Topics for Further Study
Abe presents his play, The Man Who Turned into a Stick, as a collection of three one-act plays. Read the other two plays, The Suitcase and The Cliff of Time, and analyze how they complement each other. Can you identify a recurring theme? Do these plays embody the subtitled themes of birth, process, and death? Does reading them together enhance your understanding of what Abe intended with The Man Who Turned into a Stick?
At the conclusion of his play, Abe has the Man from Hell character address the audience, claiming he sees a forest of sticks among them. If you were in the audience, how would you react? Write a letter to Abe explaining your interpretation of this statement. How does it affect you? Do you agree with this perspective? Does it awaken any new insights about your own life?
Two characters in Abe’s play are described as hippies. Update their descriptions to reflect a modern context. What would their names be? How might their attitudes and interactions with other characters differ? Rewrite the scene where these two characters appear, incorporating a contemporary understanding of rebellious and alienated youth.
Abe is frequently compared to Franz Kafka. Read Kafka’s The Metamorphosis, where a man transforms into an insect. What themes are present in Kafka’s narrative? Do they share similarities with the themes in Abe’s The Man Who Turned into a Stick? Gather a few volunteers to form a panel to discuss these two works. Research the backgrounds of both writers, the central themes of their writings, and how these elements shaped their stories.
Investigate the history of Japanese imperialist rule in Manchuria. Then create a fictionalized portrayal of Abe’s adolescence, imagining it as reality. Consider focusing on one week of his life, depicting what it might have been like to navigate the streets under the constant threat of abduction or to travel by train and witness heads mounted on poles. Research the setting’s landscape. Decide if the story should take place during the harsh winter or another season. Remember, Abe was a solitary figure, so you might want to include internal monologue.
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