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Forging a Self: An Examination of Gender Identity in Sam Shepard’s Fool for Love , Paris, Texas , and Simpatico
Lonetta Wilson EH 499—Senior Colloquium Dr. Davis December 2005Graduation date: May 2006
The appeal of Shepard's characters to an audience is their rejection of middle class values for the pursuit of self-identity, even if it involves violence and the abandonment of others. Sam Shepard is often criticized for focusing on the “male side ‘a things,” but has progressed during throughout his career, shifting male identity from a “macho” self to a more balanced one and blending female voices into his works. Shepard often manipulates gender roles, particularly the implications of what is it is to be “masculine” and how that affects relationships with others. Although female identity tends to be secondary to the male, their roles are largely based on the guidance of men to their identity and place in society. Women shift from being seen as a stepping-stone for male identity to gaining more personal voice and identity. They escape violence, hold jobs, and defend themselves from abuse. Three works that showcase this evolution are Fool for Love (1983), Paris, Texas (1984), and Simpatico (1999). These works show that Sam Shepard has shifted from the misogynist critics accuse him of being to focusing on a male identity based less on violence and more on the balance between self and others and giving women a voice. Shepard’s male identity can be broken into categories based on the emphasis on masculinity. A critic, Felicia Londre describes Shepard’s works as “unconsciously developing
male identity,” which can be found in three phases. The first of these phases is referred to as “early masculine fantasies,” which characterized his earliest plays. Following are the middle period, those written during 1976-1980 that show the “coming to awareness of a young adult masculinity,” and finally, the “mature masculinity” of the 1980’s (Londre 155). Each phase should reflect a growing awareness of the need for a balance between maleness and a more modern, feminized masculinity. While male identity in Shepard’s plays can be found in the aforementioned phases, the time periods are more flexible than Londre suggests. Her labels can be applied to the male characters in the following fashion. The early period male character represented here is Eddie, the middle, Travis, and the late, by Simms. Londre also ignores the fact that female voice is present, even if secondary. Critics, like Londre, that label Sam Shepard’s works particularly Fool for Love , Paris, Texas , and Simpatico , as purely misogynistic ignore subtle textual cues which have been inserted to portray women as the fairer sex. Although many feminist readings find fault with the representation of women as “symbols” and the victims of male violence, Shepard’s ideas on the superiority of women are subverted within the texts of the aforementioned plays. The female characters, suggesting that they are the more reliable of the two genders, shoulder the burden of assigning and guiding men to their full identity. They are also granted the ability to function in a modern society, especially in the social and economic realms, in which males are not. Men, meanwhile, are portrayed as self-centered, violent beings that must label themselves in terms of environmental cues because they are unable to form internal identity cues. While the concentration on the development of the masculine identity is indeed the focal point of each of these texts, ignoring the power and survival skills attributed to female characters is an
violence of the previous generation ( Fool for Love ), or forfeiting the fatherly role for the greater good ( Paris , Texas ). This cyclical relationship of fathers and sons mimicking the actions of one another is the heart of the conflict of identity. The males see their traits and behaviors mirrored in the actions of their fathers and must decide the extent of the legacy that is appropriate to inherit. Inherent in this masculine realization is the scope of free will and extent to which they are able govern their actions. They must question themselves; do they treat women badly or act violently because a male predecessor did? Thus, as one of Shepard’s prolific critics notes: Father and sons wrestle for possession of the past and the future. At stake is the question of responsibility and the nature of identity. It is a battle for power and self-knowledge as the father stares into the mirror of the son and sees himself and vice versa. It is an argument about the nature of reality and the extent of freedom.(Bigsby 173)
It is fair to conclude here that the power struggle in parent-child relationships stems from this “knowledge.” The father figure will not peacefully relinquish his status and the son is unable (usually) to capture this power by chance. Thus, the imitation of the elder is a method employed by the male to gain control. This causes Shepard’s men to assume their fathers’ identities and carry on the cycle of their behavior. Male characters in two of the three works, Fool for Love and Paris, Texas, address the importance of father figures in the formation of self-awareness. Often, masculinity also includes participation in violent acts. Inherent in Shepard’s masculine identity is the representation of male violence. This is the reason many of Shepard’s plays feature men as cowboys, rodeo riders, and musicians. The male characters are unstable because not only are they struggling to positively connect with each other but they are also disconnected from themselves. Because of this disconnect, Shepard’s men lack the ability to be emotionally consistent and instead turn to violence and domination. Identity in Shepard’s work is repetitive and
violent in nature because the characters are so focused on their own struggle that they ignore the experience and needs of others. Bigsby states “But beneath all this drama of alienation is a unifying repetition” (170). This type of characterization can explain the need for males to dominate the female characters Part of the identity process for men in Shepard’s early plays was to gain power and self-esteem through the abuse of individuals around them. This violence and abuse is a by-product of the male quest for identity. Because Shepard’s characters lack the ability to relate their feelings, wants, needs, and fears to their family and peers, they act violently to appear “tough” and in control. What the men cannot command through peer interaction, they capture through their fists. Their inadequacies, real or perceived, personal or work related, become catalysts for their outbursts. The recipients of these lashing outs are family members and coworkers, who are often victims of circumstance and happened to be in the vicinity of the male. Thus, In Shepard’s work, men are violent, striking out at one another, at the women they love and at inanimate objects. Like so many demented Billy Budd’s they areunable to articulate their feelings, unable even to understand their motives. They seldom have jobs and if they do it is occasional or marginal. They are failed farmers, minor rodeo performers. They ride on the intensity of their emotions…they live by instinct.” (Bigsby 169) The destructive nature of masculine identity is a result of men not knowing themselves, and therefore modeling the behavior of generations of violent men who value the domination, masculinity, and physicality of the “Old West.” Middle and later Shepard works stress the importance of a balanced male and recognize the dangers of relying solely on violence and chauvinism as a definition of self. This balance is found between adhering on some level to traditional masculinity while at the same time avoiding the dismissal and abuse of women. In his later works, Shepard
always had: Midwestern women from the forties suffered an incredible psychological assault, mainly by the men who were disappointed in a way that they didn’t understand… [The] women took it on the nose, and it wasn’t like they said, “Hey Jack, youknow, down the road, I’m leaving.” They sat there and took it…there was a sort of heroism in those women. They were rough and selfless in a way. What they sacrificed at the hands of those maniacs. (353) The emphasis that is placed on “rough” and “selfless” is a reflection of what Shepard believes to be important in identity. Also echoed in Shepard’s statement is the secondary nature of women’s identity in favor of the emphasis on men. He speaks of the alienation the men felt as a cause of the women’s “heroism.” The women stood by their husbands and men, supported them and took their abuse, that’s what made them “strong” and selfless. Women characters are the guiding force of male identity, often because they display the strength and resiliency necessary in their dealings with Shepard’s characters. Shepard’s early plays feature women who were archetypal sex objects, which facilitate the definition of “maleness” (Graham 304). Women are objects, which are needed to give male characters status. Female characters provided male characters with an example of what not to emulate. Women looked inward for their identity cues, while males depended on external ones, which created the dialectic nature of identity Shepard’s plays: In the earlier plays, the female character is a type, a symbol and/or fragment; she is a sexual object, the maternal aspect of the dysfunctional family or an emblem of the intuitive, right-brain element of the modality of dualism…she facilitates definition of the male through the provision of contrast—what are the outward limits of duality and where does duality merge. (Graham 304) The female characters serve as mothers, lovers, and sisters, which are present to be an opposite
figure for the males to compare themselves to. The contrast between masculinity and femininity help the males label themselves and act accordingly. Explained through this contrast is also the initial differences between male and female self- identity, men tend to look outward and shift inward, whereas women first search inward and than outward for cues. It also allows, in later works, Shepard’s exploration of interconnectedness of maleness and femaleness. Dependency on the opposite sex for identity is common in Shepard’s works. Female-male relationships in Shepard’s works provide an outlet for identity. Subordination of the female is seen as “natural” because the male is traditionally the dominant figure. The male is defined through his treatment of and relationship with the female characters (Graham 304). The implication here is that Shepard’s characters are seeking self-awareness through relationships. Women have been conditioned to believe that men define them and, relationships for men are both an identity builder and cause for identity crisis. In later plays, however, Shepard emphasizes this dependency less, instead highlighting the commonality of identity, relaxing of gender roles. Shepard attempts to show the interrelation of gender roles to reach beyond stereotypical roles and find a broader connection. For males to become complete, they must come to terms with femininity and reject violent masculinity, and females must adopt male characteristics. This can be seen as Shepard’s “desire to reach back beyond the social to the archetypal” (Bigsby 166). Identity thus depends less on exploiting others and relies more on realization that male and female identity are closely related. The dependence on male-female relationships for identity can be found in the following Shepard works. Eddie, the main male character of Shepard’s Fool for Love spends much of the play searching for his identity in the context of his relationship with the Old Man, his father. Eddie is
your book,” suggesting Eddie thinks of “men,” as tough, physical and domineering (Shepard 30). A physical description of Eddie, “When he walks, he limps slightly … There is a particularly broken-down quality about his body in general, as though he’s aged long before his time,” suggests that his insistence on a masculine identity has taken its toll on his body (Shepard 11). His profession is rodeo performance and he is linked to the land. Eddie promises May a better life; he has “a piece of ground up in Wyoming” with a “garden” and “chickens” (Shepard 25). When May responds, “It makes me puke to even think about it,” Eddie states, “You’ll get used to it,” insinuating that she could adjust and accommodate his desire (Shepard 17). Eddie is adamant that May can never escape the relationship and threatens any man that she might become involved in. He has no regard for her feelings or actions; he is concerned with preserving their relationship. Inherent in this assertion, is Eddie’s insecurity and resortion to violence to fulfill his needs. He tells May: I’m not leaving. I don’t care what you think anymore. I don’t care how you feel. None a’ that matters. I’m not leavin’. I’m stayin’ right here. I don’t care if a hundred “dates” walk through that door—I’ll take every one of ‘em on. I don’t care if you hate my guts…You’ll never get rid of me. You’ll never escape me either. I’ll track you down no matter whereyou go. I know exactly how your mind works. I’ve been right every time. (Shepard 36)
He makes several attempts to physically take her from her hotel room, “I’m taking you back, May” (Shepard 24), and “I’m not lettin’ go of you this time, May,” (Shepard 17) suggesting that she has no say. Eddie attempts to woo May with his lassoing skills, “He spins the rope above his head in a flat-horn loop, the ropes on the bedposts…takes the loop off the bedpost, rebuilds it, swings and ropes another bedpost…roping every post and never missing” (Shepard 28). This act of masculine talent is presented by Shepard as a means for Eddie to prove himself superior to other men that May is dating. Eddie is contrasted with Martin, a “normal” man, who is dating May. Martin
wanted for May to choose the movie and Eddie thought that was a sign of weakness to allow the woman to make a choice was to lose control. Eddie also contrasts himself to Martin: If you called him a ‘guy,’ I'd be worried about it but since you call him a man'you give yourself away. You're in a dumb situation with this guy by calling him a ‘man.’ You put yourself below him. (Shepard 30) Here, Eddie is trying to assert his power over May's choice of partners ironically, by attempting to convince her that she is giving Martin “too much power” through her labeling him as a “man,” thus implying that she is not searching for an equal, but a caretaker or father figure (Hall 160). He also states, “This guy’s gotta’ be a twerp. He’s gotta’ be a punk chump in a two dollar suit” (Shepard 23), in an effort to further place himself in a superior position. Eddie also accuses Martin of “having a lota’ problems” because he is an orphan (Shepard 39). He goes onto say, “orphans are supposed to steal a lot aren’t ya? Shoplifting and stuff. You’re also supposed to be the main group responsible for bumping off our Presidents” (Shepard 39). Eddie is trying to assert himself as a better choice over Martin, labeling Martin as “rootless,” which is symptomatic of being weaker and immoral. In a twisted way, through the exchanges Eddie has with Martin, an orphan, he plays a sort of fatherly role. With lessons such as, “the guy's always supposed to pick the movie” (Shepard
- and the dialogue about men's control over women, Eddie becomes a fatherly mentor: Martin: What would we do here?Eddie: Well, you could uh—tell each other stories. Martin: Stories? Eddie: Yeah. Martin: I don't know any stories. Eddie: Make 'Martin: That'd be lying wouldn'em up. t it?
May, the main female character of Fool for Love, plays both male and female gender roles. Because May is a woman, she will fall into her mother’s role of being both obsessed with and waiting for the male to claim her. Like her mother, who searched endlessly for the Old Man, May waits for Eddie to find her. May states, “I don’t need you,” (Shepard 14), “Nobody asked you to come,” (Shepard 15), but she also rushes to embrace his legs (Shepard 13), and begs him to stay a number of times. She also says, “I get sick everytime you come around. Then I get sick when you leave. You’re like a disease to me” (Shepard 24). This statement mirrors the plight of May’s mother. Despite her claims that she does not need Eddie, May’s behavior is characteristic of her mother’s during her relationship with the Old Man. The audience can see that like Eddie, May can’t seem to label or deny the connection that they have. Like her mother, she has to imagine her lover with another woman. Because she does not have the “fantasist” viewpoint, or the ability to live in denial, the image she sees is more painful than those conjured up by the Old Man or Eddie, instead she has to label and accept her feelings. May says: I don’t understand my feelings. I really don’t understand how I could hate you so much after so much time. How, no matter how much I’d like not to hate you, I hate you even more. I can’t even see you now. All I see is a picture of you. Youand her. I don’t even know if the picture’s real anymore…The two of you. It cuts me up. It cuts me so deep I’ll never get over it. And I can’t get rid of this picture either….Kinda’ like a little torture. And I blame you more for this little torture than I do for what you did. (Shepard 21) Because May is a female, with “internalized identity,” the psychological and emotional effects of Eddie’s betrayal cut deeper than the physical act (of abandonment). However, her realization of its existence will cause her to eventually come to terms with it.
Although May possesses elements of feminine ideal and therefore, a separate viewpoint, she must also contain male characteristics, which would allow her to be competitive with Eddie for survival. May possesses the violent element common in Shepard’s male characters. She is the first female character given a voice that is semi-independent from the husband/boyfriend character. What separates May from earlier female characters is her movement beyond “the inner quest,” to “the opposing and active journey outward,” meaning that she is the first of Shepard’s women to go further than an internal struggle for identity. May takes the initiative to physically remove herself from a situation (Graham 304). She is “tough” like Eddie “because of her previous subjugation,” her realization of wanting a life different than Eddie was providing allowed her to survive independently (Graham 304). May is firm in her stand against Eddie’s image of their idyllic life in the West. “You keep comin’ up here with this lame country dream life with chickens and vegetables and I can’t stand any of it” (Shepard 17). She also states “[you] suckered me into some dumb little fantasy and then dropped me like a hot rock. How many times has that happened” (Shepard 18). She has been manipulated Eddie enough to realize that his “country dream” is contrary to her independence. “Women—like May refuse to stay in place, refuse, finally to be faithful to the self-centered fantasies of their men” (McDonough 59). These statements illustrate May’s search for a better life outside of her relationship with Eddie. Another component of May’s identity is the adoption of violent behavior. There are many instances of May’s “masculinity:” she knees Eddie in the groin, (Shepard 19),
Because early Shepard works are defined more in terms of identity and its relation to family history, Fool for Love offers little room for personal growth or advancement. May leaves but only because Eddie has abandoned her and she must move to a new location to be pursued and Eddie abandons to chase a different prospect, the Countess. Paris, Texas features Travis, a male character who must forge his identity through the process of regaining memory and coming to terms with past transgressions. Travis is full of guilt and self-hatred. Another Shepard character, Tilden, from Buried Child (1979), anticipates Travis. Tilden states, “I was alone. I thought I was dead. I thought I was dying but I just lost my voice…you gotta talk or you’ll die,” Likewise, Travis refuses to speak because he doesn’t want to face his past (Shepard 57). He flees to the Texan Desert, where he can “opt out of a complex world of desire and competing needs; [it] leads him to abandon language and seek a form of self-annihilation in a world stripped of social demands” (Bigsby 165). He can avoid the societal pressures of controlling a wife, heading a family, and holding a job by retreating physically into the desert and emotionally into himself. A physician, the first person Travis interacts with in the film, states, “something must've cut your tongue off. Either that or you've got something to hide” (Shepard Paris). Travis, who is restored to his family, must go through a process to regain his memory, voice, and identity. Indeed Bigsby agrees that, “[Shepard] turned the slow acquisition of language, by a character who had deliberately desocialized himself into an ironic account of the repossession of social responsibility and the enactment of a profound and damaging anxiety” (189). Travis must regain his position as a father, a member of society, and gain ownership of his violent past. Travis’ use of language becomes more complex as he meets the qualifications for each of Shepard’s identity stages. It is through his social interactions with family that he is able to find himself in the context of the modern environment that causes him discomfort.
Travis’ reintroduction to civilization is necessary for his gain of self-awareness. Walt, Travis’ brother attempts to reintroduce him to society. He states of Travis, “What the hell happened to you anyway. You look like 40 miles of rough road” and “We thought you were dead boy,” (Shepard Paris). An aspect of Travis’ journey toward “normalcy,” is “cleaning up,” which is facilitated by Walt, who gives him new shoes and clothes. The road trip, which Travis and Walt must take because Travis refuses to fly, provides time for the characters to interact and more specifically, for Walt to question Travis. “You’re not gonna’ clam up the whole way are you,” Travis’ silence starts to wear on Walt, who wants to discuss four years worth of issues (Shepard Paris). Travis, as many other Shepard characters, invests his identity in the actions of his parents, particularly in the actions of his father. For example, he can recall why he purchased a plot of land in Paris, Texas. Paris, Texas represents Travis’ roots; he feels that he began life there. Because he feels that connection to the land, Travis will be drawn to it. “That’s where she and Daddy first made love…I figured that’s where I began. I mean, me Travis Clay Henderson. They named me that. I began there” (Shepard Paris). Travis inherits his father’s namesake and legacy. Travis’ father may have set the pattern for how Travis will interact with women. Throughout his life, Travis’ father placed his mother on an unrealistic pedestal. Travis admits that his father, “never saw her,” and eventually “he just saw what he wanted” (Shepard Paris). He asserts of his mother, “She never wanted to be a fancy woman, never pretended to be one. She was good, very good. But my Daddy he had this idea, this idea in his head that was kind of a sickness. An idea about her and he looked at her but he didn’t see her. He saw this idea” (Shepard Paris). Though Travis does not reveal the relationship between his actions and those of his father until later in the film, his relationships with women are characteristic of those his father had. The similarities are striking.
Travis’ trip to Houston to find Jane typical of a Shepard male yet shows a new maturity not present in other works. Although, Walter has already tried unsuccessfully to locate Jane, Travis is adamant about his ability to locate her. He must go on a quest to find the woman who fled. Travis: I’m gonna’ find Jane. Walt: How are you gonna’ find her…She’s completely disappeared. I tried everything. I couldn’t find her. Travis: I haven’t tried yet. I can find her.(Shepard Paris)
Travis feels that because he “knows” her, he will be able to locate her. This belief is a reflection of two things, his masculinity and his perceived superiority over Walt because he is intimately acquainted with Jane. His journey differs from those of past male characters due to the intentions and the result. Rather than find her and force her to rekindle their past relationship, as Eddie in Fool for Love attempts, Travis’ intentions are selfless, reuniting a family that was broken by his actions. He comes to terms with his obsession and recognizes that he cannot carry on a healthy relationship and therefore must not stay with her. He sacrifices his desire for Jane, in order for her to take on a motherly role. Travis tells Hunter that he must leave so he and Jane can be a family and shoulders the responsibility for the past. In person, it can’t come true; you belong together with your mother. It was me that tore you apart and I owe it to you to bring you back together. But I can’t stay with you. I could never heal up what happened. That’s just the way it is. I can’teven hardly remember what happened. It’s like a gap. But it left me alone in a way that I haven’t gotten over. And right now, I’m afraid…afraid of walking away again…afraid of what I might find…but even more afraid of facing this fear…I love you more than my life. (Shepard Paris) It is through this realization and sacrifice that Travis reaches a larger self-awareness. He
doesn’t want to “walk away” and is “afraid” of facing his past, but he does it. Viewers get the sense that the audiotape signifies Travis’ inability to break his bond with Hunter in person. The action of father abandoning son here is one of necessity. Travis examines his past and is able to make a decision, which will benefit those in his life. Because fatherhood is a common Shepard identity marker, this is a role Travis attempts to tackle. Travis, though absent for four years, has a son, Hunter, whom he must learn to interact with. “Travis is fertile but incapable of maintaining the social structure of family” (Clum 178). He has the model father in his brother, Walt, who has been raising Hunter with his wife, Anne, yet seeks out the Mexican maid, an independent female character to help him define a father’s role. Travis asks, “What does a father look like?” and searches for a model in magazines. Ultimately, it is the maid who is able to make Travis look and “act” the part. The maid makes him practice “fatherly” posture, which is to “walk stiffly” with a raised chin. “To be a rich father Senor Travis, you must always look to the sky and never at the ground. Walk stiff Senor Travis” (Shepard “Paris”). The next scene in the film features him dressed in a white suit and fedora, Walt’s clothes, which stand for authority and affluence. These fit the maid’s suggestion that wealth is important to fatherhood and as well as Travis’ desire to share Walt’s role as father to Hunter. Although accepting of Travis, Hunter finds him out of touch with “how things are,” which is probably a result of the suburban environment Hunter occupies with Walt and Anne (King 220). In addition to lost time, Travis must also learn to interact with Hunter in a foreign environment. Travis bonds with the Hunter through daily walks home from
