Indiscretions | Essays and Criticism

  • The Journey from Disorder to Order

    Robinson has a Master of Arts in English. She is a writer and editor and a former teacher of English literature and creative writing. In the following essay, Robinson examines the journey from disorder to order in Jean Cocteau’s Indiscretions.

  • Review by Eileen Blumenthal

    In the following review, Blumenthal identifies the mythical, fantastical and neurotic in the sexual relations in Cocteau’s play Indiscretions. She also notes that the play is less about the male adolescent view of the world and more about “a homosexual male vision of heterosexual coming of age.”

  • The Characters

    In the following essay, Crowson states that the characters in Les Parents Terribles (Indiscretions) give themselves over to the play, reacting to their circumstances as the play governs their actions.

  • Moral Codes Formed by Cocteau’s Characters

    In the following essay, Crowson focuses on the moral codes formed by Cocteau’s characters’ own “desire or inclination” to see themselves free from societal laws, a trait common in children, and in Indiscretions all the characters are “children, regardless of age.”

  • Tragedy, Victimization and Isolation

    In the following essay, the critics discuss Cocteau’s use of tragedy and the victimization of the hero in his plays. They also comment on the playwright’s theme of isolation.

  • The Interplay of Human Affections

    In the following essay, Knowles comments on the “interplay of human affections” and tragedy in Indiscrections. She explains that the text was a “pretext,” that Cocteau wanted the setting to drive his plays, and that “all concrete details” were “subordinated to the theme.”