Photo Courtesy of Billy Rose Theatre Collection, New York Public Library

The Importance of Being Honest: The Achievement of Tennessee Williams

A Discussion with Mark Schenker

Tuesday, November 29 at 7 p.m.

In a lecture on the enduring significance of the work of Tennessee Williams (whose centenary is being observed this year), Mark Schenker will focus on truth-telling in three of his most important plays, produced within the period from 1944-1955: The Glass Menagerie, A Streetcar Named Desire, and A Cat on a Hot Tin Roof. From Tom Wingfield's assertion that the dramatist gives us "truth in the pleasant disguise of illusion," through Blanche's protest, "I don't tell the truth, I tell what ought to be the truth," to Brick's declaration that "mendacity is a system that we live in," the question of the price of honesty is always central in Williams' plays.

Mark J. Schenker has been at Yale College since 1990.  He is currently an Associate Dean of the College and Dean of Academic Affairs.  Born and raised in New York City, he received his Ph.D. in English Literature from Columbia University and has taught at Columbia, New York University, and Trinity College (Hartford).  He has led book discussion series in public libraries in Connecticut for over 20 years through programs sponsored by the Connecticut Humanities Council and lectures frequently on literary topics for public audiences.  He was the recipient of the 2001 Wilbur Cross Award for Outstanding Humanities Scholar, presented by the Connecticut Humanities Council.

Additional parking for evening and weekend Library programs on Thorndal Circle (behind Nielsen’s).