These Shining Lives Analysis Storyline These Shining Lives chronicles the true story of Catherine Donohue and three other of the other women who worked in the Radium Dial factory during the 1920’s and 1930’s. Despite the women being knowingly mistreated and their health dismissed by the management, they refuse to let the company get away with this injustice and go to the courts. While the fight goes on, the friendship between the women remains strong and Catherine eventually wins her case. Theme The theme of this play is centered around time; the value of the little time we have been given and how that time should be used to live for what is right and what truly matters. Exposition Most of the exposition happens in the beginning of the play. On pages 10 and 11 the women “set the stage” for us. First, Catherine tells us about herself. “I live in Ottawa, Illinois,” she says, and “I have two children that I love. I have a husband that I love.” Next a slide comes up reading “Chicago in the Gilded Age, The Roaring ‘20’s.” Then Frances, Charlotte and Pearl tell us about important people and events of the time. “Mayor “Big Bill” Thompson is running the city,” says Frances. Charlotte adds “So are Johnny Tori and Al Capone.” Later we hear about the Radium Dial Company and its history. On page 12 Catherine and Tom discuss Catherine’s new job. …show more content…
At the beginning of the show Charlotte does not like Catherine. Catherine even confronts her about it on page 22 when the girls are making plans to go out and get ice cream. Charlotte makes excuses so she can avoid going out. However, Catherine tells her, “You don't have plans. You just don't want to go out with me.” Catherine is determined to win her co-worker over. “You're gonna like me yet, Charlotte Purcell,” she remarks. By the end of the show, many years later in the play time, Charlotte has changed her mind. “Catherine Donohue….You're my hero.” she says on page
The story begins in “Catfish Row” a small coastal town based on the real town of Cabbage Row in Charleston, South Carolina during the 1920’s. The main protagonist of the story and leading man is Porgy, a disabled beggar man who is known for riding his goat cart around Charleston. Bess is the leading lady of the opera and is in an unhealthy relationship with Crown, a powerful, violent, alcoholic, short-tempered stevedore (dockworker). Act I starts with a lullaby being sang to a small baby by a young mother named Clara, as she sings the men of Catfish Row prepare for a crap game, prior to the game, Crown purchases whisky and Cocaine from the Sportin’ Life, the local drug dealer of the town, during the crap game, Crown who is very drunk kills a local man named Robbins, Crown flees Catfish Row and leaves Bess to fend for herself. Sportin’ Life who is attracted to Bess, he gives her cocaine and asks her to join him in New York, Bess refuses and is now alone, she has no where to go, she is rejected by all of the Catfish Row resident, all except for Porgy who takes her in. A funeral takes place for Robbins, Serena, Robbins’ wife acts very coldly towards Bess when she offers her donation to help pay for Robbins’s funeral cost until Bess explains that she is no longer with Crown, and now lives with Porgy. Soon after, a detective enters and tells Serena that if...
the play. It looks at the person he is and the person he becomes. It
The plot, Jackie navigates the life of a preteen in New York during the 1960s. This plot begins late in Jackie’s life since her story begins 12 years prior which is when she was born but begins at the most present moment in the play which is the now. Although all of the characters are being depicted through one phenomenal actress, the characters are limited to her parents, Perespone and her family, and the friends she makes along the way. As well as the scenes and locales are fairly limited all of the scenes take place on a geographic scale in New York, and on Erickson Street or Manhattan at her private school. This shown the privileges of a small set reaffirms the focus and tightness of the
The play is set at the back porch of a house in Chicago .It starts off when Robert wakes Catherine up at 1am past midnight, because it is Catherine’s 25th birthday. They decide to celebrate Catherine’s 25th birthday by having champagne that was lying on the table behind Robert. They have the typical birthday conversation a normal father-daughter would have.
In this essay I will be comparing two playwrights, A Raisin in the Sun and A Doll’s House, to one another. I will also compare the two to modern time and talk about whether or not over time our society has changed any. Each of these plays has a very interesting story line based in two very different time eras. Even though there is an 80 year time gap the two share similar problems and morals, things you could even find now in the year of 2016. In the following paragraphs I will go over the power of time and what we as a society have done to make a change.
...of the characters’ lives as their motivation affects what they do. The play’s overall theme of manipulation for personal gain as well as general control transmits to me clearly that we are not in control, of the events that happen to us. In spite of that revelation we are in control of the way in which we react to the circumstances in our lives. Hence, no human fully grasps the capabilities to control the way we act. We simply allow certain circumstances to overpower us and dictate our actions. Ultimately, I learned that we are our actions and consequently we should acknowledge the accountability that is implied when we act a certain way. Instead of blaming others for the mistakes we make, we should understand that we have the control as much as the power to make our own decisions rather than giving that ability someone else.
The theme of Our Town is that people do not truly appreciate the little things in daily life. This theme is displayed throughout the entire play. It starts in the beginning with everybody just going through their daily life, occasionally just brushing stuff off or entirely not doing or appreciating most things. But as you progress through the story you begin to notice and squander on the thought that the people in the play do not care enough about what is truly important. By the end of this play you realize that almost everybody does not care enough for the little things as they should, instead they only worry about the future, incessantly worrying about things to come.
The play is set in the 1920s when women started to receive clerical jobs and were expected to complete certain milestones in life. For example, in the scene labeled “at home” young woman – the main character – tells her mom that she is going to get married, because everybody does it, but then says she will not because she does not love Mr. Jones (Machinal). Ultimately her choice was to not get married, but in the end she does because her mom needs and wants her to get married for financial stability and the young woman feels that her destiny was to care for her mother. However, in the scene titled “prohibited”, the young woman starts deciding her destiny and chooses to cheat on her husband, Mr. Jones (Machinal). This is the moment when she realizes she can control her own destiny. That she does not have to be the happy housewife that society says her fate has to be. But there was still one problem, society still appeared to be in control of her destiny because she hasn’t decided on what her exact destiny would
In Langston Hughes’ poem, the author gives us vivid examples of how dreams get lost in the weariness of everyday life. The author uses words like dry, fester, rot, and stink, to give us a picture of how something that was originally intended for good, could end up in defeat. Throughout the play, I was able to feel how each character seemed to have their dreams that fell apart as the story went on. I believe the central theme of the play has everything to do with the pain each character goes thru after losing control of the plans they had in mind. I will attempt to break down each character’s dream and how they each fell apart as the play went on.
Munro, Alice. Lives of Girls and Women. New York: McGraw-Hill Book Company. January, 1974. Book.
reach into the ideas and themes of the play so we will have a good
His position in life can be regarded as symbolic of every black male struggling to provide for his family by any means necessary. Although Walter has a job, it seems inadequate for his survival. As a result, he has become frustrated and lacks good judgement. Throughout this play, Walter searches for the key ingredient that will make his life blissful. His frustrations stem from him not being able to act as a man and provide for his family and grasp hold of his ideals to watch them manifest into a positive situation.
In the beginning of the play, Walter is foolish and quarrelsome, with his heart set on becoming affluent. As he grasps how hard work his father worked and how hard his family works, he reasons that living by his standards is more important than gaining wealth, and he stops feeling resentful towards them. This play highlights how many members of society focus more on making money than living by their ethical
The theme of the play is also change. At the end of the play when
In this play Everyman makes a point and big emphasis that death is inevitable to every human being. This play is simply in its morality and in its story. You shouldn’t be so keen on all the material things in life and forget the purpose of your life. Your personal pleasures are merely transitory, but the eternal truth of life is that death is imminent and is eternal. It is the bitter truth that everyone has to accept it. If you are born you will die one day. Science does not believe in religion. But one day Science will also end in Religion. Everyone should live their life fearful of God and accept Christ as their Savior.