Na tragu O’ Nilovog Cara Džonsa: Cao jueva Divljina

Abstract

Through a comparative analysis of Eugene O’Neill’s The Emperor Jones (1920) and Cao Yu’s The Wilderness (1937), this paper scrutinizes how the Chinese author applies O’Neill’s expressionistic technique in order to reveal the complexity of the human psyche. While O’Neill explores the very core of racial and cultural identity, Cao Yu deals with the moral and psychological split in a man overwhelmed by guilty conscience for a crime he committed. Although they treat different subject-matters, both writers use monologues, audio-visual devices and hallucinations. Despite the obvious influence of O’Neill’s play in his work, Cao Yu successfully creates an original and authentically Chinese play.