Wild Duck Journal #1: "Visual action can be as important on the stage as speech."

In plays such as Wild Duck and Oedipus, visual action is just as, if not more important than speech. Without the visual action of the characters, there is much less of an effect of the lines given. The reader can analyze the text of the play to a certain extent, but without witnessing the mannerisms of the characters, the emotions that the writer initially wanted portrayed are not as strong. In Wild Duck, when Werle is accused by Gregers of being interested in a former housemaid, he says, "And you dare--! You have the insolence--! How could he, that ungrateful dog, that--photographer; how could he have the gall to make such insinuations?" (132). The reader can get the sense that Werle is angry through his harsh use of words, but by seeing the actions that would go along with how he is feeling at this point would make his emotions more convincing. By possibly hearing his raised voice or seeing the defensive look on his face would show that it is not just what he says, it is also what he does while he is saying it that would allow the audience to completely understand the meaning of his words. Similarly, in Oedipus, he says, "You, you'll see no more the pain I suffered, all the pain I caused! Too long you looked on the ones you never should have seen, blind to the ones you longed to see, to know! Blind from this hour on! Blind in the darkness-blind" and it is clear how much pain Oedipus is in because of how much pain is mentioned. However, by actually hearing the desperation in his voice and seeing his pain displayed on his face would make the audience believe the words that come out of his mouth. Overall, speech is important because it is what allows the plot and the story to get across to the audience. However, the visual actions are what make those words and emotions believable.