Postwar Italian drama and the theater of Carlo Terron

Abstract

The theater of Carlo Terron is perhaps the most varied of his generation. His works range from the grotesque to the tragic, from psychological drama to allegorical farce. Whether it takes the form of comedy or serious drama, Terron's oeuvre is essentially concerned with an investigation of the roots of guilt, and as such it reflects the moral climate of post-World War II Italy. In this respect, Terron's plays may be compared to those of his contemporaries Ugo Betti and Diego Fabbri. In most of his plays Terron used his training as a psychiatrist to provide the intellectual framework for a world-view in which the motives for action are seen as being so intertwined with the complex nature of life that it is almost impossible to fix individual moral responsibility. Postwar Italian Drama and the Theater of Carlo Terron attempts to introduce this compelling dramatist to the English-speaking world.