Rhinoceros as Allegory for the Rise of Totalitarianism

The symbolic and allegorical nature of Rhinoceros is immediately suggested by Ionesco's style of writing. The fact that the characters—and plot—are bizarre, exaggerated, and even surreal immediately detracts from their reality and forces the reader to instead reflect upon them in an abstract and general sort of way. The characters are seen less as concrete human beings and more as ideas or types and, therefore, the events which happen to them and the interactions that take place among them become commentaries on the ideas they embody.

The basic idea underlying the play is the nature and origin of totalitarian government. The basic totalitarian philosophy is presented in Act II, Scene II when Berenger watches Jean slowly morph into a rhinoceros before his eyes. Jean's philosophy is one which idolizes violence. According to it, when one wants something...