Foreshadowing and Dramatic Irony in Death and the Maiden Essay

Foreshado benefitg is the warning or the indicant that something else is going to happen later(prenominal) on in the story. In terminal and the Maiden, Ariel Dorfman uses this literary device to the maximum, exploring all the different shipway he can make the proofreader predict or foresee whats going to happen next. However, Dorfman also portion step to the fores on the hearings ideas and implements dramatic sarcasm, prominent the biz a twist of events and fashioning the audience question themselves and their own theories as to why the character acts that way or why the author set things as they are.Dorfman takes the idea of dramatic mockery when referring to the characters and their roles in the take. The greatest contrast in the play is between Paulina and Gerardo. Paulina Salas, a forty stratum old woman, waits for her maintain late at night when she sees a car observe towards her house. At first, Paulina is presented as the typical house wife, scared, insecure, true and loving towards her husband, who might even quality inferior, since she feels safer and secure when she has the gun. There is, however, an understatement, between the roles Paulina and her husband, Gerardo Escobar, play. number 1 he calls her Poor little ready sex ( achievement 1, Scene 1, p. 4) and continues to see her as his little, dependant, fragile, use woman, that can plainly do what women at the time were supposed to do housework. Yet, during their conversations she only gives him sharp, short responses, most of the time likely even a bit fierce GERARDO Im really not in the mood for arguing, barely we had hold that PAULINA You were supposed to do it. I take care of the house, and you take care of- GERARDO You move intot want help provided afterwards you PAULINA -the car at least.GERARDO afterward you complain. PAULINA I never complain. GERARDO This is an absurd discussion. Whatre we fighting about? Ive already forgotten what we PAULINA Were not fighting, darling. You incriminate me of not fixing your spare (Death and the Maiden, Act 1, Scene 1) This conversation images the idea of sexual urge roles in the play, and how later on she becomes in-charge and Gerardo becomes the wife, she wants to be in control, wants to have authority, but in a more passive-aggressive manner.In addition, one can also ask about Paulinas love-hate relationship with Gerardo, as she is clearly very emotionally connected to him, yet seems as though she treats him with a sort of disrespect or gravelly manner. Paulinas strange relationship also brings the audience to question this womans sense of judgment, and maybe even her past.Ironically, later she refers to him as my little man, separate with how he called her, and making sure that Gerardo knows that he is her husband, and shes in charge. Furthermore, Dorfman shows the dramatic irony in the gender roles once Paulina finds out about Doctor Miranda and gets the gun.At the rootage of the play, the gun was a sign of golosh and security, and by the climax, she uses the gun to manipulate Roberto and Gerardo to do what she wants, and what she says is fair. GERARDO Paulina, Im ask you to please give me that gun. PAULINA No. GERARDO duration you point it at me, there is no possible dialogue. PAULINA On the contrary, as before long as I stop pointing it at you, all dialogue will mechanically terminate. If it intrust it down, youll use your strength to win the argument.(Death and the Maiden, Act 1, scene 4, pgs- 24-25) Paulina knows that without the gun, she is hopeless. Her own husband wont listen to her, and they think shes completely crazy. All she wants is judge and to make things even between her thinkable rapist, Dr. Miranda, and her. However, the strength shes is referring to is open to the audiences interpretation. It might have something to do with his metaphorical strength, his job as a lawyer, is to bring out justice and put things back the way they were the way th ings have always been done.A more unlikely idea is that it could be a point of filename extension to his physical strength, since men are more often than not stronger than women, which relates to the fact that Paulina was raped and tortured, making reference to sort of, in a way, chivalric him to physically win over her. In conclusion, Ariel Dorfman uses foreshadowing to help the audience shape their own ideas and theories regarding the play, yet uses dramatic irony to, in a way, twist the plot to sort of give it an interesting cultivate of events, like the gender roles in Death and the Maiden? and give the audience something they hadnt thought of, hence, the irony.