Pantomime Essay Questions

What role does grief play in Pantomime?

As one of the play's major themes, grief plays a pivotal role in Pantomime. At the outset of the play, Jackson jokes about his employer's ongoing anguish by suggesting that Harry might have finally killed himself by leaping off the gazebo ledge. As the play goes on, the audience learns that Harry lost his son in a tragic drunk-driving accident and then lost his wife to another man. Believing he could escape the emotional pain of processing his grief, Harry relocated to Tobago to manage the Castaways Guest House. Nonetheless, Harry's characteristic English emotional suppression exacerbates his troubles, causing him aimlessly to wander around, resembling a man left shipwrecked by life's storms. In the second act, Jackson adopts the persona of Harry's ex-wife in a therapeutic effort to guide Harry through his grief and liberate his suppressed anger. However, Harry's emotional release is swiftly undermined by a renewal of his refusal to accept that he has genuine trauma. With this move, Walcott depicts Harry returning to a state of denial, which only prolongs his stunted grieving process.

What role does performance play in Pantomime?

Performance, particularly within cultural or societal contexts, plays a significant role as one of the major themes in Pantomime. Walcott establishes the theme early in the narrative as characters are introduced: Harry's entrance involves singing and dancing, while Jackson showcases his ability to switch between English and Creole accents for comic effect. As the play unfolds, it becomes evident that both Harry and Jackson used to be performers: Harry hails from a British music-hall family, while Jackson was a calypsonian in Trinidad. Walcott builds on the theme of performance when Jackson candidly tells Harry that they are both engaged in roles that don't entirely resonate with their true beliefs; this is exemplified by Jackson's statement that they are "faking, faking all the time," driven by historical context and social circumstances that have compelled them to adopt roles of authority and subservience respectively. As the play goes on, the characters explore their socially constructed identities through improvisation and rehearsal. As they strive to transcend the confines of their predetermined social performances, the men playfully free themselves from these rigid roles.

How is the concept of isolation relevant to Pantomime?

Defined as the state of having minimal interaction with others, isolation is first expressed through the play's setting of the Castaways Guest House, an isolated hotel in Tobago. To escape his troubles in England, Harry invests his life savings in the hotel, where he can wander the beaches like a castaway. Jackson has also sought isolation in Tobago, forsaking his performer's life and the family he alludes to back in Trinidad. Walcott deepens the theme of isolation through Harry's aspiration to stage a pantomime based on Robinson Crusoe—a shipwrecked Englishman with whom Harry identifies. Ultimately, Walcott shows that while Harry may have sought physical isolation in Tobago, he longs for companionship from another human, just as Crusoe sought the companionship of Friday.

How does Walcott explore the concept of mimicry in Pantomime?

Mimicry—the imitation of people or things for the purposes of entertainment or satire—makes its initial appearance when Jackson expresses his displeasure regarding the parrot's usage of a racially offensive term. He contends that the parrot, like a child emulating its guardians, has learned to replicate and perpetuate the prejudices of its upbringing. Jackson also delivers an improvised monologue in which he compares formerly colonized people to Britain's "shadow," pointing out the hypocrisy of the British imposing their culture on foreign people and then complaining when those people attempt to assimilate into British society. In this way, Walcott makes a broader point about how culture is perpetuated through widespread mimicry of attitudes and behaviors.

What role does resentment play in Pantomime?

Resentment—a lingering bitterness stemming from perceived unjust treatment—motivates Harry to revise his rendition of the Robinson Crusoe pantomime, as he longs to reclaim the limelight after being overshadowed by his ex-wife—a superior performer—during her portrayal of Crusoe. In crafting a new iteration of the play, Harry is fueled by a fervent determination to not only outshine but also deride the woman who both humiliated him and subsequently departed from his life. Resentment also arises in relation to Jackson, who evidently resents his inept and ungraceful employer. Despite the fact of Trinidad and Tobago's recently declared independence, Jackson finds himself in an inferior socioeconomic position relative to Harry, the proprietor of the hotel, primarily due to Harry's white British origin. Jackson's extensive experience within the international hospitality sector surpasses that of Harry's, yet the lingering effects of colonial history have enabled Harry to amass enough wealth in England to own an entire guest house in the West Indies. Jackson's resentment manifests through a consistent stream of sarcasm, condescension, and logically structured arguments, all of which serve as a means to diminish Harry and express his profound dissatisfaction.