I am a little late to the party, but I finally read my first play: Incident at Vichy by Arthur Miller. The setting for this play is a police detention center in Nazi occupied Vichy, France, in 1942. Eight men and a teen-aged boy are being held for questioning by a German major, French police, and a German professor of racial anthropology. The prisoners were detained without cause or warrant, and among themselves try to determine what their situation actually is. For a time, the men try to convince themselves that things are not at all dire, that they are just going through routine questioning and will soon be sent on their way. It becomes quickly apparent that the police, major, and professor have detained them because they are likely Jews. Some are - but not all. It was interesting to see how each man reacted to the situation he was in. Some thought of the good of others; others only of himself. The play really explored both the good and bad aspects of human nature, and unfortunately very few people were willing to go out on a limb for others - they felt that resistance/rebellion was futile and dangerous. Others during this time were in denial about how bad things really were - much like the men at the beginning of the play. While this wasnt a fluffy, fun read, I still enjoyed it. The story was compelling and thought provoking. As a lover of historical fiction and drama, I recommend this play to anyone with similar interests.
Posted on: Thu, 22 Jan 2015 02:53:18 +0000
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