Some Thoughts on Jon Fosse as Playwright

Yes, a lame title. I was on the phone with Gabb trying to get my phone fixed as I finished reading and then drafting this post. I am out of creativity. The phone has gone berserk, doing things on its own, making it impossible to make or receive calls. My nerves are gone.

I like trying to write plays. I think writing dialog is easier than narrative - I just write down what the voices in my head are saying. However, I probably know less about writing plays than I do writing narratives.

Sarah Cameron published through LitHub How Jon Fosse Teaches Us to Acknowledge Our Own Vulnerability. I like the ideas. Even better was the side-by-side 

From a technical perspective, Fosse uses words sparingly, with no punctuation except for line breaks and the choice between beginning each line with a capital letter or a lowercase letter. Words, phrases, and ideas are repeated in variations. Sparse dialogue builds slowly, repeats, connects, shifts slightly, and accumulates to create suspense and a powerful sense of rhythm. His poetic form makes every word vital and extremely active. The most common words sometimes convey vast existential ideas.

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This is part of what is revolutionary about Fosse’s work—he finds the simplest way to say something, and within this everyday speech, there is deep complexity through repetition and slight variations. It is both simple and complex, both realistic and very heightened at the same time.

This is the reason I was so attracted to Fosse’s work—the way that potential hangs in the air, the way his characters represent all of humanity in the turn of a phrase, the way the past merges with the present and the future. Standing still is a primary action and “moving towards each other” is what happens next. Location is immaterial, but every breath, every turn of phrase, and slight physical action is important. So is the wind, the rain, and the sea. Death is always present, and its constant proximity challenges characters and the audience to assess their humanity. Fosse’s acknowledgment of time and our own vulnerability illuminates our existence and creates a real possibility for positive change. Every time I entered Fosse’s world, I was reminded that we are only on this planet for a short time and must be brave enough to take action while we are here.

I get the sense of something more subtle than Pinter's pauses. As for repetition, I have used it too much according to some of my friends. I think of it as I think of a chorus in a song. Anyway, I see possibilities.

sch