The Sleeping Car is a farce play in three parts by William Dean Howells, first published in the United States in 1883. This play takes place entirely within a 24-hour period on a railway sleeping car, and revolves around a woman's late night confusion regarding the premature appearance of her husband and brother. This work is one of Howells' minor works, but reflects the same tendencies towards literary realism as many of Howells' more famous works, including The Rise of Silas Lapham and A Modern Instance. This play is not well-read amongst modern readers, and is often overlooked in literary discussion due to its relative contemporary obscurity. Currently, this work is not being published by any publishing houses, but is available free through Project Gutenberg or other websites.
Contents
Characters
In order of appearance:
Mrs. Agnes Roberts, a new mother who is on her way to Boston to visit her husband and brother. Traveling with her are her baby son and her dear Aunt Mary.
Aunt Mary, the aunt of Mrs. Roberts, a very proud old woman.
The Porter
Angry Voices, the voices of other passengers, who routinely interject their usually critical opinions into the main dialogue. The exact speakers of these angry voices are never revealed.
The Californian, a shaggy-headed and bearded man who encounters Mrs. Roberts and defends her vehemently when she is heckled by other passengers.
The Man in the Upper Berth, a voice with whom the Californian engages in a verbal debate with the Californian over Mrs. Roberts's incessant nighttime conversation.
Mr. Edward Roberts, the husband of Mrs. Roberts. He boards the train at Worcester in an attempt to surprise his wife before Boston.
The Conductor
Willis Campbell, Mrs. Roberts's brother, a San Francisco resident. He boards the train early at Framingham, as he was visiting friends there and was ahead of schedule. Some discussion occurs between Mr. and Mrs. Roberts regarding his identity, but eventually he is positively identified as Mrs. Roberts's brother.
Plot
This story begins with Mrs. Roberts, her baby son, and her Aunt Mary headed Westbound on the Boston and Albany Railroad. They are on their way to meet Mrs. Roberts' husband and brother in Boston. Mrs. Roberts has not seen her brother in twelve years, and is nervous about how he will react to seeing her. In the time since they last saw each other, she has married and birthed a child, and has heard little from her brother except for infrequent telegraphs. The porter informs Mrs. Roberts and her aunt that the berths are now ready for them to sleep in, but the conversation continues. Mrs. Roberts worries that her husband Edward will not receive Willis well, or vice versa, because Willis is a Californian and Edward has never encountered one before. Mrs. Roberts laments that her life would be a wreck if her husband and brother do not get along nicely, and states "I do hope they're sitting down to a hot supper."
A voice from an adjacent berth interjects and sarcastically tells Mrs. Roberts to be quiet. She acquiesces for a moment, but then reverts to conversation, stating how they must go to bed. Aunt Mary insists that Mrs. Roberts and the child take the bottom bunk, because she is afraid that the child will roll off of the top bunk and injure himself. She calls the porter over to help her into the upper berth, and after successfully entering the berth, exchanges "good-night" with Mrs. Roberts.
After a few minutes, Mrs. Roberts rekindles the conversation, and expresses her concern regarding the safety of the train on which they're riding. Her aunt reassures her that the road is safe, and that the train has implemented safety measures to prevent accidents. Mrs. Roberts then goes on to discuss where her Aunt left the drinking glass in their luggage, until she is interrupted by a man from the next berth. This man politely requests silence from Mrs. Roberts, citing that he has come straight through from San Francisco and would very much like some rest. Mrs. Roberts responds apologetically, but starts conversing with this man, inquiring about California, her brother Willis, and if he has ever met his acquaintance. Midway through their conversation, a man in the upper berth sarcastically interjects and asks for quiet. The Californian takes offense to the man's tone towards Mrs. Roberts, and the two get into a verbal argument over it. Eventually, the Californian gets the man in the upper berth to back down ("You beg that lady's pardon, or I'll have you out of there before you know yourself!"). Part I ends with the Californian and Mrs. Roberts finally going to bed, with only the sounds of Aunt Mary's snoring audible.
Analysis, themes, and motifs
Analysis:
This play is a farce, revolving around the absurdity of mistaken identity. The humor in this play lies in this constant mistaken identity, in the neurosis of Mrs. Roberts, in the interjections from the other passengers, and in the heartbreaking inability of the Californian to sleep.
The person for whom identity is most frequently mistaken is the Californian, who frequently bears the brunt of false identity accusations. Mrs. Roberts, Willis, and Aunt Mary all claim to know the Californian, but none of them do, of course. The Californian himself seems to realize the humor in this, and states "I've been a baby twice, and I've been a man's wife once, and once I've been a long-lost brother."
The neurosis of Mrs. Roberts is another point of humor. She frequently states "good-night" to Aunt Mary in part I, but always revives the conversation by expressing some sort of worry, insecurity, or anxiety. Mrs. Roberts expresses initially her worry about how her brother and husband will interact, and needs constant reassurance from her aunt to calm down. Minutes later, she is concerned about the safety of the train, whose creaking noises stir worry about her safety and the safety of her baby son. Aunt Mary again alleviates her stress by citing all of the safety measures the railroad has implemented (i.e. the well-managed road, air-brake, and Miller platform). After this anxiety passes, Mrs. Roberts frets about where the water glass is packed in the luggage, and decides to talk herself through its retrieval. The intense neurosis of Mrs. Roberts is comically pathetic, and quite extreme. Effortlessly moving from one point of anxiety to the next, Mrs. Roberts creates a feeling of persistent neurosis for the reader, who must simply laugh at the woeful worry.
The interjections from the other passengers are also quite comedic. Their comments, largely sarcastic and witty, provide a more typical and colloquial humor to the play than the humor of ridiculousness. The sarcasm of the man in the upper berth for instance, exemplifies this comedy:
"I could lie here and listen to it all night; but there are invalids in some of these berths, and perhaps on their account it will be as well to defer everything till the morning."
Critical reception
Due to the widespread influence of William Dean Howells during the late 1800s, this book was most likely fairly well read by people of that time, although probably not as widely read as other works of his. There is no information on sales of the book.
In a May 1883 issue of The Atlantic, a reviewer states the following about The Sleeping Car.
"Mr. Howell's farce of The Sleeping Car (Osgood), comes very near being the most delightful thing he has written. The humor and ingenuity of this piece are rare both in kind and degree."
In an August 1889 issue of The Atlantic, the author expresses that The Sleeping Car and Howells's other farces have entertained readers, who have in general responded quite positively to it.
The Sleeping Car is also referenced in a submission to the editor in the February 1886 version of Harper's Magazine, indicating that this work indeed reached a widespread audience, gaining popularity (or at least some readership), amongst the readers of both Harper's Magazine and The Atlantic.
There is no evidence in modern online journals or databases to suggest that these views regarding The Sleeping Car have changed much, if at all, since the late 1800s.