The Summer of the Seventeenth Doll

Summer of the Seventeenth Doll is categorised as modern realism. Write a paragraph explaining the characteristics of this style of drama and giving examples of how language is used in Act 1 Scene 1 in a way that is consistent with this style.  

Categorised as modern realism, Summer of the Seventeenth Doll portrays a very accurate idea of what life was like in Australia doing the 1950s. The play presents ideas on gender roles, social status and social expectations regarding marriage and relationships.

The play is set in an ordinary 1950s Australian home, and follows the lives of four average Australian men and women of the time. Through this setting, the audience is presented with a very typical household, thus allowing the play to be categorized as modern realism. The language used throughout the play further adds to the realistic nature of the piece. The characters also use quite colloquial language with plenty of Australian slang – such as ‘s’pose’ and ‘playn’’  - which further emphasizes the normal, day-to-day nature of the play.

The Summer of the Seventeenth Doll

Compare this New Year’s Eve to previous ones. How and why is it different? In what ways are the characters trying to make the best of things? What does this scene tell us about the themes of tradition and change?

The New Year’s Eve of the seventeenth summer appears to be quite different to past years. Firstly, instead of going out for New Year’s Eve to the ….  Roo, Barney, Olive and Pearl are at home playing cards. This is quite unsual, because in past years the foursome usually go out for New Year’s Eve and spend it with other friends, counting in the New Year. However, because Nancy has ‘left the group’ – having gotten married – the foursome are no longer able to go to the …. For New Year’s Eve. This change in company has altered the atmosphere of the group as the seventeenth summer is not the same as years of the past. Furthermore, Roo has been working all day and is quite tired, and is therefore not up to going out for the evening. However, the most significant difference to past years is the difference in age. The foursome are older than they were in previous summers, and as a result, they are not the some young couples that go out all evening. Thus, there age also hinders them from continuing the New Year’s Eve tradition of the past sixteen years.

This scene presents the audience with the idea that they do not like the change in tradition. The characters do not want to believe that things have changed and they are no longer the same people they were many years ago. They are almost in denial, blaming the change in tradition to the fact that Nancy is no longer present and thus their invitation for a New Year’s Eve party is no longer available, instead of realizing that they are older and different and not up to a typical New Year’s Eve of the past sixteen summers. 

The Summer of the Seventeenth Doll

Write a paragraph in which you compare the attitudes of Pearl and Olive to relationships as seen during Act 1.

Do you think the audience is positioned to agree with either character? If so, how is this achieved through the aesthetic features of the play?

Make specific reference to the play and include two quotations, one within a sentence and one which is separate.

Throughout Act 1 of the play, Olive and Pearl are presented as having very different attitudes to relationships. Olive is introduced as a very easy-going woman who is not affected by society’s perceptions or expectations. Olive prefers to ‘laugh every time [people] look down their noses at [her]’ (p.9). Rather, Olive is portrayed as valuing the decency of and individual – regardless of their marital status or occupation - instead of basing her judgments of others on whether they conform to social norms or not. This is clearly conveyed when Olive is defending her lifestyle and relationship with Roo to Pearl stating, ‘I’ve never come across anything more decent in my life’ (p.9). Through this argument, the audience is positioned to view Olive as a woman who does not necessarily conform to society’s expectations regarding marriage and relationships. Olive prefers to have a good relationship with Roo when he can, and does not feel the need to get married.

On the corollary, Pearl is presented as being extremely concerned with society’s perception of her as a woman. Pearl values respectability and following an ‘order’ associated with relationships and marriage. This attitude is conveyed as Pearl finds Olive, Barney and Roo’s relationship with one another  ‘not a decent way of living’ because none of them are married (p.9). Pearl describes their life style as ‘not altogether…decent like marriage’ (p.9). Thus, Pearl is ultimately presented as valuing respectability over a good and loving relationship. She finds it more important to conform to society, rather than appreciate a relationship for what it is.

While it is not completely obvious whether the audience is positioned to agree with either character, in Act 1 in particular, Pearl is introduced as very negative and almost unpleasant in her judgment of Olive and her relationships with Roo and Barney. On the other had, Olive is portrayed as easy-going and independent as she appreciates a person for who they are, rather than whether they are respectable in the eyes of society. Thus, in act 1, readers are positioned to agree with Olive’s attitudes because Pearl is presented as a character that should be disliked, and therefore her views should be disregarded.