Cat on a Hot Tin Roof

'Williams's favourite among his plays, [Cat on a Hot Tin Roof] is perhaps his most impassioned and articulate statement on human isolation, the wrenching problems of communication between people and the ways in which death defines life.' NEW YORK TIMES

In Cat on a Hot Tin Roof, a Southern family meet to celebrate 'Big Daddy' Pollitt's 65th birthday. But as the party unfolds, the facade of a happy family gathering is fractured by sexual frustration, repressed love and greed in the light of their father's impending death.

This edition includes a commentary by Benjamin Hudson, which explores the major themes of the play, including illness and mortality; white supremacy through the plantation setting; mendacity and 'fake news'; alcoholism and addiction; as well as sexuality, womanhood and mid-century notions of masculinity. It draws attention to the context of the play, including the cultural, social and political landscape of the Mississippi Delta and St. Louis; the first-hand witnessing of Black life in the South; homosexuality and outsider sympathy; and American conservatism and the idealised 1950s family. It also delves into recent productions and adaptations of the play, including the Bollywood and Antoine Fuqua film adaptations.

Chronology

Introduction

Original contexts (Williams's biography; setting)

Cat in the 21st-century/COVID-era play

Themes (whiteness and cultural degeneration; illness and mortality; marriage, sexuality and inheritance)

Productions/adaptations

Further readings

Notes

CAT ON A HOT TIN ROOF

Notes to the play