Az Eszterházy Károly Tanárképző Főiskola Tudományos Közleményei. 1994. [Vol. 2.] Eger Journal of American Studies. (Acta Academiae Paedagogicae Agriensis : Nova series ; Tom. 22)

STUDIES - Judit Kádár: The Figure of 'Everyclown'in Jack Richardson's Gallows Humour

Philip [retrieving the bowl}: And, Martha, there might be mirages. Can you imagine, scenes floating about purely for your own amusement Do you know, I think I've wanted to see a mirage for the last ten years. Martha: You're getting water on your trousers, Philip. [She opens a cupboard and takes out an apron.] Here, put this on. Philip [getting into the apron]: I used to force a mirage on myself.

... Martha [handing Philip the last dish]: All you want, then, is to see mirages? Philip: I want my pores to open and let out of me all the bubbling perspiration that's been stopped up by the civil service code. Think of it, Martha! Me, in the middle of a jungle, where everything's raw and fresh, where only the hungry and alive do the executing, where... Martha: I think some grounds are still in the coffee-pot Philip [giving the pot another rinse]: And then, Martha, once I've filled my lungs with that wild air

—well, then 111 be ready to

—to... Martha: to what, Philip? Philip [modestly, with some embarrassment]: Oh, grow a beard perhaps. Martha: All this trouble just to avoid shaving? (GH 111

—2) Paradoxical language sometimes turns into a mortal sarcasm on Martha's side expressing deep scorn, for instance: Philip:

[...] I'm giving up knowing where and what 111 be a week, a day, or even an hour ahead. I'm going to be... Martha [again sharp and bitter]: A man-eating jungle plant - I know. Well, you'll have to wait until after my sister's dinner to start blooming. And by that time, there'll be other things popping up to detain you. (GH 114—5) or: Martha: Then don't make jokes about doing me in. You're not on your gallows now; no twenty-five forms have been filled out in triplicate 56