Equus, Cats in the Cradle and Love Song: An Analysis of Humans and Their Environments
Summary:
Analyzes the poems Equus, Cats in the Cradle and Love Song of J. Alfred Prufrock. Discusses how each poem deals with the theme of humans and their environment.
Through study of the text material it has been demonstrated that humans are directly affected by the environment in which they live. The effect of the environment, both social and psychological, is even stronger upon humans during periods of development. Humans are essentially a product of their environment. Their value and opinions and how they react to certain circumstances are all related to what they have learned from the people around them and how their psychological environment has processed those lessons. Three main elements of the environment having an effect upon humans are parental influence, social happiness and the materialism of 20th life. These environmental elements and their relation to human development is present in the play Equus, by Peter Shaffer, The Love Song of J. Alfred Prufrock by T.S. Eliot and Cats in the Cradle by Cat Stevens.
The materialism of the 20th Century is a major element of the environment and so it therefore has a direct impact upon human development. Materialism is the belief that everything including the human mind is a product of the physical world. This belief has become more widespread in the 20th Century. Other 20th Century features are the arrival of concepts of capitalism and the structured life that we live. In Equus, by Peter Shaffer, a 17 year old boy named Alan Strang is brought to Dysart, a psychiatrist. Alan had developed a set of religious beliefs and ritual based around a horse god named Equus but due to a conflict between his beliefs and pressure from his environment Alan was compelled to poke out the horses eyes with a metal spike. The rituals of Alan's were not developed due to a materialistic attitude but the materialistic attitude that was forced upon him by his job at the electric store and the bombardment of television commercials created so much tension within him that he became mentally. Alan's oppression by the materialism of the 20th Century is demonstrated when he sings TV commercials to Dysart in their first few meetings. Alan's job at the electrical store also has influence of him and when he recounts his rituals to Dysart he says that he must ride against, .".the Hosts of Hoover, the Hosts of Pifco, the Hosts of Philco and all its tribe." In his mind Alan had transformed the brands he sold into enemies such was their negative effect upon him.
As well as being the reason for Alan's instability, 20th Century materialism is also evident in Dysart's life and character. It is ironic because when Dysart first met Alan he believed he could treat him but by the end of the play Dysart realized that Alan was living an existence that Dysart had never experienced and would probably never do so. In Dysart's monologue at the end he says that the normal life was drawing people away from life's experiences. Dysart is referring to 20th Century materialism and the lack of emotion which people felt in their lives. Dysart is a strong example of what he speaks of. The passion has left his marriage and all he has left in his life is his study of Ancient Greece. In comparison to the pleasure Alan found in his life Dysart's was dull and he realized he was jealous of what Alan had created for himself, "I sit looking at pages of centaurs trampling the soil of Argos -- and outside my window he is trying to become one in a Hampshire field!"
Alan and Dysart and very opposite in character. Dysart was one of the 'normal' people whose character was molded by the pervasive 20th Century materialism. Alan's character, on the other hand, was created from a combination of other factor and the 20th century materialism was the factor that caused a strain on his beliefs and made him become mentally unstable. In two very different people it can be seen that 20th century materialism, which was a major environmental element for both, had a direct effect upon the development of their character.
Parental influence is a major element of the environment and it has a direct of humans when they are their most impressionable, during childhood. Most people spend their childhood and a small part of their adulthood with one or both parents. For the much of their lives their parents will still be near as a trusted source of information and advice. Due to that parents can not escape the influence they have over children, who, at early stages especially, have no other source of learning and values. In Equus by Peter Shaffer Alan Strang lived his whole 17 years in a very close relationship with his parents, Frank and Dora Strang. In that time much of his character development was due to what he learnt from his parents.
Alan's mother was been the dominant provider of education throughout Alan's childhood. Beginning in his early years, she would read to him aloud by his bedside nightly. It was from his mothers teachings and an experience with a horse on a beach that Alan began to form his rituals. Within his beliefs were combined much of his learning from his mother. Alan named his horse God after the Latin name for horse, 'Equus', which he learned from his mother. Alan's ears were frequently drilled with the story of Prince the horse and readings of the Bible. From this story Alan believed that Equus would only let him ride. Mrs. Strang also told Alan a story about the pagans believing man and horse to be one when they first saw Christian cavalry and it was not until one solder fell off his horse that they recognised that the two were separate. From this story Alan strived to become one with Equus. This is demonstrated by his explanation of his riding, "Make us one person!"
Alan's father had a far smaller role in his education but he was the main reason for Alan's lack of confidence. Frank Strang had deprived Alan of many friends, of his picture of Christ and of his experience with the horse on the beach.
Alan's character was a result of his treatment by his parents and of their beliefs that were forced upon him., which had a direct effect upon his development.
In the song 'Cats in the Cradle' by Cat Stevens the audience is told a story by an old man who describes his neglect of his son and the returned treatment from his adult son. Cat Stevens uses a distinct rhythm and repetition to convey images to the audience of the characters he wants to portray. This song is a perfect example of the parental influence because the son grows up to be the same kind of person as the father even with the little time they actually spent together. This lack of time is demonstrated in a number of places, .".he learned to walk while I was away" and .".I said not today, I've got a lot to do..." The son in the story tells his father a number of times, "I'm going to be like you dad," and he is right. In the second two verses the audience sees the son avoiding his father, "I'd love to [see you] dad, if I could find the time."
The son in the song was strongly influenced by his father and this influence had a direct effect upon his development such that he grew up to become just like his father.
In both 'Cats in the Cradle' and 'Equus' the audience is exposed to examples of children learning from their parents and forming into a certain type of person due to that parental influence.
A major environmental element is the social environment. A person's social environment consists of their parents, friends role models, and other people whose judgment they rely on. Whether a person fits in with their social environment directly affects their development. In Equus Alan Strang did not fit into his social environment. He was socially unhappy and because of that he sought out other means to find his happiness and to fill up a sense of deprivation in his life. It is plausible that he would not have developed his rituals to quite the extent that he did had he spent time with friends. Alan did not have any friends, or at least any close friends. After the incident Pater Shaffer never mentions any friends coming to comfort Alan or trying to help him in any way. The effect of his social environment being unsatisfying is seen in the way Alan put so much energy into the religion that his mother introduced him to, into the religion he formed for himself and into his relationship with Jill. It is hard to tell whether Alan truly liked Jill or whether he was so happy that she had showed any interest in him that he desperately clung for a relationship. Within Alan's social environment it is clear that Alans's lack of social happiness forced him down a path of development that led to the creation of his rituals and ultimately his loss of mental stability.
Alan's unhappy existence is paralleled by the life led by the main character of T.S. Eliot's 'The Love Song of J. Alfred Prufrock'. The poem is told by Prufrock who has reached the end of his middle age and believes he is near death. When he looks back on his life he is disappointed and regretful. Unlike the title suggests T.S. Eliot has used surreal and disjointed imagery to convey the bleak way in which Prufrock views life. Prufrock suffers from a lack of self confidence which was brought upon by his lack of meaningful relationships. Prufrock appears to have been in a long string of shallow relationships which he demonstrates when he repeats, "In the room the women come and go." He dim view of himself extends past relationships for he is convinced that he life has been one big circle of pointless tasks and functions, "And I have measured out my life with coffee spoons." Prufrock has lost this confidence in himself because around him there is nobody that he believes has any trust in him or anybody that cares what he does. If follows, therefore, that if nobody else believes in him a person, why should he? Prufrock feels isolated because he can't communicate what he feels and the reason for these feelings is that his social environment has left him unhappy. Unlike Alan Strang he has not tried to fill the void with anything else and this has had a negative effect.
The characters in Equus, Cats in the Cradle and The Love Song of J. Alfred Prufrock all different yet they have one thing in common. They are all partly products of the materialism of 20th Century life, the influence of their parents and their social happiness. All these factors are elements of the social environment.
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