This article contains the exercises of unit 4.2 of the English chapter “Facing Death”. Facing Death– All Exercise Solved, Class -12, New Course – 2079
Facing Death(मृत्युको सामना) -by August Strindberg
Characters:
1. Monsieur Durand- a former railroad worker, pension proprietor and widower
2. Adele- eldest daughter of Durand (27 yrs)
3. Annette-youngest daughter (24 years)
4. Therese- daughter (24 years)
5. Antonio- a lieutenant of an Italian army, he is a paying guest in their pension
6. Pierre- an errand boy
SETTING
Durand seems to be looking over the lake and the tops of churchyard cypress trees, Lake Leman, with the Savoy Alps and the French bathing-resort Evian from an open door of his dining room stuffed with a long table. With the turned-up sleeves and putting on an apron the elder daughter of Mr. Durand, Adele enters into the dining room with a tray of coffee from the kitchen. Durand advises her with limited answers regarding his plans for burning down the house. He begins to tell his life story only to have Adele state that mother did not lie to them growing up. Durand shares the truth.
THEMES
- love and sacrifice of a father to his children
- Family, financial crisis
- Economic failure
SHORT SUMMARY
Adele enters the room carrying a tray with coffee from kitchen and asks Durand whether he has eaten the coffee bread or not. Durand seems to be looking over the lake and the tops of churchyard cypress trees, Lake Leman, with the Savoy Alps and the French bathing-resort Evian from an open door of his dining room stuffed with a long table. Adele gets angry when an errand boy Pierre comes home with an empty basket with previous bills instead the bread from breakfast. The shop doesn’t provide any bread as it needs due amount. She forces her father to manage some money to pay the bill and get the food stuffs. Durand sees his daughter Therese kissing to Antonio, a lieutenant in an Italian cavalry regiment in French Switzerland in the eighties, now a lodger in Durand’s house, he gets fired and threatens him to leave the house. When Durand scolds the Lieutenant, Therese gets angry with him. She blames him that he is the cause of economic crisis in the house as he used money in trivial things. She says that the family has suffered and starved because of her father. There is an indication of a heavy storm outside, so he asks Adele to put out the fire in the stove. After that he discloses the fire policy secret to her. He tells his daughters that what her mother told them about him is wrong. She was against her husband so she told negative things about Durand to arouse hatred in them against him. She wanted them to take her side. But Adele doesn’t believe him. Instead she takes her mother’s side. Durand says that she will believe only after he dies. The house is caught in fire and Durand drinks poison. At his last minutes Durand advices Adele to take care of her sisters and get the fire insurance money. Adele is confused and finds her father is died.
ABOUT THE DRAMA ‘FACING DEATH
Featuring the main character Mr. Monsieur Durand, a widower and a father to three daughter (and a son died already in his childhood) Adele, Annettee and Therese, August Strindberg in his one act play ‘Facing Death’ dramatizes a heroic sacrifice made by the protagonist Durand. Mr. Durand who was a formerly railroad worker, has lost his wife and a son. He is in a financial crisis and sacrifices his life for the sake of his love to his three daughters however he receives scorn and contempt from his daughters. The piling up bills from different shops shows that the family is having awayhe an economic burden despite letting out his house to lodgers. After his wife passes is having hard times for the sake of his daughters. Before his wife died, he had unhappy life with her and even his daughters took their mother’s side. To save his daughters, Durand plans to burn down his house and poison himself to get the fire policy cash for the family. This is the secret he opens to his eldest daughter Adele and advices her not to tell anybody.
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