The House of Blue Leaves: Analysis of Major Characters
"The House of Blue Leaves" is a play that explores the lives of the Shaughnessy family, highlighting their struggles for recognition and success against a backdrop of mental health issues and familial tension. The central character, Artie Shaughnessy, is a zookeeper and aspiring songwriter grappling with his fading dreams of fame. He is torn between his desire for support from his mistress, Bunny Flingus, and his complex feelings for his mentally ill wife, Bananas.
Bananas, once vibrant, now suffers from a nervous breakdown, navigating her reality in a nightgown and desperately trying to prove her competence. Their son, Ronnie, is a troubled young man who, feeling the pressure of his father's ambitions, resorts to drastic measures, including a failed assassination attempt. Bunny, characterized by her opportunism, seeks to leverage Artie's aspirations for her own gain, while the successful Hollywood director Billy Einhorn embodies the elusive success Artie yearns for. The play culminates in a tragic intertwining of their fates, underscoring themes of desire, desperation, and the quest for meaning in a chaotic world. Through these characters, the play provides a poignant commentary on the pursuit of fame and the personal costs associated with it.
The House of Blue Leaves: Analysis of Major Characters
Author: John Guare
First published: 1971
Genre: Play
Locale: Sunnyside, Queens, New York City
Plot: Absurdist
Time: October 4, 1965
Artie Shaughnessy, a zookeeper and would-be songwriter. Obsessed by a need to be famous, forty-five-year-old Artie fears that it may be too late for him. He looks to Bunny for the support Bananas is too sick to give, but he still has a soft spot for his wife. The play focuses on his attempts to find success, first by having his music blessed by the pope, then by kowtowing to Hollywood celebrities Corrinna Stroller and Billy Einhorn.
Bananas Shaughnessy, Artie's wife, once a fun-loving woman. She has since suffered a nervous breakdown. She is forty-four years old and appears in the play in a nightgown she has worn for the past six months; her eyes are red from crying. Frightened of Artie's threats to send her to a rest home, she does her best to prove that she is still competent and that Artie is wrong to leave her.
Ronnie Shaughnessy, the eighteen-year-old son of Artie and Bananas. He wears a brushcut and large glasses. At the time of the play, Ronnie is absent without leave from the Army. Another victim of Artie's thirst for fame, Ronnie once acted like an idiot in front of Hollywood director Billy Einhorn, who was looking for a boy Ronnie's age to play Huck Finn. Although he sneaks into Artie's apartment in the opening scene, he disappears and does not say anything or enter into the plot until he appears with a bomb intended to kill the pope. When he is discovered by nuns, he is wearing his old altar boy robes.
Bunny Flingus, the Shaughnessys' neighbor and Artie's mistress. Bunny, a plump thirty-nine-year-old gold digger, wants to ride Artie's coattails to fame. It is her idea to have Artie's music blessed by the pope and to “audition” for Corrinna Stroller. Bunny is a wonderful cook but refuses to cook for Artie until they are married. When it is clear that Artie will not succeed as a songwriter, Bunny leaves him for successful filmmaker Billy Einhorn.
Billy Einhorn, a famous Hollywood director. A lifelong friend exactly Artie's age (forty-five), Billy represents all the fame and fortune Artie wants. Although he does not appear in the first act, he is the main topic of conversation, and the high point of the act is Artie's phone call to Billy's home in California. Billy arrives in response to Corrinna's death. Billy's maudlin sentimentalizing is clearly bogus, and his grief over Corrinna disappears as soon as he sees Bunny and steals her from Artie.
Corrinna Stroller, a twenty-two-year-old movie starlet. She starred in Billy's film Warmonger but lost her hearing when a prop mine exploded during the filming. Artie sees her as his ticket to fame and plays his songs for her, but she does not hear them. Ronnie's bomb, intended for the pope, kills Corrinna.