The author, Edward Albee was adopted at a young age by two parents who did not always except him for him. Conflict was something that he had to deal with and it also made a difference in his writing.
This play begins with Mommy and Daddy sitting in their New York city apartment living room which we have come to believe it takes place at some point in the 1950's. Grandma lives with Mommy and Daddy and is ridiculed mostly by Mommy throughout the whole play. Mommy and Daddy continuously converse about how the person is late, "Why are they so late? Why can't they get here on time?" (16). We find out this mystery person is Mrs. Barker of Bye-Bye Adoption Service. Grandma tells a story to Mrs. Barker about a couple "similar" to Mommy and Daddy. They previously mutilated their adopted son which resulted in death. Another knock on the door occurs and it is the Young Man. This Young Man is very attractive but has been wounded deeply inside. The ironic part is this boy is their previous son's twin. Mommy and Daddy are drawn to his outer features, as this is what they find important. The play concludes with Grandma hiding off to the side and Mommy and Daddy clinging to this new Young Man. The Young Man is perceived as the "American Dream."
Motifs:
- Emasculation, gender roles, sexuality, control: Right from the start, the in masculinity of Daddy was quite obvious. He is constantly being thrown under the bus by Mommy, was forced to forego a sex change, and was unable to remember simple things such as Mrs. Barker's name. For example, "... that name again?" (23).
- Boxes, new versus old: The boxes play a large role in this play. Grandma is very persistent on making sure the boxes look nice and it is a mystery until the end with what is in them. Grandma is "packing up the old" into the boxes. Mommy and Daddy only chose to comment on the surface of the boxes, which is very important to them. Daddy says, "They're wrapped so nicely" (14). It can also be interpreted as Grandma representing the old American Dream, and Mommy and Daddy representing the new one. Grandma is a hard wo
- Social status, manners, artificiality: Mommy and Daddy care a great deal about where they fit on the social ladder. Mommy is very persistent on getting the wheat colored hat when she originally received the beige hat. But, the crazy thing is... they are the same hat! Mommy says, "They have artificial light, Daddy." (10 ) Mommy was upset about the artificial or fake light, but fake is all she is too.
Overall Theme:
Consumerism is corrupting American societal structure and values.
Hi Hunter,
ReplyDeleteNicely done. There are just a few points you need to add that are required. You need to talk about the point of view of the play somewhere and you also need to have some information about Edward Albee in this post as well. Lastly, I think you meant to say “bus” in your section about gender roles, emasculation, and sexuality, and control, but you said “bust”. Just a heads up.
I really liked how you explained the motifs. I hadn’t really thought about how the outside of the boxes seemed so important to Mommy and Daddy. Now if you consider that Grandma was the one that was wrapping them, what does that say about her? I also really liked how you pointed out that Mommy is as artificial as the lights she complains about. It’s a great analogy.
Hey Hunter! Again, I like how easy to follow your posts are! I think that will really help you later on when you study as well. I like how you integrated the quotes into your post, however you might want to highlight them or write them in a separate part so that you can easily study them apart from the rest of the information. I like how you talked about the new vs old with the boxes, but I might add more about new vs. old American Dream as a whole. I think also one part that might help you later on is to mention what each character symbolizes in society. I would also elaborate on how the theme is supported through the play. Good job with this post!
ReplyDeleteThis is a very good post! You made it very organized and readable, kind of like notes. Should boxes be the sole example under new versus old? I would add more, they are abundant in this play. Your summary is very nice. Could there be other reasons why Daddy can't recall Ms. Barker's name? Just something to keep you thinking. Maybe you could put a paragraph explaining the theme more, as well? A bit more support for it would be nice. What does Grandma's leaving and moving out with the boxes signify in this play? The integration of the quotes is very helpful, it reads more easitly. Overall a good paper.
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