payment page
The sky above the roof is suffused with deep colors, and the green of the elms glows, but the house is in shadow, seemingly pale and washed out by contrast.
In the stage directions before the action of Part One Scene One, O’Neil makes a point to describe the natural world surrounding the house. The vibrant colors of the sky and the elm trees are a stark contrast to the darkened, dull home, illustrating the bleak existence of the characters. By portraying the house as colorless and in shadow, O'Neil foreshadows the dark outcome of the play.
(Eben sighs with a puzzled awe and blurts out with halting appreciation)
Eben: God! Purty!...(Simeon and Peter’s faces have a compressed, unresigned expression. As they look upward, this softens.)
Simeon (grudgingly): Purty.
Peter: Ay-eh.
Immediately following the stage directions, we meet Eben and his brothers. They are in the middle of admiring the sunset at the end of the day’s work. All three characters are depicted as appreciating the beauty of the sky in spite of themselves, Eben with “halting appreciation, Simeon “grudgingly.” But the power of the sky’s beauty overcomes them, causing Eben to sigh and Simeon and Peter’s expressions to soften. Though their lives on the farm are difficult and unrewarding, they haven't lost the ability to appreciate the natural world, a sign that they still hope for a better life.
Abbie: Hain’t the sun strong an’ hot? Ye kin feel it burnin’ into the earth—Nature—makin’ thin’s grow—bigger ‘n’ bigger—burnin’ inside ye—makin’ ye want t’ grow—into somethin’ else—till ye’re jined with it—an’ it’s your’n—but it owns ye, too—an’ makes ye grow bigger—like a tree—like them elums—(She laughs again softly, holding his eyes. He takes a step toward her, compelled against his will.) Nature’ll beat ye, Eben.
In the first scene of Part Two, Abbie has been living at the farm for two months, and she and Eben are out on the porch. This is their second scene together, and Abbie is teasing Eben, who acts resentful toward her. She begins by describing the natural world—the sun and the earth—but her descriptions are not simply an appreciation of nature; they draw a connection between the natural world and people, specifically the biological impulses that species share. She makes it clear that nature is stronger than people, that it "owns" them and will "beat ye." She uses sensual imagery that grabs Eben's attention while also foreshadowing future events. The repeated ideas of burning and growing have an erotic double meaning, and Eben is transfixed by Abbie's words.
