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Icebound
Icebound, play by Owen Davis, produced and published in 1923, was awarded a Pulitzer Prize.
Members of the tight‐lipped, “ice‐bound” Jordan family, in Veazie, Me., await the death of old Mrs. Jordan, whom none of them loves. She has a secret fondness for her youngest son Ben, the “black sheep,” and he is summoned by Jane Crosby, a poor cousin and household servant, who is in love with him. Jane's influence over Mrs. Jordan is disliked by the older son, Henry, his mean wife Emma, and vain step‐daughter Nettie, and by the widowed daughter Sadie and her children, Ella and Orin. They plan to dismiss Jane on acquiring the estate. Mrs. Jordan dies before Ben arrives, risking arrest on a charge of arson that is dropped in time. The lawyer, Judge Bradford, discloses that Jane inherits the bulk of the estate, and she keeps Ben out of jail by paying bail for him, making him stay to help on the farm until his trial in the spring. He distrusts her, resents working for her, and is attracted by Nettie, who, like the others, becomes dependent upon Jane's generosity. But after Ben has proved to be a hard worker and honest, Jane transfers his mother's entire estate to him, in keeping with Mrs. Jordan's desire. The rest of the family, reversing their former attitude, now flatter him and try to become his friends. When Bradford reveals to Ben that Jane loves him, and shows him a letter from his mother, Ben breaks the “ice” of his Jordan character, confesses his love for his mother, and asks Jane to marry him. |
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Cite this article
James D. Hart and and Phillip W. Leininger. "Icebound." The Oxford Companion to American Literature. 1995. Encyclopedia.com. 31 May. 2012 <http://www.encyclopedia.com>. James D. Hart and and Phillip W. Leininger. "Icebound." The Oxford Companion to American Literature. 1995. Encyclopedia.com. (May 31, 2012). http://www.encyclopedia.com/doc/1O123-Icebound.html James D. Hart and and Phillip W. Leininger. "Icebound." The Oxford Companion to American Literature. 1995. Retrieved May 31, 2012 from Encyclopedia.com: http://www.encyclopedia.com/doc/1O123-Icebound.html |
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Icebound
Icebound (1923), a play by Owen Davis. [Sam H. Harris Theatre, 170 perf.; Pulitzer Prize.] At the old homestead near Veazie, Maine, the Jordan clan greedily and impatiently awaits Mother Jordan's death like, as she told Judge Bradford ( Willard Robertson), “carrion crows around a sick cow in a pasture, watchin' till the last twitch of life is out of me before they pounce.” When she dies, her family is furious to learn that she has left her entire estate to a distant cousin, Jane Crosby ( Phyllis Povah), who with the help of a loyal hired hand, Hannah ( Edna May Oliver), faithfully tended Mother Jordan during her last days. The sole exception to the family chagrin is the black sheep son, Ben ( Robert Ames). With time Jane reforms Ben, falls in love with him, and agrees to marry him. Hannah sends them on their way, happy that marriage will further assure Ben's reformation. In Theatre, Arthur Hornblow wrote, “The breath of life sweeps through this pack of New England jackals and exposes them roundly, honestly and effectively.” The Sam H. Harris production marked a conscious move away from claptrap melodrama for Davis.
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Cite this article
Gerald Bordman and Thomas S. Hischak. "Icebound." The Oxford Companion to American Theatre. 2004. Encyclopedia.com. 31 May. 2012 <http://www.encyclopedia.com>. Gerald Bordman and Thomas S. Hischak. "Icebound." The Oxford Companion to American Theatre. 2004. Encyclopedia.com. (May 31, 2012). http://www.encyclopedia.com/doc/1O149-Icebound.html Gerald Bordman and Thomas S. Hischak. "Icebound." The Oxford Companion to American Theatre. 2004. Retrieved May 31, 2012 from Encyclopedia.com: http://www.encyclopedia.com/doc/1O149-Icebound.html |
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icebound
ice·bound / ˈīsˌbound/ • adj. completely surrounded or covered by ice: the lake was icebound. |
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Cite this article
"icebound." The Oxford Pocket Dictionary of Current English. 2009. Encyclopedia.com. 31 May. 2012 <http://www.encyclopedia.com>. "icebound." The Oxford Pocket Dictionary of Current English. 2009. Encyclopedia.com. (May 31, 2012). http://www.encyclopedia.com/doc/1O999-icebound.html "icebound." The Oxford Pocket Dictionary of Current English. 2009. Retrieved May 31, 2012 from Encyclopedia.com: http://www.encyclopedia.com/doc/1O999-icebound.html |
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