Look Back in Anger

“Look Back in Anger” is a play about alienation and identity in 1950s England. The play was considered modern for its time, and upended the theater world with its bleak portrayal of Jimmy Porter as an everyman with nothing going for him but his ideals, ideals packaged in rage and anger. Audiences were devastated by the play, but this devastation and an intimate glimpse of real struggle in the face of a changing world, a world where one had no agency, garnered praise from critics and viewers alike. The role of Jimmy Porter has been noted as the archetype for many modern-day characters. These male characters often operate with dubious methods despite having supposed hearts of gold, or at least intentionally bury their feelings. Marlon Brando’s Stanley in “A Streetcar Named Desire” is one example of this troubled character type making inroads into theater and literature.

“Look Back in Anger” is divided into three acts and, in its structure, mirrors earlier works by playwrights like Ibsen. The beginning of the first and third act mirror each other, indicating to the reader or viewer that things might seem to stay the same but ultimately change.