The Time of Your Life -- by William Saroyan (1940)

Description
William Saroyan's The Time of Your Life has been revived three times on Broadway, but not since 1975. While I am surprised that it was revived three times in three decades, I am not surprised that it received so much attention. Quite simply, the play is stupefying. It feels like a mix between The Flick and Idiot's Delight. Saroyan sets the play in Nick's Pacific Street Saloon in San Francisco in October 1939. Saroyan nearly achieves all conflict types in the play, but the play seemingly has no conflict. The blurb describes the locale of the play to be "a way-station welcoming lost souls of all kinds . . . People by a profusion of wistful dreamers, pining lonely hearts and beer-hall philosphers, the play offers audiences a rich tapestry of human life." Do yourself a favor and glance at the character list to get a gist of Saroyan's style and the colorful characters who inhabit the play.  

Candid Reactions

• I know it isn't really the best measure of talent or genius to focus on the amount of time it takes the author to write a piece of literature, but I can't deny that I am always impressed when such rich works are done in a short amount of time. Apparently, this play was written in just 6 days. I wonder how much prep work went into it before the pen hit the paper. 
• Saroyan's note at the beginning of the play is worth the read in itself. Saroyan writes: 
• Seek goodness everywhere, and when it is found, bring it out of its hiding place . . . In the time of you life, live -- so that in the wondrous time you shall not add to the misery and sorrow of the world, but shall smile to the infinite delight and mystery of it.
• Saroyan gives incredibly revealing descriptions of his characters. These are real people. The actors must be in heaven. 
• While his descriptions are illuminating, they are not always specific. He gives much description, but allows for interpretation. For instance, he asserts, "Kitty Duvall is somebody" (10). 
• The dialogue has a wonderfully dream-like quality to it. 
• There is something so refreshing about the bluntness of his descriptions: "Harry will make the world laugh" (16). 
• I wonder why all of the characters react with anger frequently. 
• Nick's observation about why these individuals are at the bar is telling: "Maybe they can't feel at home anywhere else" (22). 
• I am in love with his stage directions. I love how he does not keep the reader or audience in the dark with what is going on. He notes, "The atmosphere is now one of warm, natural, American ease; every man is innocent and good; each doing what he believes he should do, or what he must do" (26). 
• Joe argues, "I live all the time. Then I go to sleep" (34). There is a prime example of his lyrical brilliance. 
• Harry is a sad character. Played right, he could devastate an audience. He offers, "I want to hear people laugh. Out loud. That's why I keep thinking of funny things to say" (46). 
• Joe would be a difficult character to play, for he interacts with so many other characters. I love when he says, "Living is an art. It's not bookkeeping" (55). 
• The carousel/toy motif is effective. 
• Krupp addresses American dissatisfaction perfectly, "We've got everything, but we always feel lousy and dissatisfied just the same" (69). 
• The role of "The Arab" is perplexing. I wonder how controversial it was at the time. His tagline is superb: "No foundation. All the way down the line" (69). 
• You have to love Saroyan for writing, "Willie goes, saluting Joe and the world" (82). 
• Dance is used with great impact in this play.
• Oh, this ending is getting really tense!
• I'm confused at that ending. 

Top Two Aspects/Reasons for Winning
1. Poetic Language
Saroyan's script is a treasure chest of lyrical language. The dialogue is connotative and the stage directions paint rich portraits.

2. Optimism
At the start of WWII, optimism seemed like a far-fetched state of mind to have. Saroyan urges the public to cling to goodness. The emphasis on drawing out the best in others is clearly an uplifting message.

Classroom Implications
I don't think students would find this engaging. We could look at its anti-war sentiments. I would like to do a study with its language. I also would like to compare it to The Flick or Idiot's Delight.

Personal Takeaway
Some plays are mystifying.

Ranking

	Dialogue	Characters	Plot/Conflict	Symbol/Literary Devices	Overall Enjoyment	TOTAL SCORE 8.5
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	Well-developed; most depictions reflect humanity	Semi-engaging; some unnecessary plot-points (1.5)	Devices somewhat enhance story (1.5)	Reader would re-read with pleasure and reminded of work
2	Realistic; connotative; diction matches characters (1.75)	Fully-developed; depictions reflect humanity (2)	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 (1.75)