Customer Reviews

Benedict Arnold: A Drama of the American Revolution in Five Acts

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5 out of 5 points

An Entertaining and Educational look at U.S. History

Benedict Arnold: A Drama of the American Revolution in Five Acts is both an enjoyable read as well as a unique look at the struggle for the U.S. to become the Democracy that it is today. Benedict Arnold is portrayed as a fearless hero who is instrumental in the success of the American forces in spite of some of the challenges that they faced. Injured during a campaign, he is seen as a hero who has gained the respect of General George Washington himself.
As he faces a long recovery from his wounds, which injure his spirit more so than his body, through this play you can see that he begins to envy the British and he desires the things that someone of his social status would normally be denied. Sensing this weakness and utilizing her feminine charm, a Tory spy named Peggy Shippen is convinced by a British agent named John André to coerce Arnold into betraying his country.
Arnold feels as if he is backed into a corner as he does not want to return to his employ as a local pharmacist and bookseller. As he tries to decide what he can do to retain a high status, Peggy - under the influence of Andre, suggests that he sells secrets to the British for a high price. He is torn between his loyalties to the country and to General Washington, but as he negotiates a large fee (10,000 pounds) for turning over West Point to the British, his loyalties are quickly forgotten.
Although he was assigned another high military post by Washington, he protests and calls himself lame until Washington aggress that he is to be given command of West Point. He sets up a favorable scenario for a successful British Invasion and gives John André detailed plans of West Point. Andre' is captured with the plans and all fingers point to Arnold as the one who gave him the information. Hence - the plan is foiled as André is executed and Arnold escapes to England where he is generally despised.
I've read Zubrin's "The Holy Land"; this book, although more historical non-fiction as opposed to Science Fiction, highlights his versatility and fact-finding abilities.
Benedict Arnold: A Drama of the American Revolution in Five Acts was a joy to read and it makes an otherwise mundane topic very entertaining and enlightening. Although a short read, because it is actually a play, it was one book that will give my library some diversity and substance that I will enjoy for years to come.



Reviewed by; Tyrone V. Banks of Betsie's Literary Page

Dr. Robert Zubrin is an aerospace engineer and one of the leading experts on and advocates for manned Mars missions. He's written hundreds of technical papers and several books on Mars exploration, testified before Congress and founded the Mars Society. He'd seem to have a pretty full plate. But over the past couple years he's turned his hand to fiction and now bids fair to become a Renaissance man.

Mr. Zubrin first fictional turn was, not surprisingly, a science fiction novel, First Landing, about a trip to Mars. It sported cover blurbs from the likes of Kevin J. Anderson, Kim Stanley Robinson and Gregory Benford and got good reviews. For his next effort he stuck to science fiction, but departed quite radically from the subject of Mars. The Holy Land is a delicious dystopic satire that does to the Israeli-Palestinian conflict what Orwell did to the Russian Revolution. If the topic was unexpected, even less predictable was the deft touch he demonstrated for comedy. You couldn't help but admire the courage and skill with which he exposed the inherent absurdity of such a deadly serious situation.

This time around Dr. Zubrin has been even more adventurous, offering up not just a tale of the American Revolution and the archetypal traitor but he's rendered it as a play to boot. The tragedy of Benedict Arnold has always fascinated--a genuine hero of the revolution for his roles at Fort Ticonderoga, Saratoga, and the assault on Quebec who, physically wounded in combat and psychologically embittered after quarreling with the Continental Congress about rank and money, eventually tried to surrender West Point and George Washington and his staff to the British. The plot was foiled when Arnold's British "controller," Major John Andre, was captured with incriminating plans on his person. Arnold defected to the British and served them ably fighting against the Americans, but Andre was hanged.

Dr. Zubrin does take some liberties with history, mostly for purposes of sketching in the various characters' motivations. He makes Peggy Shippen the key to the whole affair. A friend of Andre's in real life, Dr. Zubrin makes her Andre's paramour and a devoted Loyalist, her marriage to Arnold little more than part of a grand nefarious scheme. In addition, Andre is at least implied to have been General Henry Clinton's lover as well as his chief of intelligence--he was certainly closer to the difficult Clinton than most. Arnold, meanwhile, is played as a man insecure about his modest social background --Shippen refers to him contemptuously as a drugstore "clerk" -- and strongly attracted to the more stylish and aristocratic "Tory Girls" than the homier and homelier "Patriot Girls." Shippen and Andre use this and his disappointed ambition to ensnare him in the plot. Historical purists may be upset and, in truth, while some of these interpretations can at least find some support in the record others are pure speculation. Nonetheless, you do require some motives to drive the drama and Dr. Zubrin makes these serve well.

As always in a historical fiction characters are called upon to explain the setting and the events of the day, which can be pedantic and unnatural but is pretty much unavoidable. George Washington has a walk-on in which he's impossibly noble, except that we know of the instances where he acted just so in real life. There are a fair number of asides to the audience and it's not altogether clear how they'd work out on stage, but they do help reveal the internal thoughts of the dramatis personae. One nice touch is the presence of several period songs (though sadly not my favorite, Chester). Best of all, Dr. Zubrin once again demonstrates a real facility with comedy. In particular, he gives Peggy Shippen such a sharp tongue that several of her comments are laugh out loud funny.

The leaders of the Revolution were themselves shaped to some considerable degree by works like Joseph Addison's tragedy, Cato. How fitting then of Dr. Zubrin to pay them tribute with a play of his own. It's delightful.

Robert Zubrin continues to demonstrate his amazing literary range, from the science based "The Case for Mars, " the fictional extension of scientific exploration in "First Landing," and even political satire in "The Holy Land." Now seeking to add playwright to his list of accomplishments, Zubrin reveals the historic episode of Benedict Arnold's betrayal of his friends and his nation for what it truly was - a decisive moment in American history and a clear exposition of the virtues of America's founding leaders.

"Benedict Arnold: A Drama of the American Revolution in Five Acts," early demonstrates what is often glossed over, which is that Benedict Arnold was an amazing and heroic leader of men during the American Revolution. His intervention at the battle of Saratoga is historically accurate and shows the invaluable contribution of this tragic figure to America's revolutionary success. Yet Benedict Arnold was as weak in character as he was strong in military leadership.

And it is in drawing that distinction between Arnold's weak character to his decisive military leadership that we find the power of Zubrin's playwriting. For it is the contrast between Benedict Arnold and the man he would betray, George Washington, which powerfully delineates the failings of Arnold the man from Washington's, and America's, most magnificent moment.

Zubrin's choice of a play to explore this American moment was excellent. With overtones of Shakespeare's "Othello," Major John Andre, to the British a hero, is shown for the careless manipulator that he was. Andre's exploiting of Peggy Shippen at every turn for his own benefit and advancement led to one of the play's finest moments as Andre meets his end at the order of General Washington, a man whose greatness Andre underestimated to his doom.

As we approach the nation's Birthday on July 4th, the tragic betrayal of Benedict Arnold should, through Zubrin's play, become a mainstay production of our American celebration. America has always been served in her hours of need by men of great character, and never is this more clearly shown then when viewed through the lives of the pretenders, men who, though with great skills and abilities, fail the nation for lack of character and virtue.

May "Benedict Arnold" forever be a reminder that it is through the depths of the souls of our great men, not in their great feats alone, that our nation has flourished.

This historical play, set in the American Revolution, dramatises how
the Rebel General Benedict Arnold was moved to change sides.

Arnold, like Oliver Cromwell in the previous century, is a man with no
military background who turned out a brilliant general and leader of
men.

He first faces a campaign of slander by jealous politicians. The
British spymaster in America, Major John André, then uses the beautiful young
Peggy Shippen to entrap Arnold into a marriage beyond his means.
Arnold's huge debts provide the point of leverage from which André can work
his plan, although it does not turn out entirely to André's own
advantage.

The play is deliberately written in a variety of styles, with
naturalistic dialogue interspersed with lengthy stylised speeches in highly
formal language. This would require careful staging and direction to guide
the audience.

"Benedict Arnold" is reminiscent of Shakespeare's "Othello", in that it
is the villain who is the protagonist. Early scenes establish Arnold's
military abilities, but after that the action is driven by André, in
the same way that the plot of "Othello" is driven by Iago. Once Arnold is
no longer a field general, partly because of a wound, he loses the
platform on which he was accustomed to act and increasingly becomes a
passive victim. He finally recovers his power of initiative and bets
everything on the gamble of changing sides, a ploy in which he must face the
highest of risks to gain his reward.

The character of Arnold provides interesting possibilities for the
actor who plays him and for the director. He could be played as a noble
character who is broken by unbearable pressures, or as a man whose
weaknesses are cleverly and ruthlessly exploited by his enemies. Even though
he spends much of the play reacting to the actions of others rather than
driving the action himself, he is always the centre of attention.

From the practical point of view, the play could be produced by a
relatively small company without major expense, so as well as being worthy
of consideration by professional producers, it would be suitable for
amateur groups as well.

If your intent is to produce a play then buy this book - I was expecting a narative and after 2 pages tossed it in the trash. It was tedious and not even close to what I expected.