Violence Triangle in Edward Albee’s The Zoo Story

Abstract

Edward Albee's The Zoo Story (1958) portrays individuals who suffer from an overwhelming sensation of detachment, loneliness, social exclusion, and lack of intimate relationships. Because of all the pain he goes through, the protagonist eventually succumbs to violent acts and dies. The study focuses on the issue of violence and its impact on personalities. Based on Johan Galtung's Violence Triangle theory, this research attempts to analyze various forms of violence. The most accessible framework for understanding violence is the Violence Triangle, first proposed by Galtung in his article 'Violence, Peace, and Peace Research' (1969). Aside from physical harm, he also distinguished between structural and cultural forms of violence in The Zoo Story. This categorization allows for the investigation of many forms of aggression. According to Galtung, "violence is present when human beings are being influenced so that their actual somatic and mental realizations are below their potential realizations" (Galtung 1969, p. 168). Galtung says scholars should study how violence is used to stop people from living as they wish, not just its physical effects. This research aims to analyze the many forms of violence in the play under consideration and to demonstrate the reasons for violence that lead characters to suffer.