A COMPARATIVE STUDY OF EUGENE IONESCO AND JEAN GENET IN ABSURD THEATRE

Abstract

The post-war world in the aftermath of Second World War has witnessed tumultuous changes in the society. All that had been considered sacrosanct till then, no longer enjoyed their dominance since it became natural to subject everything to question. Almost all spheres of life were severely influenced by the heart-wrenching effects of the catastrophic war. The degenerated human being suddenly looked for responses in an isolated world which he thought would heal him at that juncture. Under such bleak circumstances, playwrights around the world felt the heat to try out new ways to communicate their messages to the society. The Theatre of the Absurd was the apt medium of the time to realign theatrical performances to the changing realities of the world. Pioneers in this genre of theatre such as Eugene Ionesco and Jean Genet composed their plays to tap the dying conscience of human society. This paper considers Ionesco’s The Chairs and Genet’s The Balcony in absurd theatre and aims to bring out the different aspects of absurdity as applied by the playwrights in their respective plays. It also attempts to show that irrespective of differences between them, how both the dramatists were successful in conveying their well-intended messages to their audiences.