All the Way Home -- by Tad Mosel (1961)

Description
I want to go back through the titles to see how many plays were adapted from preexisting works of literature. All the Way Home is an adaptation of James Agee's A Death in the Family, which won a Pulitzer Prize for Fiction in 1957. I think it is almost unfair for a work to win in multiple categories. To be honest, I kind of can't believe that it won in both. Perhaps the novel is exceptional, but I felt the play was not.

The story takes place in Knoxville, Tennessee in May 1915. The story centers on Jay Follet's death. His wife, Mary, is expecting their second child. They have a 6-year-old son, Rufus, who is perpetually bullied by neighbors; he is spoiled by family, though. Act One includes a visit with their 104-year-old Great-Great-Granmaw. Act Two focuses on the news that Jay has been killed in a car crash (perhaps an accident or suicide). Act Three revolves around the funeral.

The play has been revived once off-Broadway and once off-off-Broadway. I'm not surprised that it hasn't seen a Broadway bow, for I do not think any large audience would find it captivating nowadays. 

Candid Reactions

  • Gotta love the term "cyclorama."
  • Ralph is obnoxious. 
  • I have a feeling that Jay's suicide threat is an instance of foreshadowing. 
  • What a line: "Talkin' to him's like tryin' to put socks on an octopus" (70). HA!
  • The stage directions are fairly sparse in this play. That really makes the note, "She has said it," even more powerful (111). 
  • Okay, where did this side of Mary come from? She rants, "You've never had anything but God, Aunt Hannah. I had a husband. I was married to a man. I won't have God in his place" (127). 
  • The laughing about buttermilk is much needed. 
  • What is going on with Rufus at the end of Act 2?
  • So, was he drunk?
  • Mary asserts, "People fall away from us, and in time, others grow away from us. That is simply what living is, isn't it?" (161) Is this true and/or bleak?
  • Is Mary really giving her 6-year-old "the talk" at the end of the play?

Top Two Aspects/Reasons for Winning
1. Birth/Death
The structuring of the play is fine-tuned as Mosel draws attention to the relationship between new life and death. How the characters react to these major events reveal varying ways humans deal with the topics.

2. Childhood
Rufus embodies childhood innocence and ignorance. His ways of responding to challenges give the audience a view into how children cope and navigate their worlds.

Classroom Implications
I don't think I would use this with students, for it is not as rich as other texts. I suppose the topic of drunk driving could be engaging. The concept of death could be paired with carpe diem poetry, perhaps.

Personal Takeaway
Plots do not need to be convoluted to be meaningful.


Ranking



Dialogue
Characters
Plot/Conflict
Symbol/Literary Devices
Overall Enjoyment
TOTAL SCORE








6.25
0
Unfollowable; unrealistic; diction does not match character
Undeveloped; does not reflect humanity
Not engaging; predictable; reader can step away from text because it isn’t gripping
Devices are apparent for cleverness and do not enhance the story
Reader has no interest in re-reading play
1
Not consistently realistic (1.5)
Well-developed; most depictions reflect humanity (1.25)
Semi-engaging; some unnecessary plot-points (1)
Devices somewhat enhance story (1.5)  
Reader would re-read with pleasure and reminded of work (1)
2
Realistic; connotative; diction matches characters
Fully-developed; depictions reflect humanity  
Engaging; unique; reader finds it impossible to put down text because the conflict is so gripping!
Devices seamlessly enhance the story and provide rich interpretation
Reader would re-read the play on own volition, enthusiastically  

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