13 of 16 people found the following review helpful:
3.0 out of 5 stars
comment to a previous reviewer, April 6, 2000
By A Customer
A previous reviewer (annalait@apia.vlk.fi) commented that Miss Julie is a true story about Strindberg, his 16 yr. old lover and his wife Harriet. This is not entirely correct. It is based on one of his marriages - to his first wife Siri von Essen. He married Siri in 1877. Miss Julie was written in 1888 and was first put on stage in 1889 with Siri acting out the role of Julie. He divorced Siri in 1891 and did not meet Harriet (who was actually his third wife) until 1900. They married in 1901. Strindberg identifies with Jean in the play. Strindberg felt inferior to Siri (a Baroness). Jean was also inferior to Julie but he triumphed over her in the end.
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8 of 10 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
Miss Julie, January 10, 2000
Definitely one of the better plays I have read in my survey of late 19th century European drama. While there are slight flaws in it, such as frequent mood swings by the characters, the overall writing is fabulous. Jean is a perfectly portrayed Machiavelli, doing what is necessary for him to succeed at whatever costs. Julie, on the other hand, wavers between the strong and self-confident seductress of the beginning, to the weak and manipulated wronged woman at the end. Definitely a cornerstone in the history of modern drama.
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2 of 2 people found the following review helpful:
4.0 out of 5 stars
Mistress and servant, October 3, 2002
"Miss Julie," by August Strindberg, is a play with three speaking parts: Miss Julie, a nobleman's daughter; Jean, a young valet; and Christine, a cook in the household. The Dover Thrift Edition version is translated by Edwin Bjorkman. A brief introductory note states that the play first appeared as a printed text in 1888, a year before its first staging.
The play's title character is bold and flirtatious; her behavior, unsurprisingly, leads to controversy. "Miss Julie" is a fascinating glimpse at a society that is rigidly ordered around class stratification, gender roles, and sexual conduct; the play looks at the consequences when people resist this rigid order. The play has some really startling, thought-provoking dialogue.
Recommended companion texts: "Hands Around," by Arthur Schnitzler; "Daisy Miler," by Henry James; and "Cuckoos," by Giuseppe Manfridi. Each of these three literary works shares at least one significant theme or motif in common with "Miss Julie."
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