ld 7oman wonders if it#s the rator. Her husband says the rator won#t arri$e till later. !he doorbell rings. !he ld 7oman frets o$er her hair and clothes. !he old couple hobbles off stage. 7e hear them greeting a guest. !he ld 7oman compliments the guest on her clothes. !he couple comes bac* on stage with the guest wal*ing in&between them. !he guest is in$isible Bto us at leastC. !he ld +an brings a chair onstage for the in$isible ady. !he couple ma*es small tal* with her. !hey appear to be $ery amused with whate$er the ady is saying. !he in$isible ady drops an in$isible ob>ect, which the ld +an insists on pic*ing up

for her. 7e li$e a pretty good life, the couple tells their guest. Dishing occupies a lot of the ld +an#s time, but he spends at least two hours a day

wor*ing on his message.

!he doorbell rings again. A new in$isible guest enters. It#s a /olonel. !he ld +an is honored to meet him and is flattered he#s ta*en the time to come. !he ld 7oman compliments the /olonel#s uniform. )he blushes as the in$isible /olonel *isses her hand. !hey get the /olonel a chair and introduce him to the ady. !he doorbell rings. !he ld +an greets an in$isible couple.


6/19

Apparently he *nows the woman from the past@ they used to call her 'elle. !hey come to the conclusion that her nose has gotten longer. !he ld +an tells 'elle#s husband that she will always be 'elle to him e$en though

she#s old now. !he ld +an introduces the new guests to the /olonel and the ady. +ore chairs are brought on. 'elle#s husband has brought the ld 7oman a present. It#s a painting. !he ld 7oman thin*s that 'elle#s husband is a doctor and tells him about her aches

and pains. !he ld +an corrects his wife, saying that 'elle#s husband is a %hoto&engra$er, not

a doctor. !he ld 7oman begins to tal* with the %hoto&engra$er while the ld +an tal*s to

'elle. It seems the ld +an once lo$ed 'elle long ago. !he ld 7oman than*s the %hoto&engra$er, who is apparently hanging up the

picture he brought. 'oth the ld +an and the ld 7oman begin to flirt with their con$ersation partners. !he ld +an spea*s wistfully to 'elle about times gone by. !he ld 7oman raises her s*irts and compliments the %hoto&engra$er on his cle$er

fingers. E$entually, the old couple as*s 'elle and the %hoto&engra$er to ta*e seats with the

other guests. )tage directions tell us that a long mute scene follows. !he old couple sits silently for

a while and listens to the con$ersations of their in$isible guests. !he ld 7oman tells the %hoto&engra$er that she and the ld +an ha$e only had

one son. !he ld +an, howe$er, tells someone else that they#$e ne$er had a son at all. Not ac*nowledging this, the ld 7oman tells the %hoto&engra$er a story about her

son. Apparently, one day the streets were full of dead baby birds and her son yelled at

her, thin*ing it was all her fault. !he ld 7oman tried to deny that there were dead birds, and her son ran away. !he ld +an begins spea*ing of his mother, saying that he left her to die alone in a

ditch. !hese two stories seem to intertwine and become a bit garbled. E$entually, the old couple stops their story telling and sit in silence for awhile. +ore boats are heard. !he ld +an goes off to welcome the new guests. !he ld 7oman arranges chairs. !he ld +an shows in the new guests, who are apparently newspapermen. He introduces them to all the other in$isible people and comments that the rator

should be arri$ing soon. !ons of in$isible guests begin to fill the room. !he couple scurries around trying to accommodate them all. !hey worry that there

won#t be enough chairs. !he sounds of doorbells, boats, and wa$es grow louder. !he old couple runs around li*e cra"y trying to deal with the growing in$isible crowd. E$entually we get the impression that the room is totally crammed with people. !he ld 7oman begins selling programs and candies.


7/19

Apparently, the room is so pac*ed that she can#t e$en mo$e, so she >ust throws themall up in the air.

%ushed by the crowd, the old couple ends up at opposite windows. !hey call to each other from across the mass of in$isible people. !hey each spea* to random people near them. !he say that the rator should be here by now. !hey tal* about how all the world#s problems will be sol$ed once the ld +an#s

message is heard. )uddenly, the main doors open wide and bright light shines in. !he ld +an eclaims that the Emperor has arri$ed Bof course, he is in$isible tooC. !he couple celebrates >oyously that the Emperor has honored them with his

presence. !hey push their way through the crowd to show their respects. !he ld +an tells the Emperor about all the failures and disappointments of his life. He implores the Emperor to be patient@ the rator will be here any moment to deli$er

the message. At long last the rator arri$es. He is a real person. 7ell, he#s played by real actor at least. )tage directions tell us that he loo*s li*e a typical painter or poet from the nineteenth

century. !he ld 7oman seems a little uncon$inced that he#s real, but after touching him she

declares, 6Here he is6 B44C. !he ld +an and ld 7oman are both so happy that this hasn#t all been a dream. !he rator bows to the crowd and salutes the in$isible Emperor. !he rator signs tons of autographs for the eager, in$isible crowd. %roudly, the ld +an than*s the crowd, then etends his than*s to basically the

entire human race. He than*s the Emperor especially. !he ld +an tells the ruler that his and his wife#s mission in life is now complete. Now that the ld +an#s message will finally be heard, his life will not ha$e been for

nothing. He than*s e$erybody who helped him get to this glorious day and reminisces a bit

about his life. !he ld +an declares that after years of toil in the name of humanity#s greater good,

he and his wife will now ma*e the ultimate sacrifice. !he ld 7oman agrees@ it#s better that they die now while in their full glory. !he couple laments that their bodies won#t be able to rot together in the same gra$e.

Instead, their corpses will drift apart in the waters that surround the house. !he ld +an turns to the rator and tells him that he#s placing all his faith in him@

he#s trusting the rator to get his message across to the world. 7ith that, the ld +an and 7oman throw themsel$es out separate windows, crying,

6ong li$e the Emperor6 B5


8/19

He tries to eplain himself to the crowd, but it becomes increasingly ob$ious that theyha$e no idea what he#s tal*ing about.

E$entually, he gi$es up, bows politely to all, and lea$es. After he eits, we begin to hear the noise of a crowd@ it gets louder and louder then

fades into nothing.

The Chairs Theme of Philosophical Viewpoints: The surd

!he plays of Ionesco, along with the wor* of )amuel 'ec*ett, -ean enet, and ArthurAdamo$, became the foundation for the theatrical mo$ement *nown as the !heater of theAbsurd. !his mo$ement was defined by +artin Esslin in his important boo* entitled Byouguessed itCThe Theater of the Absurd.

n the whole, these writers seemed to be inspired by the philosophy of Eistentialism,populari"ed by -ean&%aul )artre, and the idea of the Absurd as articulated by Albert /amus.'asically, they belie$ed that there is no great purpose in life, therefore e$erything we do ismeaningless or absurd. Ionesco said that, 6Absurd is that which is de$oid of purpose/utoff from his religious, metaphysical, and transcendental roots, man is lost@ all his actionsbecome senseless, absurd, useless6 BsourceC. In the minds of the Absurdists, it was eachindi$idual#s responsibility to create meaning for himself. !his philosophy can be seenthroughout The Chairs.

Questions About Philosophical Viewpoints: The Absurd

1. How is the philosophy of Eistentialism reflected in the idea the Absurd8(. In the Absurdist $iew, how do we bring meaning to our li$es83. ead another Absurdist play, such as 'ec*ett#s Waiting for Godot.How does it

compare to The Chairs8. In what ways might the play argue against the idea of the Absurd8

Chew on This

!ry on an opinion or two, start a debate, or play the de$ilJs ad$ocate.

!he ld +an bears all the hallmar*s of a typical Absurdist hero.

!he ld +an#s message goes against the ideas of Eistentialism because it proposes theeistence of an absolute, ob>ecti$e truth.

The Chairs Theme of Versions of "eality

It#s really hard to tell what#s real and what#s not in The Chairs. As soon as you thin* you#$egot the world of the play figured out, Ionesco pulls the rug out from under you. 'y the end,audiences ha$e been completely absorbed into the hallucinatory dream world of the ld +anand 7oman. 7e lea$e the theater wondering if the elderly couple was cra"y or if weare. The Chairsforces us to eamine our own li$es and wonder if they#re real. How do we
http://books.google.com/books?id=NNQNAAAAQAAJ&pg=PA23&lpg=PA23&dq=%22Absurd+is+that+which+is+devoid+of+purpose%22&source=bl&ots=qrEqI7cWD8&sig=u60Y4oXUUs2bwY2IRa-1DsnYzhU&hl=en&ei=huH5SsOLO4imswPR6ezbCQ&sa=X&oi=book_result&ct=result&resnum=7&ved=0CBsQ6AEwBg#v=onepage&q=%22Absurd%20is%20that%20which%20is%20devoid%20of%20purpose%22&f=falsehttp://www.shmoop.com/waiting-for-godot/http://www.shmoop.com/waiting-for-godot/http://books.google.com/books?id=NNQNAAAAQAAJ&pg=PA23&lpg=PA23&dq=%22Absurd+is+that+which+is+devoid+of+purpose%22&source=bl&ots=qrEqI7cWD8&sig=u60Y4oXUUs2bwY2IRa-1DsnYzhU&hl=en&ei=huH5SsOLO4imswPR6ezbCQ&sa=X&oi=book_result&ct=result&resnum=7&ved=0CBsQ6AEwBg#v=onepage&q=%22Absurd%20is%20that%20which%20is%20devoid%20of%20purpose%22&f=falsehttp://www.shmoop.com/waiting-for-godot/


9/19


10/19

!he play reawa*ens the power of language by reimagining the way it can be used.

The Chairs Theme of rt and Culture

The Chairsseems in many ways to be a comment on the art of theater itself. It is littered withself&referential touches and often references the fact that it is a play. !his style of theater,called meta&theater, was typical of the !heater of the Absurd. !his ties in closely with thetheme 6=ersions of eality6; the audience is ne$er allowed to forget that the theatrical e$entit#s watching is merely a self&conscious illusion. 7hen the play ends without definitelyanswering any of the 0uestions it raises, some may wonder whether theater itself is capableof truly communicating to an audience. n the other hand, you could interpret the dislocatednature of the play as the only honest way to portray reality, ma*ing this meta&theatrical rompthe closest thing to 6reality6 that a play can pro$ide.

Questions About Art and Culture

1. 7hat moments in the play remind the audience that it is watching a play8(. 7hat do you thin* the play is saying about theater in general8


11/19

ustify a person pursuing a goal in life8 If there#s no point,

then why bother8

Chew on This

!ry on an opinion or two, start a debate, or play the de$ilJs ad$ocate.

7hen the ld +an#s dream fails to come true at the end of the play, it shows that all humanambitions are ultimately absurd.

!he ld +an#s dreams don#t come true because he refused to ta*e responsibility for his ownactions.

The Chairs Theme of Isolation

!he characters in The Chairsare totally alienated. !hough the ld +an and 7oman ha$espent their li$es together, they both still feel alone. !hey try to come together through thecreation of >oint fantasies, but e$en these ultimately fail them in the end. !he theme ofisolation is seen 0uite often in the !heater of the Absurd. !his type of theater is said to beinspired by the philosophy of Eistentialism, which states that all human beings areinherently alone. According to the Eistentialists, we are all alone in an un*nowableuni$erse. !he only way we can bring meaning to our li$es is to ta*e responsibility for our ownactions and to decide for oursel$es what is meaningful.

Questions About "solation

1. If the ld +an and 7oman ha$e been together for so long, why do they feel soalone8(. 7hat metaphors does the play use to epress the characters# isolation8


12/19

other Absurdist plays as well. )amuel 'ec*ett#s Waiting for Godot,which was produced thesame year as The Chairs, is a typical eample. !he Absurdists were interested in the notionthat our li$es aren#t linear progressions toward anything@ instead, they are endless loops thatspiral meaninglessly toward death. B'ummer.C

Questions About Time

1. In what ways can time be seen as cyclical in the play8(. 7hat effect does memory ha$e on the characters# perception of time8


13/19

!he play epresses a negati$e $iew of suicide, showing that it is the ultimate eample of notta*ing responsibility for one#s life.

The (ld 'an

/haracter Analysis

:our a$erage e$eryday Eistentialist philosopher might ha$e a few criticisms of the ld +an.In the Eistentialist $iew, our li$es ha$e no purpose, ma*ing e$erything we do ultimatelyabsurd. !his means that people must decide for themsel$es what is meaningful G we mustta*e responsibility for our own actions and eistences.

!he ld +an seems to ha$e ne$er really ta*en responsibility for anything and constantlyblames his wasted life on other people. He whines to the in$isible Emperor, 6I wanted toclimb stairways, they rotted the steps...I fell down...I wanted to tra$el, they refused me apassport...I wanted to cross the ri$er, they burnt my bridges...6 BFC. An Eistentialist might

tell him, 6!oo bad, buddy. !hat#s the way it is. :ou should#$e tried harder.6

Also notice that the ld +an has ne$er committed to any particular profession. His wife isconstantly reminding him of his wasted potential, telling him things li*e, 6:ou could ha$ebeen head president, head *ing, or e$en head doctor, or general, if you had wanted to, ifonly you#d had a little ambition in life6 B1C. !he ld +an#s only comebac* for this is, 6I am ageneral. K...L since I am a general factotum6 B1FC. A general factotum is a person who does alittle bit of e$erything around a building. )o we see that rather than committing to oneparticular thing, the ld +an >ust does a little of this and a little of that. His life has ne$erreally amounted to anything, because he#s ne$er really tried.

f course, the ld +an claims to be $ery committed to ha$ing his great truth&bringingmessage heard by all humanity. i$en this, you could choose to see him as a goodEistentialist. !he ld +an claims to ha$e been wor*ing on this message his entire life, soperhaps he was committed to something he thought was meaningful. Now, in the face of anabsurd world full of in$isible people, the ld +an is determined for his dream to be carriedout. He#s ta*en responsibility for the fact that he#s a bad communicator and has hired aprofessional rator to spea* his message for him. 7hen the message is deli$ered the ld+an will not only bring meaning to his own life, but to the li$es of all humanity. 7hen he *illshimself after the arri$al of the rator, it could be seen as the ultimate act of ta*ing control ofhis life. He#s achie$ed the goal he set out to achie$e, and now he#s ending his life in a way ofhis own choosing.

!hat#s a pretty good argument, but there are still a few problems from an Eistentialperspecti$e. Dirst off, there#s a high probability that there are no in$isible people and e$en norator. It could all be a fantasy. !he ld +an could be >ust in$enting this whole scenario toa$oid ta*ing responsibility for his wasted life. E$en the message could be a fantasy. !he ld+an says he#s hired an rator because he#s a bad spea*er, and yet he gi$es a long speech

>ust before the rator is to deli$er the message. !hen the ld +an *ills himself without


14/19

waiting to hear the message deli$ered. 7e thin* this is all pretty fishy. If the ld +an reallyhas a message why doesn#t he >ust deli$er it himself8 Is this >ust another eample of the ld+an shir*ing responsibility8 ?oes the ld +an *ill himself because he *nows that the ratorhas no real message to deli$er8 His suicide could be seen as the ultimate act of cowardice.Instead of facing the hash realities of life, perhaps he chooses to run from them.

The (ld Woman

/haracter Analysis

!he ld 7oman li$es for her husband. )he supports the ld +an in e$ery way. !hroughoutthe play, we see her scurrying around doing his bidding. )he greets the in$isible guests,drags chairs, and sells programs and Es*imo pies all to aid her husband in the deli$ery of hisgreat message.

ne of the most telling moments is when the ld 7oman literally begins to echo her

husband. )he does this all through his long speech to the Emperor and when he addressesthe crowd. !his echoing shows how in many ways the ld 7oman#s whole purpose in lifeseems to be to support her husband.

!he only time the ld 7oman seems to $eer from her husband in any way is when she getssuper flirtatious with the in$isible %hoto&engra$er. 'ut e$en this seems aimed at getting herhusband#s attention as he professes his lo$e to 'elle. :es, in many ways it seems her life is

>ust a re$erberation of the ld +an#s.

+uch li*e her husband, the ld 7oman tries to escape from the boring senselessness of hereistence through ma*e&belie$e. At the beginning of the play, she begs the ld +an to play

pretend and to entertain her with the same old story she#s heard a million times.

ater on, the ld 7oman tells a story about her son that could be seen as 0uite re$ealing.)he says her son was disturbed one day when he thought the streets were full of dead babybirds. )he tried to reassure her son that there were no dead birds, that they were all happyand singing in the trees. :ou could interpret this whole story as the ld 7oman trying toshield her son from the reality of death. ather than facing its eistence with her son, shechose to try to hide in a pleasant fantasy, which caused her son to abandon her.

Notice also how eagerly the ld 7oman ta*es part in the whole in$isible guestMgreatmessage scenario. If we go with the theory that the old couple is >ust ma*ing this all up, it#s apretty massi$e eample of the ld 7oman#s penchant for escapism. Not only does shespend all day dragging chairs around for imaginary people@ ultimately she gets so lost in thefantasy that she ends up ta*ing her own life.

!he ld 7oman#s suicide brings us bac* to the idea that she li$es her life only for herhusband. In the end, the ld 7oman *ills herself not because she has fulfilled her life#sdream, but because her husband has. Now that his purpose has been accomplished, she


15/19

feels hers has as well. In the end it seems that e$en in her fantasy life the ld 7oman istotally wrapped up in her husband.

The (rator

/haracter Analysis

!he rator is a pretty mysterious figure. )tage directions tell us that he#s dressed as a typicalnineteenth&century artist type and that he#s *ind of conceited. ther than that, we *nownothing. 7e#re not e$en sure if he#s real. He may $ery well be >ust a part of the elderlycouple#s fantasy. !he ld +an and ld 7oman both seem a little surprised that he actuallyshows up in the flesh. In his stage directions, Ionesco says that 6the ld 7oman touches hisKthe rator#sL arm in order to assure herself that he eists6 B44C. !he ld +an seems >ust assurprised at first. He cries out, 6He eists. It#s really he. !his is not a dream6 B91C. All thisseems to support the idea that both the ld +an and ld 7oman thought they were >ustplaying ma*e&belie$e all along.

!here are a couple of arguments for the idea that rator is a real person independent of theold couple#s imaginations. Dor one, after the ld +an and ld 7oman both *ill themsel$es,the rator stays on stage. If he only eisted in their minds, wouldn#t he >ust e$aporate orsomething8 Also, there#s the $ery ob$ious fact that he is played by a real person.

f course, e$en though the rator is played by a real actor, Ionesco saw fit to include thestage direction, 6the rator must appear unreal6 B44C. Also, the rator ne$er reacts directlyto the ld +an or ld 7oman and instead only interacts with the in$isible people. =ery oftenit seems that, though, he is played by a real actor li*e the elderly couple, he is part ofdifferent world.

ltimately, it#s pretty much impossible to tell whether the rator is real or not. 7e#re prettysure this ambiguity wasn#t >ust la"iness or confusion on Ionesco#s part. ne of the ma>ortenants of both Eistentialism and Absurdism is that there#s no such thing as ob>ecti$e truth.E$erything is totally sub>ecti$e; whate$er an indi$idual thin*s is real is what is real. If youthin* a giant pin* bunny is coming to eat you, then it is. )o, if the ld +an and ld 7omanbelie$e the rator is there, he is there. It doesn#t really matter if we belie$e in him or not. 'yforcing us to continually 0uestion the rator#s eistence, Ionesco in$ites us to 0uestionwhether anythingaround us is truly real. He forces us to confront the idea that perhapse$erything is relati$e.

Water

)ymbolism, Imagery, Allegory

!he ld +an and ld 7oman#s house is surrounded by stagnant water. 7e detectsymbolism. !he fact that the water is stagnant could represent the way in which the elderlycouple#s li$es ha$e stalled. Dor years all they#$e really done is play ma*e&belie$e and tell the


16/19

same old stories. !heir li$es ha$e become >ust as stagnant as the water surrounding theirhouse. !he fact that the house is basically an island could also be symbolic of their isolation.!hough the two ha$e been together for many years, they still feel totally alone. !he watercould be symbolic of the distance between them and between all human beings.

7ater could also be seen to represent time in the play. !here are hints throughout that timeis in some ways cyclical. !he old couple seems doomed to repeat the same actions o$er ando$er until their death. At one point, the couple is recounting how the ld +an has repeatedlyfailed in life. !he ld 7oman comments, 6All that#s gone down the drain, alas...down the oldblac* drain6 B5C. 7ith this image, we imagine water spiraling down into the dar*ness of thedrain. It calls to mind how the ld +an#s life has been one big repetiti$e loop, which isdragging him ine$itably towards the dar*ness of death.

Chairs

)ymbolism, Imagery, Allegory

!he last image Ionesco lea$es us with is a stage full of seemingly empty chairs. 7e figurethis has to be symbolic of soething. As we mention in 67hat#s p 7ith the !itle86 and inour section on the theme 6Art and /ulture,6 these chairs seem intended to remind us that inmany ways we#re watching a play within a play. 7hen the rator deli$ers his nonsensicalmessage to the in$isible guests, the audience is reminded of the nonsensical play they#$e

>ust watched. 7ith this in mind, it could be said that the chairs symboli"e the audience itself.

Also notice that these rows of chairs are empty, at least of visiblepeople. 7e wonder if thiscould possibly symboli"e the emptiness of all our li$es. !his would in some ways seem to goalong with the Eistentialist idea that our li$es are ultimately meaningless. 7hen the sound

of the in$isible crowd rises hauntingly o$er the empty chairs at the end of the play, we arereminded of the possibility that e$erything we do may ha$e no ultimate meaning

The Chairs )uestions

'ring on the tough stuff & thereJs not >ust one right answer.1. Are the in$isible guests are real or not8 ?oes it matter8(. 7hat is the effect of the rator being played by a real actor8


17/19


18/19

soon pour &orth &rom IonescoBs mind, The Bald Sopranoreected the logical

plot, character development, and thought o& traditional drama, instead creating

a new anarchic brand o& comedy meant to convey the meaninglessness o&

modern manBs eistence in a universe ruled entirely by chance. IonescoBs initial

o&&ering went unnoticed until 1ironically, by chance a &ew established writers

and critics stumbled upon it and threw their combined literary weight behind

the strange little play, throwing the spotlight on the now middle?aged Ionesco

who soon &ound himsel& in a position o& international renown. /e &ollowed this

remar4able success with a string o& critically acclaimed plays including The

Lesson1!(, The Chairs1!(2, andJack or The Submission1!((.

IonescoBs comedies caused such a stir that, in the summer o& !(), dramatic

critic Cenneth %ynan launched an attac4 against him in the pages o&

theLondon Obserer, re&erring to the dramatist as the


19/19

the chairs, a guide

Documents