Albee and the absurd drama

Abstract

This paper attempts to use The Zoo Story as a way of evaluating Edward Albee's degree of commitment to the Theatre of the Absurd. This aim might not appear very novel as Martin Esslin has already included Albee in his list of well known absurdists. However, regardless of how famous Martin Esslin's The Theatre of the Absurd it has never curtailed the critical Babel surrounding absurdist drama, for the term 'absurdism', despite Esslin, has been used in many different ways. C.W. Bigsby, for instance, by developing a predominantly thematic approach to the subject, and to Albee in particular, has charged Esslin with a lack of rigour for having included The Zoo Story amongst the absurdist plays. His disagreement with Esslin stems from his view of Absurd Drama as a revelation of nihilistic viewpoints. Thus, he maintains that in The Zoo Story, Albee, unlike the absurdists, is formulating an affirmation of man's ability to face reality.