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Equus

3.94 of 5 stars 3.94 · rating details · 8,522 ratings · 303 reviews

An explosive play that took critics and audiences by storm, Equus is Peter Shaffer's exploration of the way modern society has destroyed our ability to feel passion. Alan Strang is a disturbed youth whose dangerous obsession with horses leads him to commit an unspeakable act of violence. As psychiatrist Martin Dysart struggles to understand the motivation for Alan's brutal

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Paperback, 112 pages

Published October 2nd 1984 by Penguin Books (first published 1973)

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Jun 16, 2007 stephanie rated it 5 of 5 stars Recommends it for: everyone

Shelves: classics, prize-winners, drama, psychology, would-rec, high-school-reading, absolutely-must-read

i am a little sad that the play was recast with daniel radcliffe, as i feel that everyone now associates this brilliant, brilliant work with naked harry potter and a horse.

this is so much more than that. this is one of the greatest works of drama (and psychology) i think ever written. we read this my senior year of high school, in my ap lit course, with mr. hackling (one of my favorite teachers ever). and we read it in conjunction with our philosophy of religion course, so that we had four-time...more

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Sep 19, 2008 Lizzie rated it 2 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: theater, script, used-book, unpopular-opinions

This play has sat on my shelf for eight years after getting it for a dollar at a theater flea market. (It's a Samuel French edition, but from London; the size is all wrong and the paper is all funny.) It seemed like a good idea at the time, since coming out of high school I self-educated myself in playwriting by simply reading every play I'd heard of. Heard of this one! But then I just sat there with it. A couple Saturdays ago I pulled it down to read. The play is getting a lot of press right no...more

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Jul 20, 2007 Leigh rated it 5 of 5 stars

Shelves: genre-drama, won-tony-award, rating-five-stars, saw-film, own-film

Trust me: it's not just that play about Harry Potter getting (a) naked and (b) it on with a horse. It's about the construction of God and meaning in the modern waste land; and perhaps even more compellingly, about the moral dilemma of a therapist who has to convince his patient to abandon all escape routes and return to the waste land. (In that sense, it reminds me a great deal of Pat Barker's Regeneration .) It's a play of ideas, basically, only thinly veiled by its outrageous subject matter. P...more

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Apr 23, 2007 Ryan Chapman rated it 5 of 5 stars · review of another edition Recommends it for: Everyone

Shelves: nonfiction

I don't care if it took Harry Potter to disrobe for people to finally see this masterwork. This is without a doubt my favorite play from one of my favorite playwrights. Like most great works, it conflates several dichotomies without leaning too heavily on any of them. Adolescene v. adulthood? Check. Urban v. Rural? Check. Rationalism v. Romanticism? Check. A teenage boy blinding six horses in a fit of psychosexual mania? Check.

There's whispers the London production's coming stateside. If so, I...more

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Apr 02, 2013 Peter Kolesnikov rated it 5 of 5 stars

Peter Shaffer can do no wrong. Equus, Royal Hunt of the Sun and Amadeus...all great reads. Equus is disturbing in a way the other two plays aren't: budding sexuality crossed with an unhealthy fear of God, horses' eyes, but most importantly the therapist's belief that the adjusted existence to which he is supposed to return his patients is a barren and empty one. Favorite quote: "My desire might be to make this boy an ardent husband - a caring citizen - a worshipper of abstract and unifying God....more

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Nov 23, 2008 Baiocco rated it 4 of 5 stars

Shelves: plays

Is it even possible to discuss Equus anymore without considering Harry Potter's wang? Were there conversations that existed about this strange, psychological, pre Law and Order play that didn't include a nude Daniel Radcliffe and horses? I never even saw the play but it was impossible to walk down a city block on the west side of Manhatten without seeing posters of that hilarious extra from the show "Extras" staring blankly at any passerby, arms outstretched christ-on-a-cross-like with his lower...more Is it even possible to discuss Equus anymore without considering Harry Potter's wang? Were there conversations that existed about this strange, psychological, pre Law and Order play that didn't include a nude Daniel Radcliffe and horses? I never even saw the play but it was impossible to walk down a city block on the west side of Manhatten without seeing posters of that hilarious extra from the show "Extras" staring blankly at any passerby, arms outstretched christ-on-a-cross-like with his lower body blending into that of an equine. But a few weeks ago I stumbled into the best book store in all of Broadway besides Amazon (dot) Com: The Drama Book Shop Inc.! This place was incredible. It had some art books and biographies, but for the most part only sold plays (any and all including some extremely hard to find Sarah Kane and John Guarre shit) for actors to read. Cheap, no frills Samuel French publishing in alphabetical order. West 40th and 8th. I highly recommend checking it out if reading plays is your thing. Lately its been my thing, and Equus (son of Feckwiss, begat of Neckwiss, etc.) was a pretty good play despite the aforementioned distractions surrounding the text. The supposedly true story of a stablehand who blinded six horses with a hoof claw, and the psychologist ordered to make sense of this monstrous crime. It would be very hard to describe the plot of this play beyond what I just did without ruining some of the tension for the reader, so I'll just say it unravels in a creepy and basically gripping way that makes this a fun read and will make you think of CSI. The play itself employs a greek element of a chorus and utilizes a circular stage with the audience seated all around the actors making it impossible to hide. This is pretty cool considering the play is about this pyschologist working to unmask the lies of this troubled stableboy. Why he is naked is still kind of a mystery although being that there is kind of a sexual worship power thing going on with the horses, I'd guess its an intimacy thing. Nevertheless, the nudity is part of the script and wasn't just written in to exploit the fame of Harry Potter.

I would give Equus three and a half stars but Goodreads isn't into that. Its better than three stars though. Something in the end seems lacking, but I think its just the fact that reading it is unsatisfactory. A play exists as a play simply because it can't exist in any other form. If reading it was okay, then it would be a weird sort of prose. Reading Equus was not okay. Therefore it is a play. And you should look out for seeing it one day as it will probably trump the text version.(less)

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May 18, 2013 Mike rated it 3 of 5 stars

The framing device of Equus - a story told in flash-back from a mental hospital - is a little distancing and problematic. The revelations of a character's humanity do not come from character's actions raw; rather, they are tempered by the opinings and judgments of our Shrink-protagonist. Equus could have succeeded more if it granted itself the opportunity to expose the rawness of the events live and let the human elements speak for themselves. Shaffer overestimated the profundity of his intellec...more

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May 14, 2013 Timothy Koh rated it 4 of 5 stars

Passion.

That single word probably most saliently and liminally sums up Peter Shaffer's seminal work, Equus. Passion is what affects Alan Strang so strongly, and what Dysart lacked at the opening of the play. Passion changes and plays with the two principal roles, slowly developing them before the audience's eyes.

I found Equus to be an insanely rewarding read for many reasons: firstly, because it really makes the reader think hard and imagine hard, not just because of its heavy material, but be...more

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Mar 19, 2013 Zachary Hansen rated it 4 of 5 stars

Equus is a play by Peter Shaffer that deals with an adolescent boy who committed a violent crime against some horses. The play takes place after the crime has been committed and the boy, Alan, has been sent to an mental institution where his to be analyzed and "cured" by psychiatrist Dr. Martin Dysart. The play is told from the point of view of Dysart, who is unsure of whether or not he wants to "cure" the boy.

This play poses some very interesting questions in regards to people in society. The...more

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Feb 07, 2012 Osama Abdelghany rated it 5 of 5 stars

Shelves: peter-shaffer, favorites

هذه المسرحيه مبنيه على واقعه حقيقيه -وهى ان ولد يعمل فى اسطبل خيول فقأ عيون 6 احصنه -- هذا كل ما عمله بيتر شافر من خبر وبني عليه فكره المسرحيه واستغله --الله وحده اعلم حقيقه التي وراء الخبر ويمكن لو كان بيتر شافر علم بالتفاصيل ماكانت ظهرت هذه الرائعه من تحت يديه التى اصبحت من كلاسيكيات المسرح الانجليزي - انا بحب المسرحية دي جدا -- هى كمسرحيه مسرح حديث فى وقتها وكانت مختلفه بعض الشيئ فى عرضها المسرحي لكن انا عندي النص المكتوب والفكره هى الاهم - قرأت هذه المسرحيه العديد من المرات حتى حفظتها اتذكر...more هذه المسرحيه مبنيه على واقعه حقيقيه -وهى ان ولد يعمل فى اسطبل خيول فقأ عيون 6 احصنه -- هذا كل ما عمله بيتر شافر من خبر وبني عليه فكره المسرحيه واستغله --الله وحده اعلم حقيقه التي وراء الخبر ويمكن لو كان بيتر شافر علم بالتفاصيل ماكانت ظهرت هذه الرائعه من تحت يديه التى اصبحت من كلاسيكيات المسرح الانجليزي - انا بحب المسرحية دي جدا -- هى كمسرحيه مسرح حديث فى وقتها وكانت مختلفه بعض الشيئ فى عرضها المسرحي لكن انا عندي النص المكتوب والفكره هى الاهم - قرأت هذه المسرحيه العديد من المرات حتى حفظتها اتذكر عندما وجدتها فى المكتبه وقرأت الملخص المكتوب عليها اعجبتني الفكره جدا كان عدد من المسرح العالمي التي تصدره دوله الكويت - فى أول الامر كنت اعتقد ان البطل هو الولد "الان" الولد المضطرب الذي كان مغرم بالاحصنه ودخل فى عباده وثنيه منذ صغره عندما اعطته والدته المتدينه صوره للمسيح وهو مصلوب لكن ابوه الملحد قطع هذه الصوره فى احدي المرات ولكن عندما هدأ اراد ان يراضي ابنه ويستعطفه فاعطاه هديه عباره عن صوره لحصان اسود ومن هذه اللحظه استبدل الولد الهه من المسيح الى الحصان كما استبدل ابوه الصورة --- فى اول الامر كنت اعتقد انه البطل لكن البطل الحقيقي هو الدكتور ديسارت الدكتور الذي يعالج الولد -- المسرحيه لها ابعاد كثيره جدا -الحقيقه لم اشاهد طبعا العرض المسرحي ولا حتى مسجل -مؤخرا قام بطل افلام هاري بوتر "دانيال رادلكيف ببطول المسرحيه فى لندن فى اعاده لهذه المسرحيه -- انتقده البعض لان هناك مشهد يكون فيه عاري مع البنت جيل -- هذه المسرحيه تستحق ان تقرأ كثيرا هى تبحث عن السؤال الابدي لغز الحياة (less)

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Mar 21, 2011 Becky rated it 5 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: age-adult-books, nonfiction

This was the first play I've really read since college, and WOW. I couldn't put it down. Peter Shaffer, perhaps best known for "Amadeus," heard in passing a horrific story of a crime committed against horses. It stuck in his brain and compelled him -- "I had to create a mental world in which the deed could be made comprehensible." In his presentation of the teen boy Alan and his world, I think he succeeded, creating a dark story on a minimal stage that draws from religion, childhood, faith, dome...more This was the first play I've really read since college, and WOW. I couldn't put it down. Peter Shaffer, perhaps best known for "Amadeus," heard in passing a horrific story of a crime committed against horses. It stuck in his brain and compelled him -- "I had to create a mental world in which the deed could be made comprehensible." In his presentation of the teen boy Alan and his world, I think he succeeded, creating a dark story on a minimal stage that draws from religion, childhood, faith, domestication, sex, and psychology.

Also, I **love** this paperback cover. For those who know my love of the book Forget All the Rules About Graphic Design, this is a perfect example of making one image say two things -- or in this case, three things. A boy, a horse, and a religious icon. It also mimics the stark set of the stage as I imagined it. Brilliant.

Favorite quotes:

"It's just professional menopause. Everyone gets it sooner or later."

"What the eye does not see, the heart does not grieve over, does it?"

"'Look! Life is only comprehensible through a thousand local Gods. And not just the old dead ones with names like Zeus -- no, but living Geniuses of Place and Person! And not just Greece but modern England! Spirits of certain trees, certain curves of brick wall, certain chip shops, if you like, and slate roofs -- just as of certain frowns in people and slouches'...I'd say to them -- 'Worship as many as you can see -- and more will appear!'"

"Why? Moments snap together like magnets, forging a chain of shackles. Why? I can trace them. I can even, with time, pull them apart again. But why at the start they were ever magnetized at all -- just those particular moments of experience and no others -- I don't know. And nor does anyone else."

"Can you think of anything worse one can do to anybody than take away their worship? ...What else has he got? Think about him. He can hardly read. He knows no physics or engineering to make the world real for him. No paintings to show him how others have enjoyed it. No music except television jingles. No history except tales from a desperate mother. No friends. Not one kid to give him a joke, or make him know himself more moderately. He's a modern citizen for whom society doesn't exist."

"His pain. His own. He made it. Look...to go through life and call it yours -- your life -- you first have to get your own pain. Pain that's unique to you. You can't just dip into the common bin and say 'That's enough!'"(less)

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Mar 20, 2011 Tamara rated it 4 of 5 stars

Shelves: book-club, fiction, non-fiction

I was impressed by the three-dimensional nature of this one. The different layers the author was able to create to make this more than just a flat stage play were hard to imagine through reading, but I got enough of a taste of it that I would love to see it performed, even with the harrowing & distressing nature of the crime.

Would be quite interesting to pair with Spring Awakening.

Interesting side note: This guy wrote Amadeus.

Favorite Quotes:

Look! Life is only comprehensible through a th...more

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May 31, 2010 Denise rated it 4 of 5 stars

In a play including a character as complex as Alan Strang, who is sucking the cream off of a horse’s neck in one moment, and blinding six with a metal spike in the next, Peter Shaffer makes it an adventure for his readers to focus on the meat of his play. Equus, based on an actual crime that occurred in London, follows the psychoanalysis of a deranged youth who commits a heinous act against six horses, but it is the revelations of his psychiatrist, Dr. Martin Dysart, that emanate the play’s true...more In a play including a character as complex as Alan Strang, who is sucking the cream off of a horse’s neck in one moment, and blinding six with a metal spike in the next, Peter Shaffer makes it an adventure for his readers to focus on the meat of his play. Equus, based on an actual crime that occurred in London, follows the psychoanalysis of a deranged youth who commits a heinous act against six horses, but it is the revelations of his psychiatrist, Dr. Martin Dysart, that emanate the play’s true themes. Confused about his own sense of purpose, Dr. Dysart is probably the least qualified to be diagnosing Alan, but his misguided comments, make it possible for the reader to do the impossible—envy Alan Strang. Driven to commit his crime by nothing more than passion for his fictitious god Equus, who lives in all horses, Dysart questions what it is “wrong” with Alan that he should be “fixing” him. We live in a society that requires everyone to maintain a customary level of “normal”. Those that don’t uphold that standard cannot be allowed to roam the streets. They are carted away to doctors who poke and prod and remove every last ounce of their individuality. The finished product, what we see, is permitted to live an average life, finally accepted, because they are just like everybody else. Their passion and spirit are dangerous to our society, this is true, but between you and them, who has truly “lived”? In the case of Alan Strang, for one hour every three weeks, he was permitted to “live” inside the walls of a stable, in the presence of his god Equus. However, the point on which I disagree with Dysart is, that the convenience of our lifestyles has killed our capacity for worship and passion. On that point, I argue that it is still there, not in its full bloom, but there just the same. When reading the play, I can’t help but feel some kind of jealousy towards Alan Strang, curiosity, maybe, about how he feels, compassion, possibly, for his heinous crime. But never do I feel that my life is bottled up, or my individuality is slowly wilting away to nothing. Nevertheless, Shaffer makes me think, and for that, the book may grace my favorites list.(less)

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Mar 31, 2010 Aimee rated it 5 of 5 stars · review of another edition

"Can you think of anything worse one can do to anybody than take away their worship? ...I don't. I only know it's the core of his life. What else has he got? Think about him. He can hardly read. He knows no physics or engineering to make the world real for him. No paintings to show him how others have enjoyed it. No music except television jingles. No history except tales from a desperate mother. No friends. Not one kid to give him a joke, or make him know himself more moderately. He's a modern...more

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Apr 27, 2009 Martina rated it 2 of 5 stars

Shelves: 2009, fiction

This book, or better, play, was...different. In a quite weird, but also positive way. I found myself raising my eyebrows quite a lot through the play, because it was so weird and I didn't understand it til I'd read the ending.
The beginning is extremely confusing, because there is this particular scene, where Alan and his mother quote the bible as fast as if they were playing ping-pong and I didn't understand anything at all. What do they want?, I asked myself.
But every scene you get more and mo...more

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Apr 04, 2013 Dexter rated it 5 of 5 stars

This was a very strange, but riveting, play. It's a psychological mystery that keeps the reader glued, in rapture, to the narrative. Adjectives to describe it are: deep, mysterious, unusual, sexual, horrific, philosophical, religious, psychological, innate, otherworldly.

The play covers the case of Alan Strang, a boy who, with a tool, blinds six horses without explanation and is sent to a psychiatric ward, where he is examined and talked to by the head psychiatrist. Over the course of the play, t...more

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Aug 03, 2012 Hillary rated it 4 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Equus was a quick read, and not simply because it’s short. I was really dying to know what was happening in Alan’s mind as well as Dystart’s life; once I started reading the play, I didn’t put it down until I was finished. Dystart, the psychiatrist, often appears completely disillusioned with life, only being invigorated when he gets to interact with Alan or perhaps when he talks with Hesther, a close friend (?) who brings Alan to his hospital. I wonder about the nature of the relationship betwe...more

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Jun 06, 2010 Misha rated it 5 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: favorites, fiction, own, plays

Equus has been a favourite for several years. I’ve read the play countless times, saw the same production two nights in a row, and watched the film version with Richard Burton. It’s one of the few plays that never gets stale, there's always something new.

A teenage boy undergoes therapy after committing a crime on the basis that "what the eye does not see, the heart does not grieve over". How and why could he do such a thing? That’s for the psychiatrist and audience to find out. Intense and dark,...more

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Sep 21, 2010 Samantha Liguori rated it 5 of 5 stars

Peter Shaffer once heard a story of a locale boy in the English countryside that went around one night and blinded six horses for no apparent reason. This tale inspired his work "Equus."

"Equus" is a play following a teenage boy by the name of Alan Strang who stands accused of committing such a heinous crime. The play is told through the research of Alan's psychologist Dr. Dysart. Dr. Dysart's sessions are showed with Alan as he slowly begins to trust the doctor and allow insight into the mind of...more

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Sep 24, 2011 Ali rated it 5 of 5 stars

(Very minor spoilers). I love works that try to make you sympathize with the villain, rather than making them out to be barely human monsters, as so many books and movies tend to do. I can't help but think it's mostly laziness on the part of the creators. It's easier to create someone who, as the main character in Peter Shaffer's play, hurts animals in a fit of insanity and leave it at that, letting the audience mindlessly hate him, than it is to create a villain and really dig into his motives,...more (Very minor spoilers). I love works that try to make you sympathize with the villain, rather than making them out to be barely human monsters, as so many books and movies tend to do. I can't help but think it's mostly laziness on the part of the creators. It's easier to create someone who, as the main character in Peter Shaffer's play, hurts animals in a fit of insanity and leave it at that, letting the audience mindlessly hate him, than it is to create a villain and really dig into his motives, trying to tell us why he acts this way, as Shaffer has done. And he does it well. I must admit that the only reason I know this play exists is because of the absurd "zomg naked harry p0tt3r!" controversy. But I wasn't drawn into it because of that, didn't keep reading it nonstop for an hour because of that, wasn't utterly chilled by the past few pages wherein the doctor wonders if he is doing the right thing in rehabilitating the boy because of that. And those last few pages, ultimately, are what give this play, only 112 pages and read through a mist of sleep as I had just woke up,its true power:
He speaks directly to the theatre, standing by the motionless body _of ALAN STRANG, _under _the _blanket.]
And now for me it never stops: that voice of Equus out of the cave--'Why Me? ... Why Me? ... Account for Me!' ... All right--I surrender! I say it! ... In an ultimate sense I cannot know what I do in this place--yet I do ultimate things. Essentially I cannot know what I do--yet I do essential things. Irreversible, terminal things. I stand in the dark with a pick in my hand, striking at heads!
[He _moves _away _from ALAN, __back to the downstage bench, and finally _sits.]
I need--more desperately than my children need me--a way of seeing in the dark. What way is this? ... What dark is this? ... I cannot call it ordained of God: I can't get that far. I will however pay it so much homage. There is now, in my mouth, this sharp chain. And it never comes out.
[_A _long _pause.
DYSART _sits _staring.]
BLACKOUT(less)

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Nov 15, 2011 Adam rated it 5 of 5 stars

Being a psychology junky, this play really hit home as Dr Martin Dysart psychoanalyzes Alan and tries to discover why he blinded nine horses in an act of inhumanity. What Alan really does is to have Dr Dysart look within himself and actually sympathize with Alan. During the last scene, he understands that Allen has a sexual/religious passion for horses due to many events. Instead of wanting to cure Allen, he actually feels jealous of Allen's passion and wishes he still had passion for life like...more

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Jul 17, 2008 Andy rated it 5 of 5 stars Recommends it for: horse players

Shelves: kool-imports

Nightmarish play about a disturbed 17-year old stable boy who's awful with the girls but loves the horses more. He ends up racing about naked in the middle of the night and blinds the horses. Homo-eroticism blends in with angry punk energy UK style to create a play both sexy and horrifying.

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Mar 28, 2009 Rory M. rated it 5 of 5 stars · review of another edition

I saw bits & pieces of this movie when it first came out & very recently picked the play up at a library sale. I was prompted to read it because of a book club I am part of - we were challenged to read outside our normal genre.

Scripts are unique in that they require so much more from their reader. You have to consider the stage directions very seriously & put real effort into envisioning the playwright’s vision.

Equus was so well done that I found I was flying through the reading of...more

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Sep 16, 2009 Jim Coughenour rated it 3 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: drama

Back in the 70s I saw the Sidney Lumet film version of this play and was bowled over by Richard Burton and Peter Firth. As I remember, the audience stumbled out of the theatre in stunned silence. (And yes, at that point, the full frontal nudity was shocking: it worked exactly as Shaffer hoped it would, I'd guess.)

Recently I decided to read the script, which is sparer than the film. Thirty years later the play's tortured psychological revelations do feel a bit dated, but Equus is still a solid pi...more

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Jan 01, 2013 Olivia Mainville rated it 4 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Of all the plays I read in 2012, I think I was surprised to like this one the best. I find it difficult to understand stage directions without proper visual aids so I was glad that this play wasn’t bogged down with them. However, trying to imagine people dressed as horses and neighing was a tad comical for me! Yes, this play is about a boy and his criminal act against horses, and since I don’t know much about the animals I wasn’t sure how I’d feel about this work. And yes, I’ll admit it was the...more

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Nov 24, 2008 Hales rated it 5 of 5 stars

Shelves: college, play

I will admit that I had my biases against this book the first time I heard that I was going to be assigned it for one of my college English classes. I had heard things that I didn't find appealing about this book, and as such, I didn't want to read it. However, it sounds worse that it is, and it quickly became one of my favorite books. The play is wel written, and leaves readers asking questions even when the play ends. It's one of those that you find yourself not wanting to close, or maybe tell...more

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Jun 13, 2012 Sara rated it 5 of 5 stars

Shelves: plays

I read Equus for the first time in High School English Class. I remember being completely perplexed by the religious and sexual themes. Something about this book jumped out at me in a way that it didn't seem to reach my classmates. I was particularly taken by the psychiatrists own transformation through his counseling of Alan. This challenged my understanding of mental health, forced me to recognize the vulnerability of people in authoritative positions, and allowed me to realize that influence...more

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Aug 07, 2011 Jahanara rated it 5 of 5 stars

I recently finished Equus by Peter Shaffer, and I already regard it as one of the best plays I've ever read. I'm not ashamed to say that I saw it a few years ago, mainly because Daniel Radcliffe was naked in it. Looking back, I think the most powerful part of the production was probably the horses; their physicality and movements were a visual masterpiece.

I was worried that seeing the play before reading it would taint its beauty, but instead, it allowed me to picture the the set and the horses.

...more

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Dec 12, 2011 Yasmine rated it 4 of 5 stars · review of another edition

I am sure over half of my classmates won't believe their eyes, seeing I am giving this four stars. After all, this is not a play that would generally be appreciated by ordinary horse lovers. Most probably, many would prefer to avoid it.
Unfortunately though, I ended up holding it in my hands as it was on the list of books-to-buy for the new school year. Sooner or later, I had to leaf its pages.
I will begin by saying that I never came across a play like this one before. In this play, a vivid imagi...more

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Apr 16, 2009 Anne rated it 4 of 5 stars · review of another edition

For me, another modern classic lost and now regained. There's no doubt that this is a disturbing play about the boundaries of sanity and passion. It is also about society and judgement. Who is the ultimate judge of human behaviour? Equus is brilliantly built through a non-linear puzzle construct to reveal that underneath all the disguises that humans wear, we may all be just the same. I felt vast empathy for all the characters - Alan, Dysart, Frank, Dora, and even Jill as each struggled with his...more

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Does Alan want to have sex with Jill?	5	28	Mar 20, 2012 12:36pm

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About Peter Shaffer

Sir Peter Levin Shaffer is an English dramatist, author of numerous award-winning plays, several of which have been filmed.

See also http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Peter_Sh...

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Books by Peter Shaffer

The Royal Hunt Of The Sun (Millennium Series)

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Trivia About Equus

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Quotes from Equus

“He'll be delivered from madness. What then? He'll feel himself acceptable! What then? Do you think feelings like his can be simply re-attached, like plasters? Stuck on to other objects we select? Look at him! ... My desire might be to make this boy an ardent husband - a caring citizen - a worshipper of abstract and unifying God. My achievement, however, is more likely to make a ghost!” — 15 people liked it

“You have your words, and I have mine.” — 10 people liked it

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Equus

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