Michael Frayn’n Here Adlı Oyununda İlişkinin Dili

Dil, kendimizi ve dünyayıalgılamamızda ve ifade etmemizde önemli bir araçtır. Bir tiyatro metninde de dil karakterlerin iç dünyasınıyansıtan, birbirleriyle ilişkileri hakkında ipuçlarıveren önemli bir unsurdur. Çağdaş İngiliz oyun yazarlarından Michael Frayn’ın kaleme aldığı Here Burada adlıoyunda da dilin zannedildiği gibi her zaman iletişim sağlamadığı, kimi durumlarda kişilerin doğru kelimeyi bulamadığınıgösterilir. Oyunda Cath ve Phil henüz birbirlerini tam anlamıyla tanımadıklarıve evliliklerinde yeni olduklarıiçin birçok iletişim kazasına maruz kalırlar. Her ikisi de hem hayatıhem de ilişkilerini sorgularken birbirlerini kırmadan, incitmeden ilişkiyi yürütmeye çalışırlar. Bu durum kimi zaman bitmeyen cümlelerle, yanlışanlamalarla, kimi zaman da ardıardına sorulan sorularla ifade edilir. Kadın ve erkeğin dili farklıkullanmalarıda sağlıklıbir iletişim kurulmasınıengeller. Bu çalışmada, boşbir daireye yerleşmeye çalışan Cath ve Phil çiftinin kendi dillerini oluşturma çabaları, bu süreçte birbirlerini tanıma ve evliliklerindeki rollerini bulma serüvenleri dilin kullanımıdikkate alınarak incelenmiştir. Oyun yazarının dil aracılığıyla karakterlerin kişiliklerini, çatışmalarınıyansıtması, dekor, zaman, yardımcıkarakterler gibi unsurların oyun kurgusunun oluşmasındaki rolü de ele alınmıştır.

Language is a kind of tool to express ourselves and the universe. It is a fact that through language people have a chance to reflect their inner world. According to linguistics, women and men use language in different ways. The difference is obvious especially in their conversations. Women are more likely to be people-oriented and to stress interpersonal concerns while men tend to be more object-oriented and primarily interested in matters of the outside world. As Donohue states, in conversation, men are more likely to emphasize the confirmation while women stress the support. Donohue, 1999;8 . Language is also one of the important elements of drama and it gives some clues about the playwright’s aim. It expresses the major and minor characters’ mind, conflict, desires and struggles. The language of a play is not a language of words which represents reality, but a language which classifies and controls subjects, power and status of the characters. In this study, the play of one of the well-known contemporary English playwright, Michael Frayn’s Here is going to be analysed in terms of its language in order to show the characters’ identity, their feeling of possession and the needs for communication. The aspects of language such as pragmatics and syntax and also the gender factor in the usage of language are going to be analysed to foreground the reason of lack of communication in the play. Thus, in order to examine relationship between the major characters the function of the other dramatic elements, such as place, time and the minor character of the play are going to be studied. Michael Frayn deals with a newly married couple’s difficulty of having a good communication/relation in a two-act play, Here. In the play Frayn points out that although it is believed that people can solve every problem through communication, sometimes they cannot achieve to have a dialogue if it is created artificially. Frayn, in the play Here, shows a newly married couple’s effort of ordering the world which needs understanding each other and having a good communication. This chaotic atmosphere becomes even more difficult with the challenging usage of language. In the play, there is a couple, Cath and Phil, at the beginning of their marriage and they try to organize their new flat together. The characters force themselves to understand each other, but just because of the complexity of human nature and also the life, they have difficulty to reach the same point. Frayn gives this conflict by creating an atmosphere with a new setting and a nearly married couple. Throughout the play, because of the ambiguous language Phil and Cath used, there does not appear to be clearly signaled difference of opinion between them. But through a close analysis of the play can show that Phil and Cath have lots of conflicts about each other and life. It is clear that although Cath and Phil have different personalities they try to share the same life. Sometimes they have difficulty in looking at the life from the same point of view, and they know that only a good communication can help them in this situation. But being a newly married couple, they hesitate to share their thoughts or desires most of the time in order not to make the other sad. Throughout the play they try to understand their role in the ‘concept of marriage’ through language. This is reflected by unfinished sentences, questions and misunderstandings in the play. This situation reflects that the characters feel themselves standing at a crossroad in their life and relationship. In the play, Here, the playwright foregrounds the function of language in the development of the plot of the play. He does not think of using any special prop to tell the personalities, identities and relations of the characters. An empty flat and being a newly married couple are just the key terms in the play. Throughout the play, Cath and Phil force themselves to find out their place in the universe, in their flat and in their marriage. And they know that if they achieve to have a healthy communication they can solve every problem related to their relation and the life. The playwright does not mention the age of the characters, but probably they are in their early twenties. This means that they do not have sufficient experience about life and relationships. For that reason, he presents another character, Pat, in the play. She is the owner of the flat and as an old lady she shares her opinion about life and marriage with them. It is seen that most of the time the young couple does not want to listen to her ideas or memories but at the end of the play they understand that in fact Pat is talking just about the truths of life. In the play, the memories or past is reflected by Pat and the future is represented by Cath and Phil. In this way, Frayn underlines the fact that there is continuity in life and if you have enough knowledge to solve the puzzle of the universe you have a chance to have a good and happy life and a happy relationship. It is emphasized that in order to be successful or to have a harmonious relationship with nature or the universe you should not ignore the experience of the old people and should follow the signs carefully. At the end of the play, Cath and Phil achieve to create their own language in their relation and move into another flat and this means that same problems or hesitations are going to be experienced by another couple in the same flat. The life is just a vicious circle. Throughout the play, the playwright shows the importance of language in communication. By the help of language, the individual understands the universe, expresses himself and communicates with other people. But in the play, the playwright shows another perspective that he underlines that language can be a dangerous tool and function just in an opposite way and causes lack of communication even in a close relationship