o'neill's technique of expressionism - DSpace@INFLIBNET Home

215heavy gold chevrons on his shoulders, gold bright red with alight blue stripe down the side. Patent leather laced boots withbrass spurs, and a belt with a long – barrelled, pear handled ina hoister complete his make up. (O’Neill I: TEJ 175)This gorgeous dress is contrasted with the dark colour of Jones on theone hand, and on the other , it suggests an unbecoming frivolousnes s on thepart of Jones. This apparel , not being an expression of Jones ’s real self gottorn in stages to symbolise the gradual weakening of his control over hissubjects as well as his own self. While seeking esc ape from the rebels afterrealiz ing his help lessness , he thought he could save his skin in the mannerhe had decided earlier. But once he was deprived of his power, he washelpless. That is why , the last scene of the play is realistic. Moreover, theirony is complete when Jones is shown dying of the bullet of the same silverwhich he had thought was his sole possession. It was a hoax played by himon the subject that he alone was the possess or of the silver bullet. Thenatives had moulded silver coin s into a bullet and killed him with it. Silversymb olises wealth. Money is a symbol of the destruction of self by its ownpride and greed. Wealth is power in Modern Age and also a source of death– though spiritual. The death of Jones is an example of the defeat of man bythe sam e forces that exalt him, i. e. pride and greed.In The Emperor Jones , O ’Neill presents thick Jungle out of whichJones has no escape except through death. In Freudian psychology, tree is asexual as well as a religious symbol. Jones throws himself at the foot of analtar to pray just near the place from where he had entered the jungle. A t thealtar , the rights of exorcism took place under the tree because after exorcismman experiences spiritual regeneration. The tree symbolises this birth andspiritual strength. Therefore , it was her e that the evil in the form of acrocodile appeared before Jones ’ eyes of imagination. The eyes of crocodilefixed on Jones demand his life. Till then, Jones was not aware of the factthat his life would be demanded by evil. Therefore, in an uncertain state ofmind, he kills the crocodile , and he is once more his real self. However, inkilling of the crocodile, he has killed himself. This is the climax of the play.The death of Jones by the silver bullet made by the rebels is shown on the