Summary
The play "The Tree Climber" weaves an intricate narrative filled with unanswerable riddles and enigmatic twists. It explores themes of mystery, reality, and the blurred lines between life and death. The plot unfolds through a series of confounding events and bizarre characters, creating a rich tapestry of surreal occurrences.
The Enigmatic Disappearance
The play opens with a police detective questioning a household maid about the puzzling case of a woman who vanished during a routine shopping trip. This woman, known for her regular errands to buy yarn for her nonexistent daughter from a previous marriage, presents an initial mystery. The woman's current husband, Bahadir Efendi, retired from the railway, spends his days in their garden with an alleged lizard named Lady Green, which the maid has never seen. Despite being an elderly couple, the maid observes their apparent lack of connection, which becomes evident when parallel monologues ensue between the husband and wife. While Bahadir is preoccupied with the orange tree's growth, the wife is equally absorbed in thoughts of the green dress for her unborn child.
A Twist of Mystical Revelations
As the detective delves deeper, Bahadir reveals that the lizard, Lady Green, has disappeared, adding another layer of mystery. The interrogation takes a darker turn when Bahadir admits to considering murdering his wife, then shockingly suggests her body is buried beneath the orange tree. Yet, he resists the detective's proposal to dig up the roots, equating harm to the tree with harm to himself, before casually speculating that she might still be alive.
From Railway to Reality
The narrative shifts as Bahadir reminisces about his railway inspector days, transporting us to a train coach. Here, he reprimands an assistant inspector for negligence before encountering a mystical dervish. This enigmatic figure offers his birth certificate instead of a ticket, philosophizing about the futility of actions and revealing ten valid tickets from thin air. The dervish, in an oracular tone, presents the paradox: either Bahadir has killed his wife, or he has not. The detective proposes that Bahadir may have used his wife's body to nourish the tree.
The Unfolding Drama
Act two commences with the detective overseeing efforts to unearth the wife's body, only to be interrupted by her unexpected return. Bihana, the wife, expresses confusion at the police's suspicions, insisting on the unwavering affection between her and Bahadir. Her timely return prevents Bahadir from facing charges, yet her mysterious absence remains unexplained. Upon reuniting, Bahadir and Bihana's conversation drifts back to their familiar subjects of the daughter and the tree, before Bahadir announces the lizard's return.
Unraveling Certainties
Despite Bihana's reappearance, Bahadir is perplexed by her recent absence, as they were never present together during the police inquiry. Doubts cast a shadow over his wife's account, as her answers to his myriad questions about her whereabouts are evasive. Frustrated by her non-responses, he violently seizes her throat, leading to her apparent death. In a state of remorse, Bahadir calls the detective. The detective, sticking to his prior assumptions, concludes Bihana has vanished again, urging Bahadir to remain calm.
A Surreal Conclusion
As Bahadir prepares to bury Bihana, the dervish reappears, offering a cryptic riddle about the existential futility of the tree, which cannot sense its own essence but is capable of bearing miraculous fruit. The dervish warns that future investigations will uncover Bihana's body, potentially leading Bahadir back to prison. Intrigued by the dervish's enigma, Bahadir returns to the garden, only to find Lady Green's body in place of his wife. The play leaves audiences contemplating the boundaries between reality and illusion, life and death, as Bahadir reconciles...
(This entire section contains 609 words.)
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with the macabre yet wondrous reality of his existence.
Style and Technique
Tawfiq al-Hakim's play, The Tree Climber, is a tapestry of philosophical musings intertwined with playful motifs drawn from regional folklore. Although the philosophical themes may initially seem perplexing or daunting, al-Hakim seems to suggest they should not be taken with undue seriousness. The play is imbued with a whimsical atmosphere, supported by deliberate dramatic devices that blur the line between reality and illusion.
The play's staging is unconventional; there are no fixed sets or props, with actors bringing their accessories to the stage. This minimalistic approach relies heavily on the dialogue and the actors' deportment to create a sense of place and time, as evidenced when a railroad car's presence is suggested through inference rather than physical depiction. This technique invites the audience into a realm where the boundaries of reality are fluid, fostering an environment where unnatural events feel at home.
Interestingly, some characters remain unseen by the audience, adding to the mystery and surreal quality of the narrative. For instance, the man hired to dig in Bahadir Efendi’s garden operates offstage, his presence felt but never seen. Al-Hakim further intensifies the sense of illusion by orchestrating dialogues primarily between two characters at a time, leaving it to the audience to discern which character holds greater credibility. This choice enhances the multiplicity of perceptions and interpretations, reinforcing the play's enigmatic nature.
Incorporating elements of local folklore, al-Hakim enriches the narrative with motifs that leaven the philosophical discourse. The play's title itself is drawn from a children’s nonsense song, ostensibly linking to Bahadir Efendi’s green lizard, which becomes a recurring symbol throughout the work. The wife’s concern for her unborn daughter manifests in her singing traditional verses associated with celebrations held on the seventh day after a child's birth. This blend of sound and song, at times merging into indistinguishable patterns, echoes the Arabian Nights tales' whimsical spirit, where magic and mystery abound.
Al-Hakim's creative marriage of whimsical, folkloric elements with philosophically charged content results in a play that defies straightforward interpretation yet remains accessible and engaging. The play has seen numerous performances, both in its original language and in translation, proving its enduring appeal. Through its inventive use of dramatic devices, The Tree Climber challenges audiences to ponder the nature of reality and illusion while reveling in the charm of its playful narrative.
