A Critical Analysis Of The Visit Essay

A Critical Analysis Of The Visit Essay, Research Paper The Visit The modern play, The Visit, exemplifies the meaning of old Greek tragedy. The story portrays a young woman named Claire Zachanassian whose life was changed at the age of seventeen. This life was put on hold by Anton Schill, her one and only true love. The story has many elements that portray a typical Greek tragedy play. They are faced with moods and feelings of a Greek chorus to the conflicts and problems of a Greek tragedy. Even though The Visit is seen as a modernized play, it still holds the characteristics of a Greek tragedy play, such as, Antigone by Sophocles. Claire Zachanassian can be seen as a person in inescapable pain. At seventeen her life was ruined by Anton Schill, a man she once loved. Her

relationship with Schill was abruptly stopped when she became pregnant with his child. Claire brought Schill to court so she could get his help to raise their child. Schill refused immediately and bribed two men by the names of Jacob Hueblen and Ludwig Sparr, with a bottle of schnapps, to incorrectly testify that they had slept with her on occasion. The testimonies of the two men left Claire no choice but to leave town and become a whore. When Claire marries she becomes a rich and powerful woman. Even though her power exceeded everyone?s from her past, what happened became a vital aspect in her life that could never be changed. Claire sees that no matter what she has become, what happened will not change part of her. Therefore, Claire Zachanassian becomes the one character that

demonstrates a person who goes through inescapable pain in the play. She seeks a revenge and in order to reach this revenge she hires men, from her past, to take on her duties. She hires the magistrate, who took on her case at seventeen, Bobby Hofer, as her butler and Kobby and Lobby, who are earlier known as Jacob and Ludwig, to be her slaves. Although The Visit is not a Greek tragedy, it exemplifies the basic rules of a Greek tragedy. The play presents the reader with a Greek like chorus known as the townsman. The townsman are very similar to the chorus in Antigone by Sophocles. The use of Gullen?s townspeople compare to the Greek tragedy Antigone because they are both the voice of the people. In a Greek chorus a group of individuals gather together throughout the play to

discuss the moods and feelings of the people in the town. The real use of the townsman in The Visit is to stir up conflict and moods of the audience. The chorus represents the ideas of the audience and of the entire town. In every Greek tragedy there is a chorus which lets you look into both sides of the story. Claire, a dynamic character in the story, is like a goddess. The story portrays her to be someone with little morals and concerns. As the story progresses the reader can begin to understand why Claire would be imaged as a goddess. Since Claire has become very wealthy, the town of Gullen looks up to her for help. They prepare for her to come into Gullen with banners and welcome signs. Everyone looks up to he, as though, she is a goddess figure who has come to help the

people. She was considered a savior, by the people, but really she was the one dooming them from the start. She does this by owning everything in town. Her power and wealth determined the fate and free will of the townspeople. In every Greek tragedy play there contains a conflict. This is what makes The Visit a modernized Greek tragedy. The conflict that The Visit contains is fate vs. free will. The free will in the story is best symbolized when Anton Schill corrupts Claire Zachanassian at the beginning of the story. By his own ?free will? he made the decision to destroy Claire?s reputation as a young woman, which forced her out of Gullen. He chose to bribe Jacob Hueblin and Ludwig Sparr to pretend they had sexual relations with Claire. After Anton Schill had done this it became