They Go!—The Urgency of Aesthetic/Moral Incitement in American Drama

8/19/2019 They Go!—The Urgency of Aesthetic/Moral Incitement in American Drama

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They Go!—The Urgency of Aesthetic/Moral

Incitement in American Drama

The Work of Sam Shepard and eil Simon

y Da"id #endery

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They Go!—The Urgency of Aesthetic/Moral

Incitement in American Drama

The Work of Sam Shepard and eil Simon

…the poet’s traditional function on behalf of society… proposed

to make virtue delicious. He compounded a moral effect with

an aesthetic effect…. The name of the moral effect was

goodness; the name of the aesthetic effect was beauty.

3ohn 4ro'e 5ansom( ,#oets Witho+t 6a+rels-

Introd+ction

3ohn 4ro'e 5ansoms 7+ote epitomi8es a coalescence of aesthetic and moral stim+li

that has moti"ated American artists and conditioned American arts for decades* A list of

artist)moralists in American c+lt+re 'o+ld incl+de in addition to 5ansom s+ch names as

So.o+rner Tr+th( en.amin 9ranklin( 5alph Waldo :merson( Mark T'ain( :d'ard

Arlington 5o%inson( Allen Tate( 9* Scott 9it8gerald( e*e* c+mmings( 3ames ald'in(

Allen Gins%+rg( :d'ard Al%ee( 0+rt ;onneg+t 3r*( Arth+r Miller( Toni Morrison( Woody

Allen and many more*$ The moralism con"eyed %y artists


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designs this moralism is em%odied in? may reach a different a+dience than a preachers

orations—perhaps a more sec+lar( li%eral( ,'orldly- a+dience—%+t it has .+st as

important a role in American life* To %orro' Wayne 4* ooths diction( s+ch artists(

directly %y 'ay of pers+asi"e hortatory( and indirectly %y 'ay of characteri8ation(

camo+flaged arg+ment and other narrati"e techni7+es( colla%orate 'ith a+diences in

,pro"iding mat+re moral .+dgment- +t didnt Mc4arthy once 'rite ,ere are considerations of e7+ity and rectit+de

and moral right rendered "oid and 'itho+t 'arrant and here are the "ie's of the litigants

despised->


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agnostic/atheistic "ie'sC and a range of others*2 We might find e"idence of any of these

moral programs coloring the 'ork of different American artists( %+t my stance is that one

encompassing co"enant most prominently conditions the American aesthetic)moralist

imp+lse1 a set of "irt+e ethics principles in s+pport of a moral life ,centerFed in the heart

and personality of the agent—in his or her character-


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declaim in The )rucible( ,6et yo+ look sometimes for the goodness in me( and .+dge me

not*- 0+rt ;onneg+t 3r* in his !reakfast of )hampions( inscri%es protagonist 0ilgore

Tro+ts tom%stone 'ith ,We are healthy only to the e&tent that o+r ideas are h+mane(-

and 5alph Waldo :merson said in his ,American Scholar- address that ,character is

higher than intellect*- Walt Whitman( al'ays the passionate moral and spirit+al ad"ocate(

+rged his readers to'ard %est %eha"ior and %eliefs in ,Song of the =pen 5oad-1

They go! they go! I kno' that they go( %+t I kno' not 'here

they go(

+t I kno' that they go to'ard the %est—to'ard something

great*

In this paper I 'ill e&amine selections from t'o American dramatists 'ho f+nction

'ithin the American artist)moralist tradition descri%ed here* My choice of drama is

pointed* Some readers may "ent+re that a roomier format( s+ch as the no"el( offers a

more e&pansi"e platform for ela%orate ,theori8ing(- comprehensi"e analysis( and realistic

and/or creati"e depiction of moral topics* I grant that this may %e tr+e( %+t I %elie"e that

the drama format—p+%lic as it is( oral( 'ith characters ,speaking- to a+diences( and

a+diences ha"ing a meas+re of ,interaction- 'ith li"e fig+res on stage—'ill pro"ide the

most insightf+l look at o+r topic* The messages in drama not only %ecome a kind of

preaching( 'ith the presentation of li"ing e&emplars of moral para%les( %+t the stage also

%ecomes a kind of tri%+nal( highlighting the importance of ,defenders- of %est %eha"ior


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that re7+ires the act+al "ie'ing and responding to plays( 'hich of co+rse this paper

cannot generate*E

The t'o dramatists I 'ill e&amine are Sam Shepard and eil Simon( 'ho I %elie"e

'ill gi"e +s an incl+si"e pict+re of modern)day morali8ing in American drama


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aesthetic)moralist imp+lse insin+ates its 'ay into di"erse %eliefs and styles* Shepard is

the ,%ad cop- in o+r scenario( the hard)hitting disciplinarian moralist( sho+ting from the

p+lpit( on the "erge of flaying repro%ate listenersC Simon( mean'hile( is the ,good cop(-

a friendly co+nselor( father)fig+re or tr+sted cleric 'arming o+r hearts 'ith reass+ring

homilies a%o+t family( life and ,the right things to do*- In o+r analysis 'e 'ill compare

and contrast these t'o artists in "aried 'ays*

The 4ongr+ence of Moral and Aesthetic Ideals

In this section I 'ill e&plicate an important analytical consideration that +nderpins

my analysis of Shepard( Simon and the American artist)moralist tradition1 the congr+ence

of moral and aesthetic ideals* 4onsider this a look at my analytical methodology*

Moral and aesthetic frame'orks( %roadly( are %oth created 'ith the aim of

c+lti"ating conceptions of %est form and ideal content( s+%stantial coherence( %ea+ty(

tr+th( and ontological and epistemological significance 'ithin inters+%.ecti"e

en"ironments of a+dience and o%ser"er( speaker and listener( infl+encer and infl+enced*

This confl+ence of the moral and the aesthetic—tho+gh admittedly the aesthetic

considerations of artists often modify or re)channel moral/"irt+o+s imp+lses—lends

something of a helping hand to artist)moralists( im%+ing their messages 'ith fl+ency(

comprehensi%ility and a+thenticity*


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nat+ral* It is the dissociation 'hich is +nnat+ral and painf+l-


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immeas+ra%le(- recogni8ed not only the %ea+ty stemming from skilled artistic rendering(

%+t also a more mystic "ie' of aesthetic %ea+ty as something of a spirit+al force* :"en in

those 'orks that contain ostensi%ly ,+gly- elements—and 'e certainly see these in Sam

Shepards dark( "iolent dramati8ation—'e often ackno'ledge a gi"en aesthetic %ea+ty(

emerging from their skilled( accomplished depiction* ayden White 'rites that the

,"al+e attached to narrati"ity in the representation of real e"ents arises o+t of a desire to

ha"e real e"ents display the coherence( integrity( f+llness( and clos+re of an image of life

that is and can only %e imaginary-


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family and strict gender roles?* 9amily "al+es in this sense can no do+%t %ecome

cla+stropho%ic


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immediate family* ,The 'orld doesnt s+r"i"e 'itho+t families-


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This mistr+st %reaches the s+rface 'hen 0ate nastily tells lanche a%o+t her Tell me 'hat he is*

6A4:1 es some%ody in tro+%le* es some%ody that needs help* 9or Gods

sake( 0ate( yo+ dont e"en kno' the man*

0AT:1 I kno' the man* I kno' 'hat theyre all like*

6A4:1 Who are yo+ to talk> Are 'e any %etter> Are 'e something so special>

Were all poor aro+nd here( the least 'e can %e is charita%le*


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the gangsters( and then says ,I tho+ght someone in this family o+ght to help some%ody

else-


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Simon colors his central family "al+es 'ith %r+sh strokes of +ni"ersal morali8ing

principles( s+ch as beneficence


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'rapper that mostly accords 'ith the "al+es of the older generation of o+r parents and

grandparents* Simons is an ,old fashioned- morality( and in some 'ays he may %e

preaching to the choir of his de"otees* Simons is not so conspic+o+s a moral stance as

Sam Shepards( %+t it is no less important in American aesthetics and c+lt+re* is is an

easier ride( a necessary( centrist complement to the fiery preaching of ,tr+e %elie"ers(-

angry sermoni8ers


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+nderstanding arose in the United States( an +nderstanding that 'as on the one hand

accommodating and h+manitarian—an ,Age of A7+ari+s- 'orld of peace and lo"e—

'hile on the other %itterly angry( reproachf+l and dismissi"e of the ,o"er @- generation


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To o%tain the res+lts he is after( Shepard employs a sophisticated( t'o)pronged

strategy( 'hich comprises an incendiary mi&t+re of +topian


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:DDI:1 We"e got a pact* Oo+ kno' 'ere connected May* Well al'ays %e

connected* That 'as decided a long time ago*-K

—or / -ie of the Mind —

3A0:1

3A0:1 Oeah* 3+st sit 'ith me for a 'hile( stay here*95A0I:1 =kay*

3A0:1 Dont lea"e*

95A0I:1 I 'ont*


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all agree that Shepards dramatic "irt+es ha"e a gritty edge( and more than a modic+m of

attached pain and loss* +t to lose sight of Shepards portrayals of lo"e as love in all its

potential and reali8ed glory( is a serio+s mistake( and can lead to diagnostic distortions*

=ther key "irt+es that tint Shepards plays are honesty( tr+th( loyalty and

righteo+sness* S+ch "al+es again may stem from Shepards yo+th in the $LKs* The

;ietnam War and Watergate impacted his entire generation( eliciting m+ch cynicism and

anger at the decrepit "al+es that seemed to infest esta%lishment life and politics* o%

Dylan( himself a "isionary moralist artist 'ho Shepard idoli8ed( sang in $LKEs The

Times They /re /*)hangin’ 1

4ome senators( congressmen

#lease heed the call

Theres a %attle o+tside

And it is ragin*

Itll soon shake yo+r 'indo's

And rattle yo+r 'alls

9or the times they are a)changin*

6oyalty often com%ines 'ith tr+th and lo"e in Shepards 'ork* In &ool for -ove( a

play that is something of a s+stained meditation on tr+th( lo"e and loyalty( :ddie and

May demand in their o'n li"es m+t+al tr+th and s+pporti"e lo"e( a pact 'hich has gi"en

them direction and sta%ility thro+gh the deceitf+l t+m+lt of their li"es* Oes( they still

retain traces of dis7+ieting do+%t and they are often +ns+re a%o+t 'hat e&actly to %elie"e(

%+t the si%lings stick together( and at the end of the play( as their father e7+i"ocates a%o+t

the ,tr+th- of their past( :ddie—'ho himself ,got it all t+rned aro+nd-


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see :ddie and May em%racing( kissing tenderly( 'ith gest+res of affection that the stage

directions tell +s ,ne"er stop- d+ring the last moments of the play -( 3ake ans'ers plainly( ,I can tr+st her-


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;II:1 Thats the idea %+t the idea is a long 'ay from the tr+th!

4A5T:51 Aah! The Tr+th! The Tr+th! And only one of +s is a%le to ha"e a handle on

that I s+ppose!

;II:1 =ne of +s is a hell+"a lot closer to it than the other one!

MI0:1 Safe* Safe from in.+ry* Oo+ 'ont get h+rt here*


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the task of gi"ing an acco+nt of the good 'hich is at once local and partic+lar—located

in an partially defined %y the characteristics of the polis —and yet also cosmic and

+ni"ersal- FMacintyre $EHC I incl+de this to ans'er any criticisms that I ha"e f+dged the

conception of +ni"ersal in terms of the ethical and moral principles I ha"e referred toC in

short( all of the principles I am e&amining are of %oth partic+lar and +ni"ersal

significance( and this is tr+e 'hether they are co+ched in didactic and/or edifying terms(

'hether they are ,for their o'n sake(- or aimed at the c+lti"ation of indi"id+al character(

or components of ,moral agendas- as I ha"e disc+ssed( or part of a larger socio)moral

landscape in a c+lt+re?* ere 'e are led into moral 'orlds that feel completed( almost

optimistic


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their li"es( ,Ftake e"erything do'n to the roots(- and make 'ay for ,a miracle- and ,the

s+n- in their dark e&istence*B We see in the deno+ements of Sam Shepards plays at least

hints of ne'( constr+cti"e moral orders( 'hich perhaps sho+ld not s+rprise +s( for as

ayden White asks( ,What else co+ld narrati"e clos+re consist of than the passage from

one moral order to another>-


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eil Simon? 'ith more traditional methods of morali8ing and preaching in the nation*

9or like it or not( America is a moral nation( a nation that from its fo+nding professed to

indi"id+als and comm+nities the necessity of ,doing the right thing*- :d'ard Winslo'(

Mayflo'er pilgrim and first go"ernor of the #lymo+th colony( 'rote for those 'ho 'ere

%eginning their ne' li"es in Massach+setts—

if there %e any too desiro+s of gain( to entreat them to moderate their affections( and

consider that no man e&pecteth fr+it %efore the tree %e gro'nC ad"ising all men( that as

they tender their o'n 'elfare( so to make choice of s+ch to manage and go"ern their

affairs( as are appro"ed not to %e seekers of themsel"es( %+t the common good of all

for 'hom they are employed


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So+rces 4ited

Aristotle* /ristotle’s +oetics* S** +tcher( trans*( introd+ction %y 9rancis 9erg+sson


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:merson on the WWW( Decem%er 2K* http1//'''*r'e*org/comm/


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)))* / -ie of the Mind and The %ar in Heaven


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Endnotes

Documents

They Go!—The Urgency of Aesthetic/Moral Incitement in American Drama