Seeking Meaning In A World Devoid Of Absolutes--Eugene O'neill's Later Plays And Zhuangzi's Philosophy

This dissertation aims at investigating Eugene O'neill's interpretation of Zhuangzi's philosophical thoughts through an examination of his later plays so as to bring to light the two different ways that Chinese and West philosophies undergo in search of the meaning of human existence. The first two chapters, constituting the main part of the dissertation, cover two fields O'neill's thinking enters when he reflects on the meaning of being. Chapter I deals with both O'neill and Zhuangzi's awareness of "life is but a dream". Section one studies the opposite views of the two on the relationship between Reality and Dream. Zhuangzi deconstructs the binary oppositions of Reality and Dream. However, in the world of O'neill's later plays Reality and Dream are in constant conflicts. What lies behind O'neill's pipedreams is the existence dilemma of modern West men in a Godless world. Dream obscures the void at the heart of Reality, which brings about the illusion of a kind of meaningful existence. Section two probes into the superficial resemblance between Zhuangzi's idea of "no-action"(Wu Wei) and O'neill's concept of "inaction". Zhangzi's "no-action" means transcendence above constructed oppositions. The "inaction" in O'neill's plays reveals modern West men's powerlessness to act and a spiritual paralysis. Chapter II inquires into O'neill's speculations on death and clarifies their different understandings towards the pun Chinese word "Fan"( Returning or Opposite). "Fan", in O'neill's understanding, means everything has its opposite and moves towards its opposite direction. In his later plays, Life and Death alternate and interpenetrate. But this is O'neill's futile effort to reconcile oppositions. He can never transcend those opposing polarities as Life and Death. In Zhuangzi's philosophy, "Fan" means returning. Things begins their constant movement from Tao and will finally return to it. Zhuangzi transcends the circle of Life and Death and all those polar opposites.Chapter III approaches what has been discussed in the former two chapters at a deeper level. "Nothingness" indicates the death of God in O'neill's later plays; yet it is Tao itself in Zhuangzi's philosophy. Conclusion is a brief extension of the investigation, in which the born paradoxes of the two ways of thinking are pointed out.