Matrimony and Motherhood in Arnold Wesker's Four Portraits

Abstract

Four Portraits - of Mothers is a collection of short plays in which Arnold Wesker dismantles the power structures supporting male domination in the domestic milieu. Experimenting boldly with the form and structure of drama by excluding the presence of any male character in these plays, he focuses the spotlight on four mothers of different age groups. Trapped in varied milieus, these women strive for their identity and dignity under the cumbersome burden of patriarchal canons, lopsided constructs of gender roles and suppressed desires. Though the matrimonial and maternal experiences described are highly individualized, and take place in different circumstances and environs, yet all share a similar historical legacy and common ground with reference to both. This paper is an attempt to explore how Wesker unmasks the struggle of mothers for self recognition and how matrimony and motherhood can turn into an agency of either subalternity or empowerment in varied situations.