Churchill represents women throughout the ages as controlled by the patriarchal elements of society which have persisted through time. Through the character of Marlene, audiences observe how she assumes a patriarchal role over the group, suggesting that the pursuit of female agency leads to replacing the pre-existing societal power imbalances.
Churchill uses a unique and fluid structuring of her characters’ dialogue to present Marlene as empowered, with the structure supporting her steering of the group’s conversations and its characters. In the introduction, Marlene asks the waiter for a “table for six. One of them’s going to be late but we won’t wait”. Marlene is characterised as inpatient, and disrespectful to the latecomer. As a result, Churchill uses Marlene’s subversion of the ettiquette that dominated her society to reinforce Marlene’s power over the group and her society, as she is able to resist convention without interference. Throughout the dinner scene, Marlene is seen interrupting the characters, and when Nijo says that “Priests were often vagrants, so why not a nun? You think I shouldn’t? /” Marlene interrutps her to clarify “No no, I think you should.” As Isabella remarks how “My father taught me Latin although I was a girl. /But”, she is also interrupted by Marlene who nonchalantly comments “They didn’t have Latin at my school”. Churchill utilises her natural, organic dialogue to convey how Marlene has a tendency to interrupt the other women. I interpret that Marlene is to be acted out as intrusive and disruptive, and as a result Churchill suggests that Marlene has power over the other women in her excessive and sometimes meaningless commentary. Audiences recognise that most times Marlene is simply interrupting for the sake for interrupting, and her freely doing so further suggests her power over the group. Hence, through the construction of the play’s dialogue Churchill is able to portray Marlene as with agency over the group.
I don't like this one. Dialogue is good but like didn't use conventions or metalanguage well. Characterisation is alright but needs to be used less generically.
