In _Millenium Approaches_, the first half of his two-part dramatic epic _Angels in America_, Tony Kushner poses what Russian thinkers have called "the accursed questions"--those big philosophical questions about the role of the nation, man's place in society, the social function of art, and so on. We will consider these accursed questions and the others you pose below in Tuesday's class.
In Acts I and II, Prior is diagnosed with AIDS and his body begins to deteriorate. Louis clearly struggles with the idea of losing Prior but still leaves him while he is in the hospital. Louis begins meeting other people like the Man in the park and later, Joe. Why does Louis leave Prior but then tell the man in the park to “infect” him? Is this his way of dealing with guilt or grief?
ReplyDeleteNear the end of Act II, we learn that Joe is possibly a latent homosexual and that his wife has been hallucinating, most likely to cope with her unhappy marriage and her husband's latent homosexuality. Does the conflict between the two stem from their individual conflicts exclusively? Or do other external factors affect the way the two interact? And how do their interactions, affect everything on the external lives?
ReplyDeleteJoe admits that he aspires to be Roy, to be a defender of justice and ethics, while Roy reveals to Joe the cruelty and ruthlessness of life, and that justice has to be ruled by man in order to be effective. When Roy is stuggling in pain on the floor, he sees an apparition of Ethal Rosenberg, who is a victim of Roy's manipulation of Justice. What does this scene of Ethal visiting Roy when he is dying say about the consequence and compunction of Roy's in-ethical practices? Is it a payback? A turn of fortune now Roy is dying and Ethal dials the ambulance for him ?
ReplyDeleteOn page 49 Joe says, "I pray for God to crush me, break me up into little pieces and start all over again." What does this quotation reveal regarding the repression of homosexuality. Can we relate this to Anthony Burns and his need to be conquered and destroyed/overcome by the masseur?
ReplyDeleteOn pages 35 and 62 a voice to which Prior speaks trails off/ends by saying "Gory to..." What it this significance of this and how can it relate to Prior's internal/external conflict?
In the act 1, Roy Cohn states "Homosexuals are not men who sleep with other men... homosexuals are men who know nobody and who nobody knows. Who have zero clout" (807 online version). What does this say about the ideal man? Since homosexuals are aliens, is Roy saying that having clout is a way to be an "alien" but fulfilling the requirements to be ideal? In what other instances is that connection between homosexual and the ideal man brought up?
ReplyDeleteIn act one, scene 9 Henry tells Roy that he has AIDS, a disease that Roy claims effects only "homosexuals and drug addicts" (43). After taunting Henry to outright call him a homosexual he claims that he is not a homosexual but instead is just a man who has sex with other men and then refuses to call what he has AIDS and instead calls it liver cancer. Why is Roy so obsessed with labels? Do you think this obsession confined soley to labels pertaining to homosexuality? Do you think is obsession with labels due to the status of homosexuals in his society?
ReplyDeleteTowards the end of Act 1, when Roy visits his doctor and learns he might have aids, he is quick to state that he is not a "homosexual" but a "heterosexual," and that homosexuals are merely men without power. He feels he has enough clout to overcome the disease. How does Roy's attitude toward the situation show how he feels towards homosexuals? Why does he feel above them?
ReplyDeleteJoe is offered a great job by Roy Cohn in Washington, but first has to ask his wife, Harper, about the move. Joe wants the job, but Harper doesn't want to move. Cohn tells him to do what is best for himself, and to disregard his wife's wants. What should Joe do? Should he leave for the job, or stay for his wife?
ReplyDeleteis power and homosexuality mutually exclusive?
ReplyDeleteWhen Roy is first introduced in the book, he is at a telephone carrying on multiple conversations and states that he wishes he could be an octopus. How does this image help to protray Roy's character? Later in the play, Roy wants Joe to go to Washington to help him get out of a legal charge and tells him about connections and having a father figure. How does this protray the politics of the time and how does the octopus metaphor fit into it?
ReplyDeleteIt becomes increasingly clear that Joe is a homosexual as the story progresses, until he finally comes out in a phone call to his mother late in Act Two. He has been married for year to Harper and it seems that he really does love her, but he has hid who he really is his entire life. Was it societal pressures that forced him to keep this secret? Or was it family pressures?
ReplyDeleteIn act two Joe mentions the story in the bible where Jacob Wrestles with an Angel. He feels as if though the fight was unjust and unfair, because there is no way that a human can beat an angel. How does, and how can this story correlate to the title of the book? Is there a certain power in the cold war period that can be representative of the angel?
ReplyDeleteHow does Prior's homosexuality and coming death from AIDs affect his family lineage? In what ways does Prior's stable background set him apart from the other characters by giving him something to lose?
ReplyDeleteAfter Prior states that he is indeed homosexual, Harper states that in his church he doesn't believe in homosexuals and Mormons. He believes that these things should not be in his hallucinations simply because they do not exist. What does this say about the view of homosexuals in this novel?
ReplyDeleteEvery character seems to embody some kind of emptiness, but is too afraid to seek help. As seen in the commercial last thursday, there is a sense of new found happiness and perfectness in society, which makes it all the harder to admit to the troubles in each characters lives. How does this idea of a perfect society make the emptiness that each character experiences more prominent and problematic?
ReplyDeleteHow does the first scene of act one play a role in the rest of the play? The Rabbi speaks of preserving the old world that will 'pretty soon will all be dead.' Is the emptiness that each character feels the loss of this old world given to them by Sarah?
Joe talks to his mother on the phone and asks if his father loved him. At first she would not answer the question. When Joe admits he is homosexual, his mother calls him ridiculous for not knowing his father didn't love him. His mother does not want to believe that Joe is a homosexual. What is the author trying to suggest about how society feels about homosexuals when even Joe's own mother is sickened by his homosexuality?
ReplyDeleteJoe and Harper certainly disagree about Joe's job offer in Washington. Harper doesn't want him to leave, but even though Joe loves his wife, he really wants the job. Although Joe does ask Harper to come with him, it seems like he wants a fresh start. Is the fact that Joe is a closet homosexual the real reason behind his marriage falling apart? Why has he had to hide his homosexuality? Is it possible Roy Cohn is also a homosexual interested in Joe and wants to lure him to Washington with the job offer? It might explain why Roy tells Joe to think about himself and not the future of his marriage....
ReplyDeleteThe question of homosexuality and power repeatedly appears in the play, especially during Roy's visit to the doctor. How are these two things related? Does this relate to the powerlessness that Louis feels when he leaves Prior?
ReplyDeleteLouis can be described as "light" rather than heavy because of how easily he left Prior. Joe, on the other hand, can be described as heavy because of having a wife and potentially a child. How does Joe's heaviness affect his decisions (in particular with comparison to Roy)?
ReplyDeleteWhat is the purpose of the role of the rabbi being played by the same actor as the person playing Joe's mother? What does this say about Hannah's character as well as the underlying meaning of gender and sexuality of this play?
ReplyDeleteIn Act 2, Scene 7, Louis and Joe have an awkward encounter by the hot dog stand. Louis is worried about Ronald Reagan's children and the fact that they are eating hot dogs, while Joe doesn't seem to mind too much about anything. How does this scene help develop the characters of Louis and Joe?
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