Two Plays from the Orphans' Home Cycle: Cousins / The Death of Papa

The Orphans' Home Cycle #8-9

by Horton Foote

“A family is a remarkable thing, isn’t it? You belong. And then you don’t. It passes you by. Unless you start a family of your own.” The last two plays of Horton Foote’s Orphans’ Home Cycle both expand and contract the circle of a family that unifies all nine of the plays. In Cousins , an operation on Horace Robedaux’s mother reunites, in person and in memory, the many Robedaux relatives (one of whom speaks the lines quoted above), and in the almost comic proliferation of cousins that results, the orphaned Horace is joined across time and space to a family that seems never to end. The Death of Papa returns the cycle to its origins, with the death of Horace’s father-in-law. Far from ending the story, however, Papa’s death regenerates the complexity of families and their survival, as his son bravely but foolishly tries to assume control of the land that supports his family’s life.

Genres: Plays, Fiction, Theatre

222 pages, Paperback

First published May 1, 1989

About the author

Albert Horton Foote, Jr. was an American playwright and screenwriter, perhaps best known for his Academy Award-winning screenplays for the 1962 film To Kill a Mockingbird and the 1983 film Tender Mercies, and his notable live television dramas during the Golden Age of Television. He received the Pulitzer Prize for Drama in 1995 for his play The Young Man From Atlanta.

Reviews

[Bayneeta · Rating 5 out of 5]

Final two plays of Foote's Orphan's Home Cycle.

"Cousins" set in 1925. Rainy weather has played havoc with the cotton crops and all the town businesses including Horace's clothing store are suffering. Lily Dale makes another appearance, and she is as spoiled, insufferable, and self-centered as ever.

"The Death of Papa" set in 1928. Elizabeth's father, Mr. Vaughn, died suddenly and his widow turns over responsibilities, property, and money to Elizabeth's drunken brother. Horace, Jr. is ten and makes his first appearance as a character in the Cycle.

[Michael · Rating 5 out of 5]

These last two plays are what brought me into the world of Horace Robedeaux in the first place, and although they stand alone, in sequence they make up a vital piece in the mystery of life and the endless struggles of existence. Family certainly makes up aspects on one's personality but, in the end, after all is said and done we live and die alone and can only be true to ourselves, however blindly we act on those very aspects of family we inherited that we wish we were without.