The Coens wrote with Odets in mind; they imagined Barton Fink as "a serious dramatist, honest, politically engaged, and rather naive". As Ethan said in 1991: "It seemed natural that he comes from Group Theater and the decade of the thirties." Like Odets, Barton believes that the theatre should celebrate the trials and triumphs of everyday people; like Barton, Odets was highly egotistical. In the film, a review of Barton's play "Bare Ruined Choirs" indicates that his characters face a "brute struggle for existence ... in the most squalid corners". This wording is similar to the comment of biographer Gerald Weales that Odets' characters "struggle for life amidst petty conditions". Lines of dialogue from Barton's work are reminiscent of Odets' play "Awake and Sing!". For example, one character declares: "I'm awake now, awake for the first time". Another says: "Take that ruined choir. Make it sing".