HAY FEVER BY NOEL COWARD Mallory Carty TJ Preston Kallie Jung Kathleen Duke
Feb 23, 2016
HAY FEVERBY
NOEL COWARDMallory Carty
TJ PrestonKallie Jung
Kathleen Duke
SETTING Summer of 1920’s in Cookham,
England. A June afternoon to morning. In the Bliss’ house, the play is set mostly in their hall.
PLOT SUMMARY Family of four: David, Judith, Sorel,
Simon Each member invites a friend for the
weekend David- Jackie Judith- Sandy Sorel- Richard Simon- Myra
PLOT SUMMARY CONTINUED Family tries to act civilized for their
guests As the day unfolds, each guest looks to
another family member for comfort. The family soon shows their dysfunction,
which ends up scaring away their guests. Guests soon plot their escape only one
day into the weekend.
INCITING INCIDENT When the family member’s found out
they each invited a guest without telling anyone
Immediately works up friction among the family
Tension doesn’t reside even when guests arrive
CLIMAX The family and guests play a parlor
game (a form of charades) Craziness of the family starts to really
show
THREE MAJOR ISSUES Family issues- you can assume that this
particular family has a complex, twisted past that interferes with their relationship today, stemming from their differing personalities.
Relationship issues/adultery- as the guests find solace in a different family member that invited them, relationships are torn apart and marriages are ruined
Line between sanity/insanity- we see how the family as a whole covers up their insane attitude from their guests for only a short time, and that when revealed, the guests aren’t remotely attracted to them.
THEME Communication is key The family only falls into chaos because
of their miscommunication. The guests don’t understand the family or anything they say, which is the downfall of the weekend.
CHARACTERS Judith (mother)- retired actress in her
late 40’s, she wants to start theater back up. Melodramatic and one for theatrics, she isn’t concerned with solving the problems in an argument.
Simon (son)- early 20’s, unemployed, and a control freak, Simon takes after his mother; he’s passive aggressive and rather selfish
CHARACTERS CONTINUED Sorel (daughter)- early 20’s, Sorel is
more of a daddy’s girl. She has anger issues, as she’s always bickering with Simon, but cares for her guests and wants the best for the family.
PROTAGONIST Not one person, like in most plays Whole family is the protagonist, since
the play focuses primarily on the family as a whole
The family itself is innocent in the play, and the problem doesn’t stem from their insanity; their insanity simply magnifies the problem.
ANTAGONIST Not one person, like the protagonist. Guests as a whole are the antagonists.
They create the tension that ultimately fuels the arguments the family has.
SCENES AND MONOLOGUES Judith monologue page 15 Scene between 4 guests page 57 Simon monologue page 21 Scene between 4 family members page
60 Scene between Myra/ David page 44 Sorel monologue page 27
VOCABULARY Winsomely: an engaging manner
(mentioned during game) Saucily: an impudent or impertinent
manner(mentioned during game) Diplomatist: an official engaged in
international negotiations (Richard’s occupation)
Dieppe: French city (they visited there, shows they’re upper class)
Slapdash: careless/reckless manner (describes family
VOCAB CONTINUED Bohemian: unconventional, especially in
appearance or behavior (Richard describes the family as such)
Blasé: nonchalantly unconcerned (Sorel describes Simon as this)
Magnanimously: generous and understanding (Judith sarcastically described as this)
Abject: showing humiliation/ submissiveness (Jackie described as this)
Affectation: a deliberate pretense or exaggerated display (Myra’s relationship with David
UNFAMILLIAR REFERENCES Place de Concorde: a road Rue St. Honore: a road Charlie Templeton: Canadian cartoonist Maiden Head: City in the UK
COMMENTS Kallie and Kathleen liked fast paced
speed of the show, TJ and Mallory didn’t. Liked how each family member was
their own type of crazy Liked the ending and how it shows the
utter insanity of the family Got kind of confusing at times Would recommend to a friend because it
was very funny, witty, and an overall good read.