Eugene O'Neill: a Playwright’s Theatre

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Eugene O'Neill wrote his plays for a theatre in which the playwright would take a central position. He presented himself as a controlling personality both in the texts–in the form of ample stage directions–and in performances based on these texts. His plays address several audiences–reader, spectator, and production team–and scripts were often different from the published versions. This study examines O'Neill’s multiple roles as a writer for many audiences. After a description of O'Neill’s working conditions and the multiple audiences of the plays, this study examines the various formal aspects of the plays: titles, settings in time and place, names and addresses, language, and connections and allusions to other works. An examination of the plays follows, with particular emphasis on Bound East for Cardiff, Long Day’s Journey Into Night, and A Touch of the Poet.