The Admirable Crichton: Analysis of Setting
"The Admirable Crichton" analyzes two contrasting settings that reflect the themes of social status and adaptability. The first setting, Loam House, is a lavishly furnished residence in London's affluent Mayfair district, showcasing the opulence of the English aristocracy before World War I. In this space, social interactions are marked by formality and tradition, epitomized by the ritual of high tea. As the narrative progresses, the setting of Loam House transforms significantly, with decor that once celebrated artistic achievements replaced by trophies that falsely attribute Crichton's accomplishments to the aristocrats, underscoring themes of class and privilege.
In stark contrast, the second setting is a deserted island where the characters find themselves shipwrecked. Here, the initial struggle for survival evolves into a depiction of communal living and improvisation, with Crichton emerging as a resourceful leader. The makeshift log cabin reflects a raw, functional aesthetic that emphasizes their newfound independence and social dynamics, highlighting a departure from the constraints of aristocratic life. The juxtaposition of these settings invites reflection on the nature of social progress, questioning the values of both environments and the authenticity of their respective social structures. The play ultimately suggests that true mastery and competence can arise in the most unconventional circumstances.
The Admirable Crichton: Analysis of Setting
First published: 1914
First produced: 1902
Type of work: Drama
Type of plot: Satire
Time of work: Early twentieth century
Places Discussed
Loam House
Loam House. Home of the earl of Loam in London’s Mayfair district—one of the most expensive districts of London, where the cream of the English aristocracy maintained their town houses in the days before World War I. Loam House, like its eponymous owner, is apparently not of the highest rank. It contains several reception rooms of varying quality, some of which are to be “lent for charitable purposes,” while those reserved for private use are lavishly furnished. Act 1 takes place in the most luxurious of the rooms, which is lavishly equipped with a carpet, couches, and cushions. Its walls are decorated with paintings by well-known artists. A thousand roses are distributed in basins, while shelves and tables contain library novels, illustrated newspapers and, as the play opens, all the paraphernalia required for the serving and consumption of that hallowed English tradition, high tea.
By the time this room reappears in act 4, its decor has changed considerably. Various animal skins, stuffed birds, and the weapons used to kill them have replaced the paintings, and other items have been replaced by mementos of Crichton’s castaway experience. The tale tacitly told by these exhibits is, however, transparently false. Labels attached to the trophies on the walls emphasize the fact that all Crichton’s achievements have been rudely appropriated by the aristocrats, who are his social betters. However, the true story behind the sham can be perceived now, much more easily than in act 1.
Island
Island. Desert island on which various members of the Loam household are shipwrecked, somewhere in the Pacific Ocean. Its shore is fringed by a thicket of bamboo. Trees, including coconut palms, are abundant, and its fauna includes monkeys, snakes, and wildcats. In act 2 the only edifice that the castaways have erected is a half-finished hut, and the only person working constructively on it is Crichton. When act 3 opens two years later, the castaways have moved to a larger log cabin, set on higher ground close to a stream. A mill wheel erected on the stream provides the cabin with electric light.
The furniture of the cabin’s main room stands in careful contrast to that of the reception room in Loam House. Improvised spades, saws, and fishing rods are placed on the joists supporting the roof. Cured hams are suspended from hooks, while barrels and sacks of other foodstuffs are lodged in recesses. The floor is bare save for a few animal skins. Although various pieces of wreckage have been put to new uses—the ship’s steering wheel is now a chandelier, and a life buoy provides a back for one of the chairs—most of the furniture is the result of “rough but efficient carpentering.” Its main door consists of four swinging panels, and its unglazed window is equipped with a shutter. There are several sleeping rooms and a work room.
At the first appearance of this miracle of improvisation, its architect, the butler, is conspicuously absent, while other cast members drift in and out, emphasizing by their conduct that they are now entirely subservient to his mastery. The meal that is eaten when he does appear is an extreme contrast, in terms of its constituents, its apparatus, and the roles of its participants, to the tea served in the reception room of Loam House. The spontaneity of the after-dinner dancing, to the tune of a makeshift concertina, contrasts sharply with the stiff formality of social intercourse at Loam House. What kind of social progress is it, the play meekly wonders, that has transformed one setting into another, and how can such perverse artificiality possibly survive?
Bibliography
Birkin, Andrew. J. M. Barrie and the Lost Boys. London: Constable, 1979. Discusses the way in which Barrie, playing castaways with the Llewellyn Davies boys, was inspired to write The Admirable Crichton.
Blake, George. Barrie and the Kailyard School. London: Barker, 1951. Places Barrie’s work in its social and literary context.
Darlington, W. A. J. M. Barrie. London: Blackie, 1938. An appreciation of Barrie’s work by a noted drama critic.
Roy, James A. James Matthew Barrie: An Appreciation. London: Jarrolds, 1937. A useful commentary on Barrie’s works.
Walbrook, H. M. J. M. Barrie and the Theatre. London: F. V. White, 1922. The first detailed survey of Barrie’s dramatic work.