Harvey by Mary Chase
SCRIPT ANALYSIS

Who are they?

* Elwood P. Dowd - forty-seven-year-old, an independently wealthy man. He is a charmer, always pleasant when talking to people, even those who address him gruffly. His best friend is Harvey, an invisible six and a half-foot-tall rabbit. (protagonist - lead) * Veta Louise Simmons – Elwood’s sister, very concerned about her social position and terrified that she will be subject to ridicule or scandal because of Elwood's embarrassing behavior (antagonist - lead) * Myrtle Mae Simmons - A young woman, the daughter of Veta. She is also concerned about the family’s standing in the community because she wants to find a man to marry. (antagonist - supporting) * Dr. William B. Chumley - An esteemed psychiatrist and the head of the sanitarium, “chumley’s rest,” to which veta has Elwood taken. He is a difficult, exacting man, feared by his subordinates. (supporting) * Dr. Lyman Sanderson - Young, for a psychiatrist, but very qualified. He was hand-picked by Dr. Chumley to be his assistant. He is just as infatuated with nurse Kelly as she is with him, but he only reveals his concern indirectly. (supporting) * Nurse Ruth Kelly - A pretty young woman and a sympathetic character. She works at chumley’s rest and appears to have some sort of love/hate relationship with dr. Sanderson * Duane Wilson - the muscle of chumley’s rest, a devoted orderly responsible for handling the patients who will not cooperate voluntarily (supporting) * Betty Chumley (the doctor's wife) - more concerned with socializing than anything (supporting) * Judge Omar Gaffney - An old family friend of the Dowd's, and also the family lawyer, he represents the people in town who are accustomed to seeing Elwood talking to Harvey and who do not think anything of it. (supporting) * Ethel Chauvenet - an old friend of the family. she is a leader of the town’s social circle, which veta wants myrtle to break into. * E. J. Lofgren - cab driver, who at the end of the play, makes veta realize that the treatment that is supposed to make Elwood stop seeing Harvey might drain him of his kind personality. * Miss Johnson – the Dowd's maid.

Where are they? Denver, Colorado. In the Library of Elwood’s majestic home and the sterile reception room at the sanatorium, Chumley’s Rest.
When does this take place? The Year 1944 in Spring.
What do the major characters think about their world? Reality.
Dialogue Mode: Naturalistic dialogue.
The Play's Theme: Comedy

Features of a Play Script:

Exposition
Veta Louise Simmons, and her daughter, Myrtle Mae, is throwing a luncheon for the older society matrons in her brother, Elwood Dowd's home. She places great importance on her social status, and is terrified about being ridicule because of Dowd, who embarrasses them by introducing everyone to his imaginary six and a half-foot-tall rabbit friend, Harvey.

Inciting Incidents
They count on Dowd being out, but he comes home suddenly, talking to Harvey, holding doors for him, and, worse, introducing him to the ladies at the party. Veta swears that he will not disgrace the them again, and makes arrangements for him to be committed. At Chumley’s Rest, Nurse Ruth Kelly interviews Veta about her brother, who is waiting outside. Kelly has an orderly, Wilson, take him in.
Rising Action
When the psychiatrist on duty, Dr. Sanderson, interviews Veta, he gets the impression that she is the one who has hallucinated Harvey and locks her up. When he finds out that Dowd has been locked up, he assumes that a mistake has been made, and Dowd is brought down to the office, where Sanderson and Kelly apologizes, fearing that the sanatorium will be sued. Dowd, oblivious to what happened, invites them both to have drinks later.
After Dowd leaves the scene, Dr. Chumley, the director of the facility, enters and discovers that Dowd has left a hat with holes cut in the top. The hospital staff exits, then Dowd returns, just as Dr. Chumley’s wife, Betty, enters, and he tells her that he is looking for Harvey, explaining that Harvey is a pooka — a mythological spirit.
Climax
After he leaves, she tells the others that he was looking for Harvey, and they realize that it was he, not Veta, who had delusions. They understand that the hat is Harvey’s, that the holes are for his rabbit ears.

Falling Action
Myrtle is planning to sell the house as soon as Dowd is committed. Judge Gaffney has come by after receiving a call from Veta. She arrives, distraught, and instructs the judge to sue the sanatorium. Wilson and Dr. Chumley arrive looking for Dowd. Judge Gaffney and Dr. Chumley leave together, discussing Veta’s impending lawsuit; Wilson and Myrtle flirt to the kitchen together. Then Dowd comes in and sees a flat parcel, a painting of himself and a large rabbit. He puts the picture on the mantle and leaves. Veta and Dr. Chumley enter, and Dowd phones, looking for Harvey.
Dr. Sanderson, having been fired, is packing his belongings. Dowd enters, under the impression that Kelly and Dr. Sanderson are going to join him for a drink at a bar, and when Wilson enters, Dowd invites him, too. He tells them that he was out at the bar with Dr. Chumley earlier, and that the doctor saw Harvey also. Then, Dr. Chumley enters, nervously, as if someone is following him. He goes into his office and closes the door, and, soon after, the door opens and closes again, as if by itself.
Myrtle and Judge Gaffney arrive. She still wants Dowd committed, but the judge has evidence that there might actually be a Harvey. Myrtle says that Dowd, claiming Harvey’s help, is able to predict events in the future, such as the unexpected arrival of a neighbour's aunt.
Dr. Chumley tells Sanderson that he isn’t fired. Sanderson suggests that Dowd should receive shock treatment with an injection of Doctor Chumley’s formula 977.

Resolution
When Dowd arrives, Dr. Chumley asks to speak with him alone. They discuss Harvey’s power to stop time, which leads the doctor to fantasize. At Veta’s request, Dowd agrees to take an injection of formula 977, even though he would not be able to see Harvey any more.

While he is in the next room for the injection, the cab driver who brought Veta comes in to collect his fare. She cannot find her change purse and so has to ask Dowd for money. The cab driver, noticing what a nice person Dowd is, remarks that he will not be so nice after the injection, that people he brings to the sanatorium always are nice until they are “cured.”

Denouement
Thinking about it, Veta realizes that she does not want Dowd changed, and she races in and stops the injection. Her change purse shows up before she leaves, and she realizes that Harvey had hidden it. The whole family leaves, with Dowd waiting a moment for Harvey to catch up with him.