Facing Death
- August Strindberg
Johan August Strindberg
(1849–1912) was a Swedish writer, playwright, and painter. Ranked among
Sweden's most important authors, his works fall into two major literary
movements, Naturalism and Expressionism. His theater tries to create a perfect
illusion of reality through detailed sets, an unpoetic literary style that reflects
the way real people speak, and a style of acting that tries to recreate
reality. Miss Julie (1888), Facing Death (1892), A Dream Play (1902), and The
Ghost Sonata (1907) are some of his notable plays. In Facing Death, Strindberg
dramatizes a heroic sacrifice made by a bankrupt man for the sake of his
daughters.
• Main characters:
MONSIEUR DURAND, a pension
proprietor, formerly connected with the state railroad
ADÈLE, his daughter, twenty-seven
ANNETTE, his daughter,
twenty-four
THÉRÈSE, his daughter,
twenty-four
ANTONIO, a lieutenant in an
Italian cavalry regiment in French Switzerland in the eighties
PIERRE, an errand boy
• Plot/Summary:
This play has presented the main
character as Mr. Durand who is a former railroad employee, widower and
pensioner. Here in this play, he has been presented as a financially ruined
person. Mr. Durand is spending his life living along with his three daughters.
His three daughters are:Adele (27), Annette (24) and Therese (24 years)
The relationship between father
and three daughters is not good. They
are completely bankrupt. They have been facing a financial crisis for the last
ten years. They have turned their home into a lodge for the rest of their
lives. Adele works in the kitchen and
Mr. Durand engages himself in other kinds of works such as serving guests,
cleaning, delivering and bringing food items etc.
In the lodge, Mr. Darund’s two
daughters only try to seek others’ attention. They don’t help in other tasks in
the lodge except playing, singing and flirting with the customers.
The entire Durand family has been
living and spending their lives borrowing money from others for years. The
family is dealing with financial hardships. With bills piling up, Durand is
trying to figure out how to provide for his three daughters after their
mother’s death.
Mr. Durand has to pay several
bills. He has to pay everyone like the
baker, the butcher and the grocer. Their
work boy, Pierre, comes up empty-handed when he goes for bread. Rather he brings only unpaid bills. Durand buys candles to light on the death
anniversary of his late (Zariia) son, René, who died in infancy. He still loves him and misses him.
At their lodge, he has the only
paying guest who is Antonio (an Italian army lieutenant). Durand tells Antonio that due to bankruptcy
and lack of supplies, they can no longer house him. Antonio offers to pay in advance and lets him
stay for another month but Durand refuses.
He also says that last spring he had no guests for three months and finally
an American family came and helped him.
When Durand goes for a coffee-bread, Therese flirts with guest Antonio
and they kiss.
Durand is quite surprised to see
them kissing when he appears at the door.
Enraged, he angrily drives Antonio away from his house. He also throws away the money given by him. Therese and Annette are unhappy to see their
father’s act. They want the guest
(Antonio) to be there. Both girls
misbehave with their father. They even
snatch the glass of milk from him as he could not bring bread. In compulsion, they make him drink only a
glass of water. As he prepares to light
his bribery pipe, Therese snatches the match.
Mr. Durand is hungry for a long
time and eats rats’ feed too. But he luckily survives because it isn’t
poisonous. All his three daughters
accuse him of spoiling the condition of the house. They claim that if mother
had been alive, the condition of the house would not have deteriorated. When their mother was alive, she did not have
a good relationship with their father Durand.
The daughters seem to take the mother’s side and only blame the
father. Actually, their mother used to
waste money in the lottery. Most of the time she was scolded. She was
threatened that she would work as a prostitute.
When the wind blows, Mr. Durand
tells his daughters to put out the stove fire and take care of the insurance
documents properly. He also says that he
is going to bring money from insurance for them. Now the daughters start behaving well with
him. Seeing Therese’s unhappiness, he
allows her to marry Lieutenant Antonio if he truly loves her. Hearing this, Therese is now overjoyed and
returns the match to him.
He calls his eldest daughter
Adele and asks if there are candles. He
tells Adele to hide documents from a fire insurance policy and begins to reveal
the secrets he has kept inside his heart. He was born in France. He had fallen in love with a woman even
before the age of recruitment. In order
to be able to marry, they came to Switzerland and obtained native
citizenship. During the final war, he
joined the Swiss Army and fought against the French army. It means that he took up arms against his own
country. To hide that shame, he lies
that he was born in Switzerland.
He also states that due to his
mother’s carelessness and foolish speculations, he lost the ancestral property
and the maternal property. In this way, they ran out of their inheritance.
While his wife was alive, she
taught the children to hate their father Durand. She made them obey herself.
Most of the time, she blamed her husband and became successful to make the
children against their father. After her death, Mr. Durand remained silent all
his life because he did not want his daughters to doubt their mother’s
goodness.
Mr. Durand suggests Adele take
maternal care of her sisters. He
suggests finding a teacher’s place for youngest daughter Annette so that she
can be in good company and keep insurance documents properly. In the end, he drinks the poison from the
glass and the house is seen burning. Thus
Durand sets the house on fire and poisoned himself so that his daughters could
receive 5000 francs as compensation from the fire insurance.
Understanding the text
Answer the following questions:
a. Where does the play take place?
Answer: The play takes place In
the dining room of Monsieur Durand, a former railroad worker, widower and owner
of the boarding house who lives there with his three daughters.
b. Why do the grocery, the baker and the butcher send their bills to the Durand household?
Answer: The grocery, the bakery
and the butcher send their bills to the Durand household because the Durand
household hasn’t paid their bills for a long time. Therefore, they are unable to deliver even more
goods until the bills are paid.
c. Why does Monsieur Duran spend money on candles when he doesn’t have money to buy even bread?
Answer: Monsieur Durand spends
money on candles when he doesn’t have money to buy even bread because he wants
to light the candles on the death anniversary of his late dear son, René, who
died in his infancy. Durand is saddened
by his passing and still has a feeling of affection for the dead child. Durand has another intention to set his house
on fire and get fire insurance money to make up for his daughters’ fortunes as
they grapple with financial troubles.
d. Why did Monsieur Duran sell his life insurance?
Answer: Monsieur sold his life
insurance to pay off the debtor’s loan. His condition was so miserable whereas
the debtor was quite angry with him for not paying the dues.
e. Why has Monsieur Duran paid fire insurance?
Answer: Monsieur Durand has paid
fire insurance to make a compensation claim later on. He intends to get
compensation from the fire insurance by burning his house so that the money given
as compensation will help his daughters.
f. How did Monsieur Duran and Mrs. Duran run out of their inheritances from both the sides?
Answer: Monsieur Durand and Mrs.
Durand ran out of their inheritances from both the sides by Mrs. Durand’s
carelessness and foolish speculation. Both of them lost paternal inheritance
and maternal inheritance which was used in raising their daughters.
g. Why does Monsieur Durand tell a lie about his birthplace?
Answer: Monsieur Durand tells a
lie about his birthplace because of two different reasons.
- He fell in love with a woman before his age. He wanted to marry that lady. So he left his birthplace and moved to Switzerland. To save his and his wife’s reputation, he tells a lie.
- He fought against his own motherland France from the side of Switzerland. To hide this shame, he tells a lie.
h. What business is Monsieur Durand running to make a living?
Answer: Monsieur Durand is
running a boarding house to make a living.
He has converted his house into a lodge to earn money. He provides lodging and dining services to
his guests. There is quite a good facility like a homestay.
i. What plan does Monsieur Durand have to help his daughters with money?
Answer: Monsieur Durand plans to
commit suicide and set his house on fire.
He hopes to get compensation from the fire insurance policy so that he
can help his daughters with the money. He wants to sacrifice his life for the
sake of his three daughters.
j. How does Monsieur Durand die?
Answer: Monsieur Durand dies
committing suicide at last. He drinks poison to help his daughters with the
amount of compensation from the insurance policy.
Reference to the context
a. Sketch the character of Monsieur Durand.
Answer: Monsieur Durand is the
main character of the play “Facing Death”. He is a widower, the lodge owner and
former railway worker. He is a financially ruined person who has three
daughters. All of them live in the lodge. The relationship between Durand and
his daughters isn’t good. Here, in this play, we find him so loving, caring as
well as protective father. Due to his bankruptcy, he is spending his miserable
life along with his three daughters. His daughters hate him and blame him most
of the time. But he keeps on thinking about the well being of his daughters. He
sacrifices his life for the welfare of his daughters who hate him. He is full
of patience who endures injustice from his late wife and remained silent for
the rest of his life, blaming her for the financial ruin. He is also a loving husband. He is a patriot too who loves his native
France, although he is forced to live in Switzerland. He is a tragic hero who faces financial
difficulties and eventually ends his life tragically committing suicide for the
well being of his three daughters.
b. How do we know that the Durand family has reached a dead end?
Answer: We know that the Durand
family has reached a dead end by seeing their miserable state in their lodge.
This family is completely bankrupt. When Mrs. Durand was alive, both
husband-wife had lost their maternal and paternal inheritances. Mr. Durund and
his daughters spend their miserable life in an economic crisis. Due to their
miserable economic status, they have converted their living house into a lodge.
Mr. Durand household has been borrowing money from others for years. There are
numerous bills in the name of the Durand household which must be paid to
different debtors. Among all family members, the condition of Durand is so bad.
We find him living a tolerant life. He doesn’t have good relationships with his
daughters. His daughters hate him and blame him for many reasons. We even find
that the family doesn’t have money to buy bread for coffee. Due to hunger, we
find Durand eating the rat’s bait. This family has reached a dead end due to
this financial crisis. Due to this financial hardship, Durand has planned to
kill himself and burn down his lodge for the welfare of his daughter. Here, we
find Durand successful in his deadly plan at last.
c. ‘The mother, though already dead, seems to have had a great influence on the daughters, especially Theresa.’ Do you agree?
Answer: Yes, I agree with this
statement. Here in this play, we find that the mother has had a great influence
on her daughters, especially Theresa. While their mother was alive, she used to
teach the children to hate their father Durand. She made them obey herself.
Most of the time, she blamed her husband and became successful to make the
children against their father. After her death, Mr. Durand remained silent all
his life because he did not want his daughters to doubt their mother’s
goodness. He is full of patience who endures injustice from his late wife and
remained silent for the rest of his life, blaming her for the financial ruin.
Due to the mother’s teaching, all three daughters hate their father. They think
that their father was the main cause of their financial ruin. Theresa is the
one who has been influenced much by her mother. She shows her rude behaviour
most of the time. She snatches the matches away from her father when he was
about to inhale tobacco with a briar pipe. Similarly, she seizes the glass of
milk from him. She seems so unkind towards her father. Among the three sisters,
she is the one who is filled with much anger against her father.
d. Discuss the relationship between Monsieur Duran and his wife.
Answer: The relationship between
Monsieur Durand and his wife was not so good. While Mrs. Durand was alive, she
used to blame Mr. Durand though she herself had ruined the ancestral
property. Due to her negligence and
foolish conjecture, she ruined the ancestral property. She used to spend household money on lottery
tickets. After being abused, she
threatened her husband to become a prostitute for money. He called her a lone soldier. She taught all her daughters to hate their
father and filled their minds with all the negativities. She had become successful
to divert her daughters’ minds and made them against their father.
e. ‘Money determines the relationship between characters in this play.’ Elaborate this statement with examples from the play.
Answer: Here In this play “Facing
Death” money has played a very vital role in the life of Mr. Durand and his
daughters. Money is the first and foremost thing that has become the sole cause
behind all the problems in this drama. The economic hardships of Mr. Durund
family have forced the entire family members to live a miserable life with a
lack of various essential needs. This family has been presented in agony due to
hunger. Due to the economic crisis, the family is unable to buy bread. Mr.
Durand has to live with a hunger for a long time. He is even seen eating rat’s
bait in the drama. Mr. Durund is unable to provide for the basic needs of his
daughters due to this economic crisis.
The relationship between Mr. Durand and Mrs. Durand also deteriorated
due to the struggle to lose wealth. The
daughters do not like the father because he doesn’t have enough money to
support the family. Economic crisis leads them to convert their living house
into a lodge. Here, we find that money determines the relationship between the
characters. Mr. Durand’s three daughters hate and blame him most of the time.
They show their rude behaviours to him. The daughters do not even give a glass
of milk because the father cannot bring bread.
They snatched the glass of milk from him. They snatch the matches from him when he goes
to smoke. They show their kind behaviour to their father when their father says
“I’ll bring you money.” They even kiss
him lovingly. They use the words kindness and love. They even apologize for their rude behaviour.
f. Monsieur Durand kills himself so that his daughters would get 5000 francs as compensation from the insurance company. What does his plan tell us about him?
Answer: In the play “Facing Death”, Mr. Durand has been presented as a tragic protagonist who commits suicide by drinking poison and sets fire to his house to get compensation from the fire insurance company to improve the financial condition of his daughters.Mr. Durund has been spending his life in extreme poverty. Due to the financial crisis, he has been blamed most of the time by his daughters. He has been considered a failed and irresponsible father. His plan for the welfare of his daughters tells us that he is so caring as well as loving father who keeps on thinking much about his children’s future. He is the man who sacrifices his life for the bright future of his three daughters.
g. Discuss Facing Death as a modern tragedy.
Answer: By modern tragedy, we
mean a play dealing with tragic events and having an unhappy ending, especially
one concerning the downfall of the main character.
The play "Facing
Death" Is a modern tragedy as it
ends with the tragic death of the protagonist Mr. Durand. Modern tragedy deals with realistic
representations and common problems.
Realism and naturalism are the main features of modern play.
The protagonist of a modern
tragedy is a common man. Furthermore, modern tragedy deals with the problems of
the modern individual such as dysfunctional family relationships,
socio-cultural problems, loneliness, etc.
Characters become victims of their socio-cultural environment, fate,
economic class, gender, external environment, etc.
Here in this play, we find the
exact features of modern tragedy. This play has presented the life of common
modern man with an immense crisis in his life. Due to economic hardships, he
has been suffering a lot along with his three daughters. In the play, we can
easily find problems of bad relationships and poor economic status. Mr. Durand,
a common modern man has suffered a lot due to economic difficulties. This play
also ends with the tragic downfall of the main character Mr. Durand. He kills
himself and even burns his house for the welfare of his three daughters. This
play has presented realism as well as naturalism.
