In Strindberg’s The Father, we witness a string of actions that brings a sane and happy man to the point of utter lunacy in the span of twenty-four hours. While I think the play as a whole is less convincing in terms of its naturalism (perhaps very much due to the way it immediately dates itself), it does very fluidly connect the actions bringing about this psychological breakdown.To begin, the Captain lives in a house surrounded by women, of whom as a race he is rather untrusting. The Captain’s views on parental responsibility and paternity are made clear in the first three scenes of Act One. This is intelligent playwrighting in my opinion, even though I am unconvinced by the play as a whole, for the way the discussion is brought about is rather subtle. The action that brought this about was Happy’s sleeping around with the kitchen help. Also made clear early on is Laura’s desire for control of the fate of her daughter concerning her future (in terms of religion, career, and home). The first major action that Laura makes is her deceit of the doctor, when she both tells him that her husband is not at home and lies about his scientific and mental credibility. Because she has previously held up his mail at the post office, she has the grounds to say what she does, and while she is misleading the doctor, she has left herself with an excuse as well (the question of her husband’s sanity). The doctor’s questioning of the captain is spurred by Laura’s deceit, and he finds the Captain obstinate, stubborn, and a bit compulsive. He only focuses on these compulsions as mental disturbances because Laura’s hints led him to notice them more closely. The next major action in the breakdown of the Captain is Laura’s first hint of the possibility that he may not be Bertha’s father. This then leads him to leave the house (somewhat out of the blue to all but Laura) to research parenta...
