Question: Comment on the relationship between the father and his sons “Desire Under the Elms”.
Introduction
“Desire Under the Elms” (1924) is a modern tragedy written by Eugene O’Neill (1888 – 1953). Five major characters develop the play in which the relationship between three sons and father is not good at all. The possessive attitude runs throughout their tragic life.
Tolerable relationship
At the outset of the play, we come to know that the relationship between Cabot and his sons, Simeon, Peter, and Eben is not good. Simeon and Peter wait for the death of their father in order to get the property and get rid of the tendency to work hard. Besides Eben first to last thinks that his father kills his mother. But when Eben prays to God for the death of his father, Simeon and Peter says him in the following manner:
“Simeon: Look here, Eben. You should not have spoken like that.”
“Peter: After all, he is our father.”
These comments from them allow a tolerable relationship between Simeon, Peter, and Cabot, their father.
Complete loss of faith
After scanning the play, when Cabot marries Abbie Putnam, we find out that the sons completely lose faith in their father. After coming here, she claims that she is the owner of the farmhouse. They wish that their father would remain unmarried. So, this is not their expectation. Eben starts to hate his step-mother with his father. Simeon and Peter decide to go to California.
Domination over the sons
The relationship between father and the sons is not good for dominating attitude. Cabot always wants to dominate his family members. Eben claims that his father kills his mother by hard work tendency. Cabot makes all the members of the farmhouse hard workers.
Lack of responsibility
Simeon is 39 years old and his wife, Jenny has died eighteen years ago. But there is no sign of Cabot’s help to marry Simeon. He marries Abbie at 75 years old. That is nothing but a lack of responsibility.
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Revengeful attitude
There is a revengeful attitude in the relationship between Eben and Cabot. He always wants to take revenge upon his father. This attitude takes him into a tragic situation at the end of the play. Abbie, Eben’s stepmother fuels this attitude for her desire. She convinces him to have sex to get revenge on his father. Then he says to his father the next morning in the following manner:
“Eben: My mother’s spirit, …….. has now gone back to her grave. She can now sleep in the grave peacefully. She has taken her revenge upon you.”
This sentence is enough to prove his revengeful attitude.
Absence of heavenly love and respect
There is a somewhat absence of love and respect in the relationship between father and sons. True love and true respect are very important things in any relationship. Cabot accepts his sons but there is lacking that heavenly love. For example, when everybody laughs at Eben for his absence at the dance party, Cabot stops them. He says that:
“Cabot: Let Eben go to hell…..But at the same time, I do not want anyone here to laugh at Eben. After all, he is my blood……”
This dialogue proves that he has a love for his sons but not so much. Besides, in the dialogues of Cabot’s sons, we get a lack of respect for him.
Conclusion
From the light of the above discussion, we can assert that no relationship can be better without preserving the interests of both sides and if there is a lack of evaluation and respect, and so on. In the drama “Desire Under the Elms”, there is no sign of a better relationship between father and sons. For this, all of them are responsible. So, the message is that be relevant to your attitude if you want to preserve relations.
