Equus depicts the teenage alan strangs psychological condition. Passion and worship in peter shaffers equus essay bartleby. A sensation at the time, it is still visceral and shocking on stage. Download ebook equus peter shaffer equus play wikipedia peter shaffer s equus 1973 won the 1975 tony award for best play. Equus by peter shaffer the questors theatre youtube. A feminist would focus on the importance of women in the text. While relating his themes, peter shaffer makes use of psychological realism3. This script is a transcript that was painstakingly transcribed using the screenplay andor viewings of equus. Shaffer reveals the psychological principles and the philosophical aspects.
Shaffer was inspired to write equus when he heard of a crime involving a 17yearold who blinded six horses in a small town in suffolk. The creators of sparknotes equus themes from litcharts. Abstract this paper is written to analyse equus by peter shaffer. Alan strang has chosen the path of nonrationalism to give him this meaning. Many of these significant ideas are also referred to in the scene by scene commentaries.
Equus is a 1973 play by peter shaffer about a young stableboy who is driven to madness by his emotional pain. This study guide consists of approximately 30 pages of chapter summaries, quotes, character analysis, themes, and more everything you need to sharpen your knowledge of equus. Whether youve loved the book or not, if you give your honest and detailed thoughts then people will find new books that are right for them. A responder from different circumstances, though, can readily value other things conveyed in the text, dependant on what is important in their lives. Equus study guide contains a biography of peter shaffer, literature essays, quiz questions, major themes, characters, and a full summary and. We provide as many of our worksheets and organizers as possible in word format to. Based on real events, equus tells of a psychiatrists attempts to understand why a 17yearold boy, alan strang, blinded six horses with a hoofpick while facing his own demons. Equus is a play by peter shaffer written in 1973, telling the story of a psychiatrist who attempts to treat a young man who has a pathological religious fascination with horses. Horse themed bedrooms bedroom themes horse head horse art christmas gifts for sister horseshoe crafts equestrian decor towel racks blue rooms. His new book a quick guide to screenwriting is now available online and in bookstores. Supersummary, a modern alternative to sparknotes and cliffsnotes, offers highquality study guides that feature detailed chapter summaries and analysis of major themes, characters, quotes, and essay topics.
Alans pose represents a contour of great tenderness. Passion in peter shaffers equus essay 2285 words 10 pages. The renowned playwright and academy award winning screenwriter sir peter shaffer passed away on june 6, 2016 at the age of 90. Richard burton gives one the top five performances of his career playing an experienced psychologist who has a new patient. One of laings central ideas concerning human psychology is that, to some extent, mental illness is societys shared. Passion the place and value of passion in life is the most important issue raised by shaffer s play. Ray morton is a writer, senior contributor to script magazine and script consultant.
Equus themes from litcharts the creators of sparknotes. Through equus, shaffer touches upon the themes of religion. In this video i provide comments, a summary, my rating and recommendation for peter shaffers equus. Open library is an initiative of the internet archive, a 501c3 nonprofit, building a digital library of internet sites and other cultural artifacts in digital form. That new patient is peter firth who plays a horse loving teenager who suddenly blinds six horses. Print buy and download the equus study guide word buy and. Discussion of themes and motifs in peter shaffers equus. He was born in liverpool, england on may 15th, 1926, and he studied history on a scholarship at trinity college, university of cambridge. Equus play project gutenberg selfpublishing ebooks. Plato once said that man is a being in search of meaning.
Equus by peter shaffer, 1974, avon edition, in english. The royal hunt of the sun was adapted for film in 1969, as was equus in 1977. Litcharts assigns a color and icon to each theme in equus, which you can use to track the themes throughout the work. Equus study guide contains a biography of peter shaffer, literature essays, quiz questions, major themes, characters, and a full summary and analysis. Equus comprehension and analysis bundle by litcharts tpt. Learn and understand all of the themes found in equus, such as primal versus modern. He implies that turning alan into what society says is normal will, in some way, also destroy alan, make him a ghost.
Relaxed download equus ebook pdf free equusebooks blog. The purpose of this writing is to find the theme and the sexual aspect of the play. This onepage guide includes a plot summary and brief analysis of equus by peter shaffer. Equus is a 1973 play by english playwright peter shaffer. The drama unfolds through the eyes of martin dysart, a psychiatrist and an amateur mythologist, who narrates the events of. In peter shaffer s disturbing play, equus, psychologist martin dysart and his patient, alan strang, are searching for meaning. Normalcy is a major theme in the play equus by peter schaffer. An analysis of equus, a play by peter shaffer kibin.
In a spotlight stands alan strang, a lean boy of seventeen, in sweater and jeans. The themes shaffer plays with are interesting, as are his methods of approaching them. An explosive play that took critics and audiences by storm, equus is peter shaffers exploration of the way modern society has destroyed our ability to feel passion. In equus, which took critics and public alike by storm and has gone on to become a modern classic, peter shaffer depicts the story of a deranged youth who blinds six horses with a spike.
Other readers will always be interested in your opinion of the books youve read. The theme of religion and worship in equus from litcharts. Alan strang, a disturbed young man, has been committed to a psychiatric hospital for blinding six horses. The place and value of passion in life is the most important issue raised by shaffer s play. Chapter summary for peter shaffers equus, act 2 scenes 22 24 summary. Litcharts assigns a color and icon to each theme in equus, which you can. Equus is peter shaffers exploration of the way modern society has destroyed our ability to feel passion. This doc includes background notes, dramatic influences and conventions. Peter shaffer was a renowned british screenwriter and playwright. Download citation the relationship between martin dysart and. Using the film version 1977 featuring real horses along with the famously abstract, classically inspired national theatrebroadway. They are as equally as shocking to dysart, yet made justifiable by alan strangs worship for equus, the god of horses. What helped bring this film to such a level was the. An explosive play that took critics and audiences by storm, equus is peter shaffer s exploration of the way modern society has destroyed our ability to feel passion.
Peter shaffers equus was composed to express the values of the composer, namely, that of the issue of conformity. Peter shaffer wanted to make elaborate theatre and he succeeded mark lawson the playwright was a commercial success, but the irony is his works could only have flourished in. Download it once and read it on your kindle device, pc, phones or tablets. An explosive play that took critics and audiences by storm, equus is peter shaffer s exploration of th. In reality the themes dealt with in equus challenges our own sense of what is normal. In peter shaffer s equus, the theme of madness is present as the story explores the undefined line between. Martin dysart richard burton, a psychiatrist who has grown unhappy with his life, takes on the peculiar case of alan strang peter firth, a reserved teenager who has been. It depicts a psychiatrists fascination with a disturbed teenagers mythopoeic obsession with horses. Peter shaffer wanted to make elaborate theatre and he. How does peter shaffer use themes as devices in equus to.
Equus is a drama play by peter shaffer written in 1973, telling the story of a psychiatrist who attempts to treat a young man who has a pathological religious fascination with horses. I know, i know, i still need to get the cast names in there and ill be eternally tweaking it, so if you have any corrections, feel free to drop. In the 1970s peter shaffer wrote three major plays. Equus tells the disturbing story of a 17year old stable boy, and amadeus is the story of mozart and court composer, salieri.
He is learning, through his investigation of alans horrific crime, about what it really means to make someone normal and what a. Its full of complex themes and issues briefly touched on but unrestricted in its presentation. Alan strang is a disturbed youth whose dangerous obsession with horses leads him to commit an unspeakable act of violence. The trafalgar studios and stratford easts revival of peter shaffers controversial play breaks new ground and delivers a raw and riveting experience, centred around three. Sir peter levin shaffer was an english dramatist, author of numerous awardwinning plays, several of which have been filmed. Peter shaffer was strongly influenced by the theories of psychologist r.
In my teens i really was on the stage as one of the horses in equus a play by peter shaffer. Peter shaffers 1973 play is the latest offering from the bench theatre company. Themes and significant ideas equus study guide from. It conveys so many questions about society today and what of the truths are in life. Exploring themes around religion, sex and ritual, peter shaffers theatrical masterpiece was successfully revived in 2008 with successful runs in. Most important are religious and ritual sacrifice themes, and the manner in which character. Equus is a drama play by peter shaffer written in 1973, telling the story of a psychiatrist who. Finally, the equus script is here for all you quotes spouting fans of the richard burton horse movie based on the peter shaffer play. Through peter shaffers equus 1973, horses demand recognition as an archetypal historical force because of all of the material contributions of their labor and attendant social, cultural, and psychic impact on the course of human lives and events.
Equus, drama in two acts by peter shaffer, produced and published in 1973. In peter shaffers equus, a psychiatrist, martin dysart, is conducting an investigation on alan strang. Inspired by a true story, peter shaffers mesmerising evening standard and transfixing psychological thriller is reimagined by awardwinning director ned bennett in this dazzling new revival sunday times at londons trafalgar studios for 9 weeks only. Extreme passion illustrated in peter shaffers play, equus essay one definition of madness is mental delusion or the eccentric behavior arising from it. About the author teacher guide equus lesson plan about the author. The concepts of passion and worship are intimately related in equus, and over the course of the play, shaffer complicates our idea of what religion is and should be. The writer uses theme and sexuality theories and close reading method. This is why peter shaffer uses equus as a sort of device to standardize and make the strange acceptable.
400 1250 140 285 584 421 777 1012 1421 995 161 1358 450 167 726 1348 279 1174 776 1186 416 1401 468 49 961 1250 1107 1126 1011 155 1107 203 437