THE POLITICAL PLAYS OF ARTHUR MILLER AND KEE THUAN CHYE: RESISTING THE HEGEMONIC STATE DAVID TNEH CHENG ENG

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1 THE POLITICAL PLAYS OF ARTHUR MILLER AND KEE THUAN CHYE: RESISTING THE HEGEMONIC STATE DAVID TNEH CHENG ENG FACULTY OF ARTS AND SOCIAL SCIENCES UNIVERSITY OF MALAYA KUALA LUMPUR 2016

2 UNIVERSITY OF MALAYA ORIGINAL LITERARY WORK DECLARATION Name of Candidate: David Tneh Cheng Eng Registration/Matric No: AHA Name of Degree: Doctor of Philosophy Title of Project Paper/Research Report/Dissertation/Thesis: The Political Plays of Arthur Miller and Kee Thuan Chye: Resisting the Hegemonic State Field of Study: English Literature I do solemnly and sincerely declare that: (1) I am the sole author/writer of this Work; (2) This Work is original; (3) Any use of any work in which copyright exists was done by way of fair dealing and for permitted purposes and any excerpt or extract from, or reference to or reproduction of any copyright work has been disclosed expressly and sufficiently and the title of the Work and its authorship have been acknowledged in this Work; (4) I do not have any actual knowledge nor do I ought reasonably to know that the making of this work constitutes an infringement of any copyright work; (5) I hereby assign all and every rights in the copyright to this Work to the University of Malaya ( UM ), who henceforth shall be owner of the copyright in this Work and that any reproduction or use in any form or by any means whatsoever is prohibited without the written consent of UM having been first had and obtained; (6) I am fully aware that if in the course of making this Work I have infringed any copyright whether intentionally or otherwise, I may be subject to legal action or any other action as may be determined by UM. Candidate s Signature Date: Subscribed and solemnly declared before, Witness s Signature Date: Name: Designation: ii

3 ABSTRACT The plays of Arthur Miller and Kee Thuan Chye have garnered interests from theatre enthusiast, the general public, and academicians for their moralistic and didactic plays that often touch on moral and political issues that affect society and the individual. Their plays are most often a reflection of their country s socio-political and socioeconomic development and highlight the concerns of the playwright on issues pertaining to the individual, society, and nation. As such, this thesis has closely analysed the selected political plays of Kee, namely, 1984 Here and Now, The Big Purge, We Could **** You, Mr. Birch and Miller s The Crucible, Incident at Vichy, and The Archbishop s Ceiling from the perspective of the plays being resistance plays that empower the individual while resisting the hegemonic and political state depicted in the plays. In addition, issues such as corruption and abuse of political power by the state and individuals and the persecution of the innocent are characteristics of Kee and Miller s plays. In response, Kee and Miller s plays emphasize the need for the individual to make a moral stand and to resist the hegemony of the state and its agencies. The traditional view of Miller s and Kee s political plays is that their plays are always very didactic, moralistic, and direct in their narrative and plot. The findings of this research posits that there is a development in Miller s and Kee s selected political plays and both dramatist have experimented with creative dramaturgical strategies and incorporated elements of Butler s Performativity and Todorov s the Fantastic in their third wave of political plays. There is therefore a shift in the dramaturgical strategy of Miller s and Kee s work that sees their plays becoming creative resistance plays that transcend the traditional view of Miller s and Kee s political plays as merely traditional political stage plays of their time. Thus this thesis will not only give a different perspective/reading to the political plays of Miller and Kee, but also on the possibility of incorporating newer creative dissenting strategies in the traditional political plays iii

4 genre and how political plays could be a form of political communication, an important aspect in nation building and creative means of resistance/dissent. iv

5 ABSTRAK Arthur Miller dan Kee Thuan Chye adalah dua tokoh pementasan drama terkemuka. Drama arahan mereka yang mempunyai unsur moral dan pengajaran telah mendapat perhatian pengkaji drama, orang ramai, dan ahli akademik. Drama mereka juga kerapkali menyentuh isu-isu politik dan moral semasa yang mempunyai impak terhadap masyarakat dan individu. Hasil pementasan Miller dan Kee juga merupakan luahan hati mereka terhadap yang dianggap penting terhadap pembangunan insan, masyarakat, dan negara. Tesis ini akan mengkaji drama-drama politik terpilih Miller dan Kee iaitu 1984 Here and Now, The Big Purge, dan We Could **** You, Mr. Birch. Drama politik Miller yang dikaji ialah The Crucible, Incident at Vichy, dan The Archbishop s Ceiling. Kajian ini mengkaji perspektif resistance yang terkandung dalam drama-drama tersebut yang mendorong individu menentang kezaliman pentadbiran negara dan gejala rasuah dan penyelewangan kuasa negara. Drama-drama politik Miller dan Kee selalunya menekankan betapa pentingnya kesedaran moral dan peranan individu dalam membendung gejala penyalahgunaan kuasa negara. Secara amnya, kebanyakan pengkaji drama berpendapat bahawa drama politik Miller dan Kee bertujuan mengajar nilai-nilai murni dan sikap tanggungjawab bersana. Hasil kajian saya mendapati drama-drama politik terpilih Miller dan Kee telah mengeksperimentasi dengan kaedah-kaedah baru yang mempunyai unsur-unsur Performativity oleh Butler dan unsur Fantastic oleh Todorov dalam kumpulan ketiga drama politik mereka. Justeru itu, tesis ini akan menberi perspektif baru dalam kajian drama-drama politik Miller dan Kee serta kemungkinan menggunakan strategi-strategi baru ini sebagai taktik kreatif dalam pementasan drama politik. Selain itu, tesis ini juga dapat memberi gambaran bagaimana drama politik Miller dan Kee dapat menyumbang kepada pembangunan negara dalam konteks komunikasi politik, pembangunan negara, dan cara-cara kreatif penentangan dapat dijalankan. v

6 ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS I would like to record my sincerest appreciation to the University of Malaya, Kuala Lumpur for their generous support in two postgraduate grant applications for my PhD. I would also like to say thank you to Prof. Jacqueline Lo for her generous help and assistance during my visiting research trip to the Australian National University. Also, I would also like to thank Associate Prof. Otto Heim who was the Head of the School of English for his assistance during my visiting research trip to the University of Hong Kong. I am also indebted to the Asia Research Institute (ARI) of the National University of Singapore for granting me a postgraduate fellowship during my early years of research writing, and also to Prof. Philip Holden of the Department of English, NUS, for his counselling and advice during my research stint at ARI. This thesis is not possible without the supervision of my brilliant supervisor, Associate Professor Dr. Mary Susan Philip, to whom I owe a debt of gratitude. Thank you for your push and drive that made the completion of this thesis possible. And to my family members, Mom, Dad, Mike, Kelly, and to the love of my life, Melanie, this thesis is dedicated to all of you. I would also like to thank the Almighty God, for hearing my prayers and guiding in my writing. All Glory and Honour is Yours. vi

7 TABLE OF CONTENTS Abstract Abstrak Acknowledgements Table of Contents CHAPTER 1: THE POLITICAL PLAYS OF ARTHUR MILLER AND KEE THUAN CHYE: THE DRAMATIC ON STAGE RESISTANCE TO THE HEGEMONIC STATE iii-iv v vi vii-viii Introduction Research Objectives Research Questions Background Information on Miller: America s Most Prominent 9 Dramatist 1.5 Education and Early Plays Miller in the 1940s and Turbulent 1950s Death of a Salesman and the Concept of Tragedy Miller in the 1960s The Turbulent 1970s The 1980s Miller as America s Leading Dramatist Miller in the 1990s Background Information on Kee Thuan Chye: Malaysia s Most 23 Prominent Political Playwright and the Art of the Absurd 1.13 Kee and His Plays 1980s to 1990s Kee s Other Plays and Written Work Kee s Latest Endeavour Arthur Miller and Kee Thuan Chye: Resistance through Drama Literature Review Theoretical Framework Todorov s The Fantastic and Butler s Performativity Approach Conclusion 65 CHAPTER 2: THE CRUCIBLE AND 1984 HERE AND NOW: POLITICS, POWER, AND PERSECUTION Introduction The Language of the Figurative, Hegemonic, and the Manipulative in 72 The Crucible 2.3 Deputy Governor Danforth and the Language of Hegemony Abigail Williams and the Language of Manipulation John Proctor s Language of Resistance Here and Now: Kee s Use of Social Discourse to Deconstruct the 113 Hegemony of the State 2.7 The Hegemonic Construct of Nationhood The Hegemony of Politics and Language Gender Discrimination and the Patriarchal System in The Hegemony of Big Brother and The Political State Conclusion 140 vii

8 CHAPTER 3: THE POLITICAL AND HISTORICAL IN INCIDENT AT VICHY AND THE BIG PURGE: FROM PERSECUTION TO RESISTANCE Introduction The Context to Incident at Vichy Summary of Incident at Vichy Discipline and Docile Bodies The Objectification of the Individual Resistance and the Individual Miller s Moral Hero: Von Berg Background to Kee Thuan Chye s The Big Purge The Big Purge - Kee s Political Idealism The Politics of The Big Purge Hegemony, Power, and the Authoritative State in The Big Purge Resistance in The Big Purge Traditional Performing Arts as Resistance Conclusion: Persecution, Resistance, and Morality 208 CHAPTER 4: THE ARCHBISHOP'S CEILING AND WE COULD **** YOU MR. BIRCH: RESISTING THE POLITICAL STATE BY MEANS OF CREATIVE RESISTANCE Introduction The Archbishop s Ceiling by Arthur Miller Performance as the New Resistance The Microphones as a Representation of State Hegemony Performativity as Resistance in The Archbishop s Ceiling Performativity and Resistance Sigmund: On Resisting State Hegemony and Performativity An Introduction to We Could **** You, Mr. Birch Dissecting the Plot of We Could **** You, Mr. Birch We Could **** You, Mr. Birch and The Element of the Fantastic Creative Resistance: The Alienation and the Hesitation Effect, and the 248 Deconstruction of the Historical Narrative 4.12 Historical and Modern Characters Conclusion: Kee and Miller s Political Plays A Blend of the Fantastic 280 and Performativity CHAPTER 5: CONCLUSION Political Injustice, Morality and Resistance in Kee s and Miller s 286 Political Plays 5.2 Concluding Remarks Future Research 297 END NOTES 299 APPENDIX A 305 WORKS CITED 315 viii