Bird in hand : $b a play in one act

"Bird in Hand: A Play in One Act" by Laurence Housman is a theatrical work written in the early 20th century. This play features a mixture of fantasy and reality, centering around the character of Professor Braintree, a scientist grappling with his perceptions and the boundaries between what is real and what is imagined. The narrative explores themes of belief, imagination, and the intersection of science and the supernatural. The story unfolds in Professor Braintree's study, where he encounters a peculiar creature named Bird-in-Hand, which embodies his inner turmoil and challenges his scientific rationality. As the professor attempts to dismiss this hallucination that seems to disrupt his orderly world, he grapples with the existential implications of his experience, particularly as it blurs the line between reason and fantasy. The play culminates in a conversation with his granddaughter Elfrida, who believes in fairies, leading the professor to reconsider the realities of imagination and belief, even as he tries to maintain his scientific standing. Ultimately, Housman navigates the tension between the rational and the irrational through the professor's journey, leaving readers with a profound reflection on the nature of reality and faith. (This is an automatically generated summary.)

Laurence Housman was an English playwright, writer and illustrator whose career stretched from the 1890s to the 1950s. He studied art in London and worked largely as an illustrator during the first years of his career, before shifting focus to writing. He was a younger brother of the poet A. E. Housman and his sister and fellow activist in the women's suffrage movement was writer/illustrator Clemence Housman.