The Verge by Susan Glaspell - Book Report/Review Example

THE VERGE The Verge By Susan Glaspell The Verge is a play written by Susan Glaspell that is based mainly uponthe theme of feminism and the perception with regard to female behavior in the Victorian times. It is a play which revolves around the life of a woman Claire Archer who is very different from the other women of those times. The play highlights the fact that the following of the norms of society that were set for women in the Victorian times was extremely essential. It indicates that women who tried to deviate from those norms placed themselves in a difficult and complex position.

This was because they could not adapt to the conservative society, nor could they present themselves with freedom that they needed. Claire was trapped in a similar situation where she did not have any escape and out of her depression, she eventually got mentally ill. Claire is presented as a woman who needs freedom of thought and does not like being bound by the norms of the society. She is married to Harry Archer who is her husband and is highly concerned regarding the way in which Claire behaves.

Elizabeth is the daughter of Harry and Claire. The play highlights the activities of Claire that she has set up a greenhouse for herself outside her house where she is assisted by Anthony who takes care of all the plants that they have set up. She experiments continuously with the plants for the production of new plant species. This act clearly depicts her want for the creation of new ways and things. It highlights her want for acquiring freedom and the development of a new society where she is not bound to follow regulations and boundaries set around her.

The plants are the only things that mainly interest her. Claire does not participate in the household activities and her love and interest for the greenhouse is greater than that for her house. This shows how strong her deviation is from the other women of the Victorian era. She actually moves the heaters from the house towards the greenhouse so that her plants to not get damaged due to the cold weather. This depicts her desire for the survival of the plants beyond the comfort of the people in the house.

She really likes discussing about her plants and her conversations with Anthony prove that. This is seen when even at breakfast she starts her discussion regarding the plants with Anthony. Claire does not like seeing her daughter and wants to stay away from her as much as possible. Despite of Elizabeth’s several attempts to communicate with her, Claire never responds in a warm way. This again portrays the fact that Claire considers Elizabeth as a hindrance towards her freedom. She does not want to fall into the role of the other women of the Victorian era who were supposed to be satisfied and happy by looking after the house, taking care of their children and their husband.

The family and their houses were considered to be their boundary and they were not supposed to think beyond that. But Claire denied all these Victorian norms by not abiding by them. Her sister Adelaide looked after Elizabeth and she was a woman who perfectly defined all the roles of Victorian women. She tried to persuade Claire to do the same. She tells Claire that she is content with her life and happy because she performs all her duties. She claims in the play that, "I go about in the world—free, busy, happy.

Among people. I have no time to think of myself." This shows her desire to satisfy others over her own content. But Claire is different from her sister and she seeks happiness in her own ways. Richard Demming and Tom Edgeworthy are the friends of Claire and her husband. Claire has an affair with Richard who is a creative artist. This again presents with Claire’s indifference with abiding by the norms of the society and having an affair despite of being married which was considered to be a very evil act in those times.

She then also expresses her love for Tom. Tom slightly understands Claire’s issues though he is also unaware of what she really wants. He thinks that her inability to achieve what she wants is the reason behind her experiments with plants. In the end, Tom tries to convince Claire to come with him to India. Claire feels betrayed as she believed that he was the only one who knew what she was going through and that he realized that she wanted to be free and not follow a man. She kills Tom and turns mad.

Claire was a lady who was trapped in a society that was not meant for her. She wanted freedom and independence and wanted her own happiness. She did not want to be content only by making others happy. She attempted to keep herself happy with her experiments but she finally could not find a way out and she turned mad.