Abstract
Lillian Hellman was an American playwright whose name was associated with the moral values of the early twentieth century. Her plays were remarkable for the moral themes that dealt with the evil. They were distinguished, as well, for the depiction of characters who are still alive in the American drama for their vivid personalities, effective roles and realistic portrayal. This paper studies Lillian Hellman’s The Little Foxes as a criticism of the American society in the early twentieth-century. Though America was a country built on hopes and dreams of freedom and happiness. During the Great Depression, happiness was certainly not present in many people's lives. The presence of alternate political ideas, decay of love and values increased life's problems, and considered a stress inducing factor were popular themes to be explored during the Great Depression. America, the land of promises, became an empty world revolving around money and material well-being and which turned the people bereft of love, and human values. Hellman’s play presents the real fox, represented by the political and material world, as the one responsible for the raise of new kind of people, the little foxes, and the decline of human value.
Highlights
Lillian Hellman was an American playwright whose name was associated with the moral values of the early twentieth century
The title, suggested by Dorothy Parker, is taken from the Bible "Song of Solomon 2:15, “Take us the foxes, the little foxes, that spoil the vines, for our vines have tender grapes” (Falk, p.51).The title foxes refers to the Hubbards for “ [i]n fact, in no Hellman play is there a single protagonist; the titles are either thematic or symbolic references to a group of characters" (Lederer, p.41)
The story of the play is set at the beginning of the twentieth century in a small town in the South when the American society was developing a rapid indulgence in materialistic and capitalistic interests
Summary
Lillian Hellman was an American playwright whose name was associated with the moral values of the early twentieth century. The members of Hubbard family, Regina Hubbard Giddens and her two brothers Ben and Oscar Hubbard, embody the new generation of Americans who are exploiting others and even each other for the sake of materialistic gains.
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