The Illusion Wi Thin The Illusions

David Henry Hwang is considered as the most renowned Asian-American dramatist of the twentieth century. He keeps surprising us ever since his first play, FOB. However, it was his M. Butterfly (1988) that won him Tony Award, Outer Critics Circle Award, John Gassner Award and Pulitzer Prize Nomination. As a Chinese–American, Hwang's subversion of Puccini's opera Madame Butterfly has attracted a lot of scholars and critics who evaluate the play mainly from the standards of some literary critical theories while ignoring the structure and the theatrical techniques in the play's construction.In this thesis, I will discuss the metadramatic techniques David Henry Hwang applies in the play. This thesis consists of seven parts. Introduction introduces the play M. Butterfly, the overall reviews on it and metadrama with its self-reflexive devices. Chapter One analyzes"the play within the play"in M. Butterfly. The analysis shows that the play is triple-layered---the play within the play within the play. This device examines the relationship between the reality and illusion. Chapter Two examines"the role-playing within the role"in the play. Metadrama reveals how the dramatic illusions are formed and how the playwright tries to disrupt the illusions by examining the role-playing of Gallimard and Song Liling, an actor/actress in different roles and the role-playing of actors. Chapter Three discusses the literary reference in M. Butterfly. It is an examination of how the playwright subverts Puccini's opera through citation and adaptation and how he makes his audience"see double". In Chapter Four, I will talk about the"self-reference and the acknowledgement of the audience". In M. Butterfly, the play refers to itself now and then, and the characters acknowledge the audience throughout the play. These devices help the playwright to remind the audience of the illusory nature of the play and lead them to reflect on it. Chapter Five is a discussion on"the foregrounding of extra-literary effects"in M. Butterfly. The extra-literary elements, such as music, costume and stage, all contribute to the theme when they are used self-consciously. The last part concludes that these metadramatic devices are of great help for the theme of the play. They help the audience to see the...