행복한 여성 시지프, 메이, 부조리한 세상과 맞대면하다: 포네즈의 『진흙』

초록

Grounded on Michael Y. Bennett’s book, Reassessing the Theatre of the Absurd, I suggested that Maria Irene Fornes’ Mud can be read as one of the Absurdist plays. Bennett insightfully criticizes Martin Esslin’s concept of absurd with the claim that Esslin misread and mistranslated Camus’ The Myth of Sisyphus. When Camus explains about the feeling of absurd, according to Bennett, he indicates more than the purposeless and useless life. Camus proposes a happy Sisyphus who takes over his own life from gods and makes the meaning out of the inexorable, repetitive labor. In Camus’ perspective Sisyphus is a hero as in Greek tragedy. Esslin’s misreading of Camus caused the emphasis of absurd drama on the meaninglessness and nihility in life. However, Camus highlights the fact that the absurd is a given in our life; hence, through revolt and contemplation we have to make our lives meaningful under the absurd situation. With several aspects found in Camus’ The Myth of Sisyphus, I attempted to prove that Fornes’ Mud demonstrates the characteristics of an absurd play. The female protagonist Mae endeavors to make her rotten, muddy life meaningful through everyday work. She yearns for learning which she thinks leads her better, “decent” life. For a moment Henry looks like becoming her savior; however, he turns out to be another bloodsucker like Lloyd. She ultimately realizes that it is she who saves herself and for the purpose of that, she has to leave the house right away. She does not know what happens next as soon as her leaving, but she makes her choice. Once recognizing her absurd situation, Mae cannot stay at where she is. With insightful contemplation as a revolt against absurdity, Mae takes a big step out of her muddy life. Whether she dies or not is not essential for Fornes’ viewpoint. Mae is dying for the “faint light” she has yearned for throughout her entire life. She becomes a happy female Sisyphus.

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