Dutchman (Masterplots II: Drama)
At a glance:
- Author: Amiri Baraka
- First Published: 1964
- Type of Work: Mythic
- Time of Work: The early 1960’s
- Setting: A New York City subway car
- Principal Characters: Clay, Lula
- Genres: Social realism, Drama, Mythological literature
- Subjects: African Americans, 1960’s, New York, North America or North Americans, Northeast, U.S., United States or Americans, Racism, Sex or sexuality, Murder or homicide, New York City, Prejudices or antipathies, Violence, Liberalism, Subways
- Locales: New York, NY
The Play
Dutchman is a short, two-scene play, the entire action of which takes place on a subway car traveling through the “underbelly of the city.” During the course of the play, Clay and Lula move from playful flirtation through angry accusation and self-revelation toward a violent confrontation that ends in ritualized murder.
At the start, Clay is seated alone on the subway car, reading a newspaper. He is dressed in a three-piece suit. Only his seat is visible, although more of the car is present. The shrieks and clattering of the subway car dominate, and...
[The entire page is 2636 words long]
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