A piece of epic proportions, Tony Kushner's magnum opus, Angels in America: A Gay Fantasia On National Themes, presents a portrait of America that is at first glance devastating, yet ultimately optimistic and profound in its analysis of humanity's development in the midst of chaos. The play has two parts, Millennium Approaches and Perestroika, and each presents a very different approach to the reality of America in 1985; the former is a world of destruction while the latter is a nation of renewal. Throughout the two parts, the four main characters struggle to overcome the irony within themselves and each other, the same irony that poses a threat to their spiritual survival. The first section ends with characters at the height of these inner conflicts, with seemingly little hope of salvation. In Perestroika, the four main characters overcome these ironies with the direct (sometimes unconscious) help of others, leading to an ending filled with optimism not only for the characters, but also for the audience and the world. Kushner's epic Angels in America uses two distinct parts that chronicle the four main characters' struggles to forgive ironies not only among themselves but among themselves, and these developments lead to two very different conclusions that ultimately build thematic bridges between the stage and the audience, all present to present the “fantasy” that Kushner envisions for the future of America. Say no to plagiarism. Get a tailor-made essay on “Why Violent Video Games Should Not Be Banned”? Get the original essay The action of Part 1 reveals the ironies of Prior and Harper's characters, whose conflicts arise from how they perceive and treat each other. We can assume that Prior, as a homosexual, needed a lot of time, perhaps years, to come to terms with his sexual identity. His diagnosis propels him backwards into a phase of self-loathing, exemplified when he looks in the mirror during a dream and says, "I don't think there's any part of me uninfected...I feel dirty » (I, 34). . AIDS, seen at the time as the fatal hallmark of a homosexual man, puts a non-closeted character back in a position of being uncomfortable with his identity. Harper, challenged by the reality of her unhappy marriage, goes against her religion by maintaining an addiction to the only thing that truly makes her life bearable: Valium. Antarctica, his drug-induced place of refuge, is only a reflection of the frigid nature of his reality. Like Prior, she is self-conscious about how she behaves towards her partner, comparing herself to a "mentally disturbed, pill-starved, sex-starved housewife" (I, 37). It is the need for both characters to overcome these ironies and perceptions of themselves that characterize each person's journey through the play, their conflicts rising (but not resolving) just enough to lead to the explosive finale of the first part. Millennium approaches are also regulated. by the introduction of two relationships which are ultimately contaminated by one member of each. The most obvious of these betrayals is Louis's abandonment of Prior after the latter was diagnosed with AIDS. Louis's reasoning is that he "has to do it" and that he cannot "fit illness into his perception of how things are supposed to be" (I, 25). The obvious irony is that the audience, Prior, and Louis himself know that there is no justification for his actions, foreshadowing the immense guilt that will plague his journey. Meanwhile, betrayal manifestsJoe's attitude towards his relationship with his wife comes from his irrepressible homosexuality. His journey will attempt to reconcile his two true personalities: his devotion to religion and his desire to be "correct... in the eyes of God" (I, 40) and his homosexual desires, although the two forces oppose each other. Each man is reflected in how he treated his relationship, with Louis being entirely wracked with guilt and Joe finally beginning to embrace his sexuality, both in the name of abandonment. By the end of Millennium Approaches, none of the four characters have made any real progress toward positive solutions to any of their conflicts. Prior is still a victim of his illness and still heartbroken by his abandonment. Harper's story ends with her in Antarctica, showing that she is still trapped in her own illusions. Louis is still prey to his cowardice and gives in to the temptation of a relationship ultimately doomed to failure. Joe is the only character who seems to have progressed, as he has given in to the desires he has felt his entire life, which would usually be a sign of his character development. However, no real progress has been made, as he still berates himself for his actions, telling Louis, "I'm a pretty terrible person, Louis" and "I don't think I deserve to be loved" (I , 117). The irony of the ending is that these four characters, as Americans, should prosper: we are in the 1980s, the "Me Decade", where all Americans should succeed. Instead, everything in the world Kushner presented is falling apart and America is destroying itself. Even though the first part ends with them forming a new couple, it's palpable that there really is something wrong with their union, as they are two wildly different people coming together despite ultimately destructive differences . There is no hope for the end of Millennium Approaches until the arrival of the character who will (albeit inadvertently) trigger America's "perestroika": the Angel. The Angel's entrance is very significant for the conclusion, as well as for the film as a whole. that is, angels in America. Prior can sense that something is happening, as “the bedside lamp flickers” and there are “creaks and groans coming from the bedroom ceiling” (I, 118). Just when the audience (and Prior) thinks it's over, there's: "A noise, like a meteor falling... we hear a terrifying CRASH as something immense hits the earth... all the building shakes and part of the bedroom ceiling, much of the plaster, lathe and wiring, crashes to the floor… [then] the Angel descends into the room and floats above the bed” (I, 118). The Angel's entrance is chaotic and destructive, a metaphorical culmination of the devastation of the approaching millennium. However, the chaos of the ending ends up alienating the audience even further from the play. The fate of the characters is ambiguous, and until viewers see Perestroika, they will not know what the "Great Work" the Angel speaks of is. The audience can only hope for a more positive second part of the play, but this kind of unconscious hope is rather alienating in nature, because the future is uncertain. The force of the conclusion of the first part is entirely diminished by the action and conclusion of the next part, Perestroika. Leading to the conclusion of the entire play is a new series of relationships that result in the four main characters being directly influenced by the four supporting characters: the Angel, Hannah, Roy and Belize. Each supporting character's interaction with one of the protagonists will result in major character changes for the sake of progress and, ultimately, the goal of completely rebuilding America. It is important to note the orientationstructural of the Millennium Approaches; it is the disintegration of two couples and the construction of another union (albeit unstable), all centered on the relationships of these four characters with each other. Perestroika does not follow this same format because the Millennium Approaches taught us that there is no hope of rebuilding an otherwise failing society with this type of painful and isolating character structure. Therefore, it is the relationships that the four main characters have with others that force them to make revelations about themselves and each other, ultimately leading to Kushner's gradual conclusion to Angels in America. Prior's relationship with the Angel and Harper's relationship with Hannah, help each of them realize important things about themselves and inspire in them the need to change their lives and overcome the irony with which they live. The new irony with which the victim Prior lives is to be condemned to death by his illness while being “the chosen one” as prophet of the Angels. His orgasmic encounter with the Angel gives him something he hasn't felt since he got sick, saying he feels full of "Joy or something." Hope” (II, 24). The irony of the encounter is that, although it sparks in Prior a new resolve to fight for his life, he knows that he cannot be the one to speak for the Angels' naive and impossible goal, because that will against his new desire to live as a fighter, not a fighter. as a victim. Prior realizes that all humanity, and especially him, must fight to live because this is the very nature of the human need for progress. And as he explains in Heaven: “We can’t just stop. We are not rocks – progress, migration, movement are… modernity” (II, 132). Prior's relationship with the Angel gave him the opportunity to live again and learn, not from the Angel, but from himself. Meanwhile, Joe's mother Hannah has worked to help her daughter-in-law abandon him, but similarly the help given to the character is indirect. Hannah's taking Harper to the Mormon Visitor Center allows Harper to re-examine what movement and progression mean, as shown in her conversation with the Mormon Mother diorama (which is itself a symbol for Hannah). When Harper complains that he can't move because his "heart is an anchor," the Mormon Mother says, "Forget it, then." I cannot carry extra weight” (II, 71). Hannah exemplified this change by dropping everything and moving to New York, and although she herself could not convey her message directly to Harper, Harper's story ultimately ends with her progressing and moving to San Francisco. These two interactions between Prior and Harper help them realize the strength they have to fight against their realities and their desire for a better life because, as Kushner will argue, this is the new progressive America. Instead of analyzing progress, Joe and Louis' secondary character relationships revolve around the theme of forgiveness, presenting situations of lack and giving. Joe's relationship with Roy is an example of what happens when forgiveness is absent or revoked. When Joe comes out and reveals to Roy that he is living with another man, Roy says, "I want you to come home." With your wife. Whatever else you do, cut it out… Listen to me. Do as I say. Or you will regret it. And never speak to me about it again” (II, 87). The encounter ultimately marks Joe's return to the closet, himself rationalizing that he simply cannot be gay in the primary nation in which he and Roy desire to live. Because his mentor cannotforgive, Joe cannot forgive himself, and this isolating mindset prevents him from living. him to be part of the “gay fantasia” of progress that Kushner envisions for the future. Louis learns from Belize, who has served as a confidant to Louis throughout the play and is perhaps the most principled character, that forgiveness is how the world will rebuild itself after chaos and destruction. As Belize says to Louis about the corpse of Roy (who himself was a supporter of destruction), "[Forgiveness] isn't easy, it doesn't matter if it's easy, it's the most difficult thing. Pardon. Perhaps this is where love and justice finally meet. At least peace. »(II, 124). Belize's wisdom ultimately sums up Kushner's parallel argument: progress can only be made when forgiveness has been granted. Louis and Belize must forgive Roy in order to move forward and rebuild the world of hatred that Roy advocated, and Joe must forgive himself for abandoning Prior in order to progress as a human being. Louis is able to overcome his irony, while Joe is heartbreakingly stifled by it. Kushner thus presented to the public the two most important elements for the reconstruction of a collapsing world: progress and forgiveness in the name of internal and national development. The epilogue of Angels in America and the conclusion of Perestroika are both constructed by the characters' journeys to overcome the world of irony within themselves and each other. Every main character, except Joe, has accepted the natural order of the world, the "painful progress" that Harper speaks of. The conclusion of the Millennium Approaches was an embodiment of chaos, while the conclusion of Perestroika presents the embodiment of “perestroika” or “reconstruction” itself. Kushner introduces the audience to two of the main characters and two of the supporting characters: Prior, Louis, Hannah, and Belize. Harper can't be in the finale because it would go against his rebuilding his life and embracing progress, and Joe can't be there because he can't forgive himself and therefore has no no place in the new society. Roy cannot be there because of what he represented while alive (as well as the fact that he is dead), and the character of the Angel cannot be physically there because she represents the stillness that does not can only stifle the new America. represented by the four characters. Once again, the audience is left with ambiguity regarding the fate of the characters. For example, no mention is made of Prior's lifespan. But while the end of part one alienated the audience, the end of part two completely bridges the gap between stage and seats with a dramatic bursting of the fourth wall. All four characters address the audience directly from the start of the scene, creating a direct and optimistic ending to a production that advocates individual and community progressivism. By breaking the fourth wall, Kushner strives to universalize the characters' experiences and allow the lessons learned by the characters to become those of the audience as well. With this action now applicable to humanity itself, Kushner proved the nature of progression and forgiveness, and that everyone needs it to rebuild society. The audience leaves the theater with the same blessing the Angel gave Prior: “The great work begins.” The blessing now comes from the lips of Prior, an ordinary man and not an otherworldly character. The true angel, Kushner proves, is the ordinary individual. The everyday angel is the person who embodies forgiveness and progress with the aim of creating a better society. To universalize his message, Prior tells the audience: “You are fabulous creatures,.