How Does Dario Fo Use the Theatre of the Absurd to Expose His Political Standpoint?

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Dario Fo utilises the Theatre of the Absurd to effectively expose his political point of view and utilise it to criticise the Italian government. As a political left wing extremist he was a member of the communist party in Italy. Fo lived in a time of political turmoil in Italian history because of the then recent demise of Mussolini; because of the negligence and corruption by the Italian government during the years after the war, Fo comes out to explain, explore and reveal what has been happening behind the government’s closed doors. During his attempt at this he will utilise many characteristics pertaining to the Theatre of the Absurd so to create a clear and satirical image of the government to the audience. The very definition of absurdism, the philosophy in which the Theatre of the Absurd is based, aids in explaining how he uses it to effectively transmit his political view. Absurdism is based on the theory that humans exist in a meaningless universe and any attempt at order will cause direct conflict, in Accidental Death of an Anarchist that is the situation which we are presented with the Maniac. As he tries to make order and justice during the police’s incoherent proceedings someone would inevitably end up in a very unfortunate condition whatever the case might have been. Furthermore, Camus once said that “suicide is the most appropriate and rational reaction to the absurd” and in the play the anarchist has committed an apparent ‘suicide’ thus making the play something that should appeal within the rational and normal bounds within Italian society at the time. Using absurdism Fo presents the plot and context of the play to expose the corrupt society he lived in. Firstly, Accidental Death of an Anarchist shares a lot of characteristics with the Theatre of the Absurd. Fo tries to shock the audience with what appears to be the corrupt and

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