Water by the Spoonful

One scene in which realities intersect is Scene Eight, in which Elliot and Yazmin communicate with Orangutan on Odessa’s website. In this scene, Elliot logs into Haikumom’s account and antagonizes Orangutan after impersonating Odessa. Orangutan then reveals Elliot’s addiction to pain medication, which shocks Yaz. This interaction ends when Elliot abruptly unplugs the computer. Not only does this scene feature intersecting story lines but intersecting realities as well. Here we see Elliot and Yazmin, previously in the realm of physical reality, insert themselves into the addicts' cyber reality.

This scene operates in terms of the central motif of dissonance in several ways. First, this scene is the first time that Hudes explicitly discusses Elliot’s addiction, introducing discord into his relationship with Yaz. In addition, this incident further disturbs Elliot’s peace, evident in his rough handling of the computer. After Elliot ends the conversation on the website, Hudes states in the stage directions on page 59, “He throws the keyboard on the ground. He starts unplugging cables violently.” Elliot’s actions indicate the dissonance that will follow.

Dissonance is also evident in the consequences of this moment. After Elliot unplugs the computer, he directly refers to the Ghost on page 59 when he says, “That’s when he came, and some days I swear he ain’t never gonna leave.” As a result of his interaction with the cyber reality, he acknowledges an element of his spiritual or psychological reality. Almost immediately, the Ghost appears and blocks Elliot’s exit, further invading his physical world. The collision of worlds (and Elliot’s open acknowledgement of this phenomenon) is a sort of dissonance in itself. In other words, Elliot’s interaction with the cyber reality prompts more collisions between worlds, physical and psychological.

'Tis Pity She's a Whore

My posters for ‘Tis Pity She’s a Whore, in their quotes, imagery, and color schemes, would focus on nature. That being said, the posters would feature a lot of nature imagery, rich in greens and browns. My first quote comes from page 684 of Act II, Scene 6 when the Friar attempts to convince Giovanni that his desires are wrong. He says, “Then, madman, thou wilt find / That Nature is in Heaven’s positions blind.” I chose this quote because Giovanni and Anabella act on their natural instincts, ignoring society’s rules. 

Several times throughout the play, the characters associate Annabella and Giovanni’s feelings with nature, such as in my second quote. On page 658 of Act I, Scene I, Giovanni says, “Are we not therefore each other bound / So much the more by nature, by the links / Of blood, of reason...” In his dialogue with the Friar, Giovanni asserts that what keeps him apart from Anabella is merely a societal construct. For this poster, I envision the silhouettes of a man and a woman holding hands among nature. 

Throughout the play, some characters (such as Giovanni and Anabella) struggle against societal norms in order to follow their natural desires. Other characters (such as the Friar and the Cardinal) try to enforce societal norms in an attempt to suppress the urges of others. This brings us to my third quote, from page 719 of Act V, Scene I. Anabella says, "But they who sleep in lethargies of lust / Hug their confusion, making Heaven unjust, / And so did I." I chose this quote because it more clearly shows these two mindsets working against each other. I think that these three quotes show different sides of the nature vs. society dynamic of the play. Giovanni's quote favors nature while the Friar's and Anabella's discourage it.

The House of Trials

One possible convention of the Spanish Golden Age comedia could be the characters’ asides to the audience. This practice is different from what we have read in the well-made play so far. In The Glass of Water, for example, the characters stay within their own world. The characters only speak to each other and do not break the fourth wall. However, in House of Trials, the characters often break the fourth wall to tell the audience what they are really thinking. When the characters in Love! Valour! Compassion! break the fourth wall, it sometimes appears to be a way for their future selves to narrate information that they learned later. However, in The House of Trials, the characters’ asides are always in the present moment, conveying the characters’ limited knowledge at one particular time and place. Since this play is full of secrets, the characters must constantly deceive each other. When the characters make asides to the audience, the playwright is able to let the audience know the characters’ true thoughts and increase the dramatic irony.

Another possible convention of the comedia could be the dialogue written in verse. In The Glass of Water, the characters speak in naturalistic prose. However, in The House of Trials, the characters speak in poetry, going out of their way to tailor their language to certain conventions. In the footnotes, the translator goes into detail about the different verse forms Sor Juana uses. For example, in footnote 12 at the end of Act I on page 68, the translator describes the romance form, which is the form used for “81.6% of the lines in The House of Trials.” The translator explains that the romance form consists of four-line stanzas with assonant rhymes at the end of the second and fourth lines. Since I haven’t read the original Spanish text, I don’t know how Sor Juana’s original dialogue would sound. However, after reading the footnotes about the verse forms, I get the impression that the dialogue might sound less naturalistic than that of the well-made play. 

Show-and-Tell Post: "Wine in the Wilderness"

Basic Information

Wine in the Wilderness, written by Alice Childress in 1969, was first performed in Boston, Massachusetts. Part of the series “On Being Black,” this performance was televised on WGBH-TV (http://www.seattlepi.com/ae/article/Wine-in-the-Wilderness-expands-black-theater-1205671.php). I accessed this play through the North American Women’s Drama library database.

You can access it here.

Basic Plot

Wine in the Wilderness takes place in the Civil-Rights Era and revolves around Bill, a black artist, and his quest to complete his current project. Bill is working on a triptych that makes a statement about black womanhood. The first painting represents “black girlhood.” The second painting, “Wine in the Wilderness,” is Bill’s ideal African woman, beautiful and noble. The third, unfinished painting will represent what society has done to the black woman. Bill seeks a vulgar, unfeminine model who beyond hope. Bill’s friends introduce him to Tommy, a potential model who doesn’t know Bill’s intention for the painting and falls for the artist. As the night begins, Tommy seems like Bill’s negative stereotype of black women. However, when Tommy hears Bill describe “Wine in the Wilderness” to an art dealer, she believes that he is talking about her. She then allows her natural beauty to shine, and Bill begins to return her feeling. The next morning, Bill’s friend reveals the artist’s original intention for her. Tommy then criticizes Bill and his friends’ privileged attitude toward the masses. Tommy shows her new grace and asserts that she is “Wine in the Wilderness.” Bill realizes that Tommy is the true ideal of black womanhood and begins a new triptych, this time with Tommy as “Wine in the Wilderness.”

Dramaturgical Choice #1

Childress’s first significant dramaturgical choice is to devote a considerable amount of stage time to the discussion of African-American history. Bill educates Tommy about various activists who fought slavery and discrimination. This information impresses upon Tommy and the audience the history that weighs upon the world of the play. This play, which begins with an offstage riot, takes place during the Civil-Rights Era. This society shapes the characters’ perspectives. For example, Cynthia says, “For a time I thought I was about to move into another world, the so-called ‘integrated’ world, a place where knowledge and know-how could set you free and open all the doors, but that's a lie. I turned away from that idea. The first thing I did was give up dating white fellas.” This discussion of history shows the creation of the society that influenced the characters’ worldview.

This emphasis on black history also reinforces Tommy’s statement toward the end of the play about black solidarity. Tommy says, “If you feelin' so brotherly why don't you say ‘my’ sister? Ain't no we-ness in your talk. ‘The’ Afro-American, ‘the’ black man, there's no we-ness in you. Who you think you are?” During Tommy’s harsh speech, she criticizes the characters’ places relative to the black community and their greater struggle in the Civil-Rights Era. Since the context of the Civil-Rights Era shapes the characters and situations, it is logical that Childress lays the historical foundation in the dialogue.

Dramaturgical Choice #2

Another significant dramaturgical choice is Tommy’s name, both her nickname (Tommy) and her given name (Tomorrow). “Tommy,” a name traditionally used for men, emphasizes Tommy’s lack of femininity. Bill declares Tommy the perfect model for a painting that should represent a woman who is, “ignorant, unfeminine, coarse, rude…” Both Bill and Cynthia tell Tommy that she needs to act more feminine. While the characters never openly observe this, there seems to be an implicit connection between Tommy’s nickname and her lack of femininity.

Tommy’s given name, Tomorrow, is also significant, foreshadowing her character growth. At the beginning, when Bill describes the unfinished third painting, he says, “there’s no hope for her.” However, over the course of the play, Tommy finds her natural grace, beauty, and confidence. She asserts that she is the true “Wine in the Wilderness” when she says, “Bill, I don't have to wait for anybody's by-your-leave to be a "Wine In The Wilderness" woman. I can be it if I wanta,... and I am. I am. I am.” When she sheds her role as the third painting, it implies that there is hope for Tommy’s “tomorrow.”