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Comparison Between 'Passing Places And Trainspotting'

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Comparison Between 'Passing Places And Trainspotting'
Passing Places and Trainspotting.
They play I am analysing is Passing Places, by Stephen Greenhorn. It is a Scottish play from 1998 which is set in Motherwell. Alongside with this, I will also analyse the movie 'Trainspotting', a movie directed by Danny Boyle based on the novel 'Trainspotting' by Irvine Welsh. First I will focus on the main characters in the several works and analyse their development throughout the play and the movie. Afterwards I will compare the play and film, and how they each depict Scotland.

In the Scottish play Passing Places, the main characters are the two boys Alex and Brian. Of those two characters, Alex is the one who develops most during the play. In the beginning he is aggressive, angry and tough, and has …show more content…
If you look at Alex and Brian, their way of talking and living can be seen as a result of the town they have been brought op to. They are, to a certain point, unconcerned about everything. It is clearly illustrated in scene 29:
ALEX: I can't. I can think it but I can't say it. It's just … It's not part of my language, alright?5
Alex can't say the word beautiful because during his adolescence in Motherwell, he hasn't seen any signs of beauty. The director uses, especially Alex, to criticise the modern big cities. The brings up the contrast of beauty in the landscape and ugliness in the towns. 'Trainspotting' shows some of the same things, but of course brings up the problem of the rising usage of drugs in Scotland, mainly in the larger cities.

In the film and play alike, the main characters go through a positive development. They go from being troubled and disturbed in the big cities of Scotland, to better human beings when they leave their home-towns. Both the feeling of being Scottish and the Scottish society are criticised. As a reader, you get the impression that the Scottish society is filled with improper practices and an ascending drug abuse. In order to discover the beauty of Scotland or to live life, you have to move to landscapes or even another
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