"The Rise Of the Middle Class Hero: Jimmy Porter."

THE RISE OF THE MIDDLE CLASS HERO: JIMMY PORTER Twentieth century witnessed the coming of age of a new kind of hero- the middle class hero. The rise of the middle class hero is not an isolated event. Instead it is the culmination of a centuries long process. At each successive stage a minor subversion of the nature of the hero took place culminating in the new hero who can with some qualification be called …

…of a connection with another individual. Osborne allows Porter to make this connection with his first wife Alison who over the course of the play struggles to reach her own sense of individuality. Enroute, Porter exposes the sham of that middle class taboos perpetuate morality. Ultimately the Middle Class Hero like Jimmy Porter is one who succeeds in breaking free of the bonds of Middle Class. Bibliography Aristotle. "Poetics." Osborne, John. "Look Back In Anger."