Prior Walter as hero: A new mythological paradigm in Tony Kushner's 'Angels in America'

Tony Kushner established himself as a significant playwright with his two-part epic play, Angels in America. Although much criticism addresses the political and queer aspects of the play, very little research has addressed the significant religious and heroic elements. Kushner portrays the Angel as representative of the Reagan era, with its Puritanistic values and capitalistic endeavors; his portrayal reveals these systems to be dysfunctional and presents the need for Prior to emerge and become America's hero, thus bringing a new mythological paradigm that calls for political change. Kushner's hero's transfiguration follows the three-stage model that Joseph Campbell outlines in The Hero with a Thousand Faces. By presenting Prior as a hero, Kushner offers a new mythology based on hope, community, and divinity.