Truth and not truth: an analysis of some plays of Lilian Hellman

Abstract

Lillian Hellman's remarkable presence in the American theatre has roused several works about her production and her life. The approaches have been different, varying from plot, action, and structure, to social nrotest, moral conflict, and economic struggle. The intention of this study is to analyse different aspects of the truth in some plays of Lillian Hellman. It calls our attention to the fact that, in each play, the cataclysm that emerges has its origin not in the most important characters, but in the minor ones: those who seldom appear (most of them appear a little at the beginning and a little at the end of the play), or those who are inactive during the greater part of the play, or those who are not the total center of attention. They are responsible for the dénouement proper, and this dénouement has some relation to truth: either by its presence or by its absence.