Yizhu Chen
"Mary: I came here because I wanted to feel safe. I wanted to feel independent. And for a moment it felt that way but now… I want to go back." (Page 18)
I chose this scene and paragraph because it embodies the falsehood of utopia and the power struggle between roles. Mary's awakening and resistance revealed the dark side of utopia, while Charlotte's desire for control and Johnny's violent behavior further strengthened the oppression of utopia. This scene is the climax of the script, which shows how the characters gradually realize the cruelty of reality in the illusory world of Utopia.
Research Question
How does the establishment and components of Utopia in Utopia reveal the tension between its idealized promises and the underlying mechanisms of control and oppression?
This problem focuses on the establishment and components of Utopia and discusses how Utopia promotes the development of the plot through the tension between its superficial idealized promise and its internal control and
oppression mechanism. By analyzing the establishment process of Utopia (such as how roles enter Utopia, its rules and order) and its components (such as local space, role interaction, symbolic props, etc.), we can better understand the falsehood of Utopia and how roles gradually awaken and resist in it.
Central Purpose
In this Research Report, I provide my findings based on specific elements from a scene in the play Utopia. To support my observations are references that include Reconfiguring gothic mythology: The film noir--horror hybrid films of the 1980s, and Handke’s Die Fahrt im Einbaum: Utopia as a Counter-Historical Performance: Theater versus Media and Historiography. This research is important because it will offer insight toward the development of the play's concept of the illusion of Utopia and how 1980s horror film aesthetics contribute to its thematic depth.
Main Concept
CONCEPT: An assortment of ideas, impression, and theories —visual or otherwise—drawn from the story of the play by the director, which is ultimately used as anartistic jumping-off point in the creative-collaborative process: The main concept of this report is The Illusion of Utopia. This concept
discusses the contrast between the superficial perfection of utopia and the inner darkness, it also reveals the comparison between the real world and the utopia world in the play.
Central findings
Utopia is not a static ideal society, but is constantly reconstructed through historical rupture, historical erasure and historical fiction. (Widdicombe, 2009). This finding explains the rationality of using 1980s background to create the utopia world. Besides,
the absurd details such as the whole pig and the entrance of the utopia world. The
setting of the play can also
add more dream core like place to idealize the place that we create and provide the illusionary for the world.“The play demonstrates that utopia, rather than serving as an unattainable ideal, functions as a critical lens to expose reality by resisting the falsehoods inherent in traditional utopian ideals (Foteva, 2017).” The idea in Utopia reveals the duality of utopia-it is not only a denial of the perfect society, but also a profound examination of the real society.“Through the interplay of horror and noir aesthetics, these films reveal the fragility of utopian ideals in the face of dystopian fears.” (Morgan, 2002). Mixed-genre films in the 1980s usually involve criticism of social issues, such as questioning authority, re-examining gender roles, and uncertainty about the future. This type of film not only challenges the audience's psychological bottom line but also provides them with a safe "fear experience", allowing the audience to vent their emotions when facing deep social problems.