Buried Child

Definition

Buried Child is a play by Sam Shepard that explores the disintegration of the American family and the dark undercurrents of American life. This work is often seen as a critique of the American Dream, showcasing themes of disillusionment, decay, and the hidden traumas that families face. The title itself symbolizes the buried secrets and unacknowledged issues within the family unit, emphasizing how these elements can fester and ultimately destroy relationships.

5 Must Know Facts For Your Next Test

1. Buried Child premiered in 1978 and won the Pulitzer Prize for Drama in 1979, solidifying Sam Shepard's reputation as a significant playwright.
2. The play revolves around the dysfunctional family of Dodge and Halie, who are hiding a dark secret related to their son.
3. The title refers to a literal buried child in the backyard, representing both the family's trauma and their inability to confront their past.
4. Shepard uses symbols like the decaying farmhouse to represent the collapse of traditional values and the failure of the American Dream.
5. Characters in Buried Child often struggle with themes of identity, loss, and denial, making it a quintessential example of postmodern drama.

Review Questions

• How does Buried Child illustrate the themes of family dysfunction and disillusionment with the American Dream?
  • Buried Child effectively showcases family dysfunction through the interactions of Dodge and Halie with their children and grandchildren. The family's inability to communicate openly highlights their emotional turmoil and denial about their past. This dysfunction reflects a broader disillusionment with the American Dream, as their once-promising life is now filled with secrets, neglect, and decay, ultimately showing that the idealized vision of America has crumbled under pressure.
• Analyze how Shepard uses symbols in Buried Child to convey deeper meanings about the characters and their circumstances.
  • In Buried Child, Shepard employs symbols such as the decaying farmhouse and the buried child itself to illustrate themes of decay and trauma within the family. The farmhouse represents not just a physical space but also the moral deterioration of the family unit. The act of burying a child symbolizes repressed secrets and unacknowledged pain, emphasizing how these hidden issues can haunt characters and affect their relationships. This use of symbolism deepens our understanding of their struggles and failures.
• Evaluate the impact of postmodern elements in Buried Child on contemporary drama and audience perception.
  • Buried Child is rich with postmodern elements like fragmented narratives and irony, which significantly influence contemporary drama. These aspects challenge traditional storytelling methods by presenting a more chaotic and uncertain view of reality. As audiences engage with these themes, they are prompted to question societal norms and ideals, particularly around family dynamics and identity. This approach not only reshapes audience perception but also paves the way for future playwrights to explore complex emotional landscapes in innovative ways.

Related terms

American Dream: A cultural ethos that suggests that anyone in the United States can achieve success through hard work and determination, often critiqued for its unrealistic ideals.

Family Dysfunction: A situation in which a family operates in a way that is harmful or detrimental to its members, often leading to conflict, abuse, or emotional distress.

Postmodernism:

An artistic and cultural movement characterized by a skeptical approach to grand narratives and ideologies, often employing irony and fragmentation in storytelling.