Wendy Wasserstein was a playwright and a very influential person in general. She was a pioneer of feminism within theater as well as non-aggressive feminism outside of it. His female characters are unlike any others seen in the theater before and have a life that Wasserstein breathes into them through their dialogues, their descriptions, their actions and their lives. It features characters dealing with serious issues and makes them react in a way that is undeniably human and draws the audience in. This realistic female archetype is particularly visible in Wasserstein's An American Daughter. Lyssa, a “…forty-two year old, dressed in a cotton shirt and jeans…” (Wasserstein 7) is a sharp, career-oriented woman. She is working to become a general surgeon and she faces many obstacles to get there. Not only is she smart and capable, but she also deals with regret, bitterness, and no filter; flaws that take his life off the pages of Wasserstein’s script. Say no to plagiarism. Get a tailor-made essay on “Why Violent Video Games Should Not Be Banned”? Get an original essay Even in the description of the character lies a significant departure from stereotypes. Lyssa is a career-driven woman, but she's not shown in a pantsuit and tie, nor does she wear heels and pearls every day. It's a woman. She wears jeans and a t-shirt and faces family problems like real women do. By starting, at the most basic level, with a fight against diminutive and unrealistic standards, the precedent for honesty is set before anything else. An American Daughter by Wendy Wasserstein is a great example of Wasserstein's presentation of women: intelligent, strong, capable, and well-rounded. Lyssa, along with her friend Judith and her acquaintance Quincy, is presented not as the quiet and wise housewife of the theater, but as an independent woman striving for professional success. She works very hard and obviously has a sharp and quick wit. What sets Lyssa apart from other female characters like her is not the blatant portrayal of her, but rather the subtext and underlying character traits. In many other stories, there is a strong, witty female character who "goes against the grain", but Wasserstein's protagonist (unlike so many others of the same strain) does not have the need sweetest and most attractive of a man. This is the most significant difference. between Lyssa and other female protagonists. Even Jane Austen's Lizzy in Pride and Prejudice has wit and strength, but she boils down to a woman who craves love. Lyssa doesn't. She has love, a husband and children, but that is not her end goal. She loves her family and her work. She works hard to make her way in the world, without relying on her father the senator, and without using femininity, gentleness or sexual allure. She is not reduced to the sum of her feminine charm and a tube of lipstick, and that is Wasserstein's genius. Lyssa is not only a role model for career-seeking girls, but she is also a role model for authors and playwrights. She is more than an archetype of the "can-do woman", she seems like a living, breathing person, someone who could leave her Georgetown home and enter the lives of all readers. This is Wasserstein's greatest influence on the world of theater. She pioneered real, plausible female characters in theater and opened the doors to equality and feminism inside and outside of theater. Evenwhen Lyssa catches her husband Walter kissing another woman, she doesn't blend into the scene we know all too well: the woman. walks out of the room with a strong face, finds a place to be alone, sobs, regains his resolve, and kicks the man out saying something like "I have too much potential to waste time on you." Instead, Lyssa walks away. She harbors deep resentment toward her husband, which becomes evident in subsequent interactions, but she does not dust herself off and move on in life. This is why Wasserstein's characters are so important: they are beautiful, human, imperfect. Lyssa is dealing with her husband's infidelity in a way that isn't healthy — and that's important. It's one of the first instances of a character that women in the audience can look at and say, "Oh, that's me." I do that too. » Much of the validity of Wasserstein's characters comes from their origin in reality. Once again, the truth of his characters flows from the truth of his life. She said that what she thought should be heard, whether people would like it or hate it (and most of the time, they hated - or at least some did.) She never presented her ideas as being comprehensive or perfect, instead she celebrated the flaws in everything she commented on: life, women, parents, children, feminism and society; she commented on them honestly, rather than trying to touch on the issues. Wasserstein dedicated most of her adult life to promoting greater media presence for women, whether through her plays or through her own presentation of herself, her influence was widely felt. Wasserstein poured (at least) a little of herself into each of her works. characters, and that's what changed the history of American theater. Wasserstein's own life; his difficult childhood; the secret in his house; and the intense rivalry between her and her brother appealed to its audience with the fact that - finally - they were watching real women living real lives. One of the major influences on Wasserstein's writing and, indeed, his life, was his mother Lola. Schleifer. Lola was, to say the least, an eccentric woman. She ran her household and took care of her children, while centering her life around her passion: dance. She taught Wendy many important lessons about life, but was also the source of serious conflict within the Wasserstein household. Lola demanded perfection from her children and would accept nothing less. This led her to send her mentally disabled son Abner to a psychiatric care facility and cease all contact. The family never visited him and quickly stopped acknowledging his existence. He didn't fit into Lola's perfect suburban family, so he wasn't included. This was the type of behavior that put immense pressure on Wendy as she grew up. Wendy was constantly compared to her brother Bruce, a wealthy investment banker. Wendy's accomplishments, as impressive as they were, matched her brother's victories and always seemed to fall short. This search for validity was present throughout Wasserstein's life and was therefore reflected in his writings. It is present specifically in Lyssa. Lyssa seeks her own career and advancement opportunities and is constantly compared to her father, which is endlessly frustrating for her. This is an obvious connection to Wasserstein's own life, and one of the many reasons why Lyssa seems to jump immediately off the page. Wasserstein also manages to capture a very real vulnerability in his characters. This probably comes from his mother's influence. ItsMother was especially hard on Wendy as she grew up and figured out what she wanted to do as an adult. Her mother even said at one point, “'Wendy, you make me want to blechhh'” (Salmon 62). Wendy wanted to earn her mother's favor and approval, but had no direction for her life, which was a disappointment to Lola. This type of apathy shines through in the powerful vulnerability of his characters and provides insight into the foundations of their conflicts. In addition to her written works, Wendy Wasserstein was a powerful public figure and an invaluable voice for women in society. One of the most significant facets of her public persona was the fact that she refused to be the aggressive, angry feminist stereotype. Instead, she lived her life in a way that did not allow misogyny towards herself or her career. In doing so, she led a quiet, well-adjusted opposition to the male-dominated Broadway of the day. The fact that she managed to accomplish so much had everything to do with her public persona. Wasserstein is considered one of the first intimate public figures, in an era before Facebook statuses provided a window into people's lives. Wasserstein published a series of newspaper articles presenting the public with a polished version of his life. She wrote casually, as if talking to friends, but always kept the most personal or messy parts of her life as personal. This is not to say that Wasserstein was shy about tackling more personal subjects in his works. In fact, it was quite the opposite. She wrote frank discussions about love, intimacy, sex, and infidelity in her plays. But once again, it had a distinguishing factor: none of these elements were used for free. His female characters didn't sit around gossiping about boys, because what else do women do?. Women had sex with their husbands, not because it was a wife's duty, but because they wanted to. Once again, Wasserstein presented real life, and part of that was real discussions and real relationships. An interesting dynamic is created in An American Daughter when Lyssa brings up the idea that she wouldn't have lost her nomination if she hadn't been a woman. If a man had done the exact same things (evading jury duty, making an offhand joke about housewives), it would have been considered a mistake, but because she was a woman, there was a change in power dynamics, and so the public jumped at the chance to have a reason to despise her. This moment is almost certainly a commentary on our society. Wasserstein uses the reaction to Lyssa as a method to comment on the ever-present distinction between men's and women's reactions to failure. This is amplified by Lyssa running for a position of power that has a long tradition of being a man and taking a man's place. Wasserstein draws attention to the fact that men have just as many flaws as women, and yet it is only when women occupy roles of power that those flaws are brought into the spotlight. This is another area of ​​feminism where Wasserstein has led the charge for many years: true equality. She didn't fight for women to be seen as better than men, she didn't want to put men down, she just persisted quietly and reasonably towards her goal of equality. She was a spokesperson for women across America and gave voice to women who wanted to see themselves represented accurately without forcing a major debate. All these innovations inthe world of feminism in the theater did not happen without debate. Because Wasserstein wasn't afraid to push the boundaries when it came to serious topics, his work tended to irritate almost as many people as it encouraged it. Wasserstein herself commented on the fact that her pieces crossed a societal barrier and, in doing so, caused conflict. She mentioned the idea that she was the only woman writing women's plays about women, and therefore they were meant to be inclusive – providing representation to all women around the world. Of course, in reality this is impossible to achieve. The plays offer a lot more representation to real women, but they can't include characters that everyone identifies with, and so some people will feel like there is still inaccurate and unrealistic representation. This disagreement with Wasserstein's works is particularly present in his great success The Heidi. Chronicles. This is a work that manages to describe (and sometimes openly express) feminist views, but it does so in such a way that it seems to undermine the very point she is trying to make. The characters in this play may present feminism, but they do not do so uncritically. Wasserstein emphasized that feminism is by no means perfect, but that, just like the women it seeks to promote, it is worthwhile despite its shortcomings. (Barnett 14-15). It is important to note that Wasserstein's legacy lies not only in her feminism, but in her realism as a whole. Wasserstein had a way of writing characters and situations that made his audience believe that the character could be living right next to them. His characters were having real conversations with each other, and rather than trying to force the subtext, Wasserstein seemed to simply allow the subtext to happen as it would. The characters faced their adversities and reacted in the same way people would, rather than grotesque caricatures. This is one of the qualities that created his realistic characters. One of the difficulties Wasserstein faced due to her subtextual messages was being taken seriously. Because much of his agenda was hidden under layers of other meanings, many people viewed his work as simple comedy, a glimpse into silly interactions. This perception deeply frustrated her. Wasserstein fought to have her work recognized for what it was: a scathing revision of societal norms. She reportedly said in response to the fact that her work was considered light: "'...No, you don't understand, it's a political act'" (Wasserstein quoted in Dolan 444). Much of this aversion to being underestimated was again attributed to her dedication to honesty. Her characters were created in a way that commented on issues that she felt needed discussion, and so by allowing these conversations to take place uncommunicated, she was being dishonest to them. By demanding that her work be understood in all its subtexts and hidden meanings, she was once again asserting her position of truth and honesty, and her position as a spokesperson for these ideas. On the part of many people, this demand that his works be fully understood might seem haughty and even perhaps offensive, but Wasserstein's calm demeanor and unpretentious lifestyle kept this feeling at bay. She lived the ideas she wrote about in a very authentic way. Because she lived according to her ideals, she earned the respect she demanded. His honesty lived in his characters, their dialogues,.