Analysis Of Our Town By Thornton Wilder

Words: 741
Pages: 3

The play, Our Town, by Thornton Wilder, represents the things in life people often disregard everyday. Throughout the play, one of the main characters, Emily Webb, learns this lesson through the events of her unexpected love with George Gibbs. From the beginning, Wilder’s ultimate goal was to “attempt to find a value above all price for the smallest events in our daily life.” The author is successful in his attempt by relaying his message to the readers and viewers. To begin, Wilder was extremely successful in his goal because of the structure and order of the acts within the play. During the first two acts, the daily activities of the two families are entirely boring and seem irrelevant at the time. But, in the third act we finally tie together …show more content…
For instance, the town Grover’s Corners is described to be on a grand scale. In act two, the town is compared with much larger aspects, such as on an address label. For example, the address said, “Grover’s Corners; Sutton County; New Hampshire; United States of America; Continent of North America; Western Hemisphere; the Earth; the Solar System; the Universe; the Mind of God” (Wilder 46). By comparing this tiny town with enormous things, this quote reminds the audience that Grover’s Corners is very small, unknown by alot of people, and not as important as the larger things it is being compared to. This idea represents that the town is actually like many other places that the audience knows, and this helps them relate the small things in life that they are familiar with back to the play. Therefore, by putting Grover’s Corners in a significant context, the author was successful in having the viewers relate to the play more in depth. In summary, Thornton Wilder’s attempted goal in the play Our Town is tremendously successful. He accomplishes his objective of spreading the purpose of the play, which is to understand that all little things in life are valuable, and to never take anything for granted. As assessed previously, the author fulfills this endeavor by configuring the acts accordingly, having the audience relate with events, and making the town on a scale relatable to the viewers. As a result, the audience is left with a lasting impression and a life lesson to take with