Truth and Lies

The difference between truth and lies is explored in the play in order to raise questions about truth and fiction, and all the ways in which fiction is as, or even more, important than truth. Act One begins with three very different searches for truth amidst a sea of lies. Katurian, a prisoner in a holding cell, is trying to figure out why he has been arrested. Tupolski and Ariel are trying to figure out why Katurian killed the two children, and where the second child is. And the audience is trying to figure out who is guilty, who is innocent, and what the truth of the situation is. During Act One, it seems as if Katurian is innocent of all crimes, as he presents himself this way. It also seems as if Tupolski and Ariel are heartless machines of the state. These truths...