A Horneyan Interpretation Of Neurotic Personalities In The Cryptogram

David Mamet(1947-),together with Sam Shepard,is acclaimed as one of the most notable American playwrights.In his play The Cryptogram(1994),Mamet presents an emotionally haunting family tragedy with penetrating insights into the complex inner world of the characters and their society.Compared with his most well-known plays,The Cryptogram receives less attention.Previous critiques on this play are primarily conducted abroad,and domestic studies on it are few and far between.Commentators and critics mainly focus on the analyses of language,themes and characters;however few fully explore the element of anxiety underlying the characters' abnormal behaviors.“Anxiety” is the core concept of Horney's theory of neurosis which provides an excellent method to understand the contradictory behaviors and attitudes of people who feel unsafe,unloved and unvalued.Therefore,this thesis attempts to interpret the neurotic personalities represented in The Cryptogram in light of Karen Horney's theory of neurosis.It argues that the characters of Del,Donny and Robert manifest downright neurotic personalities which are the product of anxieties caused by hostile social-cultural environments,especially the homophobic movement,the idealized marriage and motherhood as well as the masculinity crisis in America during 1950s;their neurotic personalities further bring about catastrophic damages both to themselves and the next generation.This research is the very first endeavor to offer a Horneyan interpretation of The Cryptogram.Moreover,this endeavor expects to enlighten people in modern society to address their own mental disturbances appropriately in an era of anxiety.