Genre
Drama
Language
English
Setting and Context
Army Barracks outside of Washington D.C. 1965
Narrator and Point of View
POV is that of Roger and Billy
Tone and Mood
Serious, Dramatic
Protagonist and Antagonist
Protagonist is Roger and Billy. Antagonists are Carlyle, Richie and Billy
Major Conflict
Billy does not want Richie to act out being gay while he is with him.
Climax
Billy attempts to stand up to Richie and Carlyle when they want to have sex and Carlyle stabs and kills him.
Foreshadowing
Carlyle's aggression early in the play foreshadows his violent nature which leads to him killing Billy and Rooney.
Understatement
It is understated as to whether Billy's story was about him or truly about his friend Frankie.
Allusions
The play is an allusion to the fact that there are everyday wars that exist in our country that are killing people while we send men to die as soldiers overseas.
Imagery
At the end of the play, there are two dead soldiers in the Army barracks. The imagery evokes the understanding that most of these men haven't even seen a battlefield and yet they have already experienced murder.
Paradox
Carlyle is the greatest paradox in the play. He is violent, murderous and yet seeks beauty in his life.
Parallelism
Cokes coming into the barracks singing the streamers song in his version of Korean at the end of the play parallels he and Rooney singing the song earlier in the play.
Personification
The conflict between Billy and Carlyle personifies the everyday conflict between white and black and how the white man attempts to tell the black man what is right and wrong and the black man having to resort to violence.
Use of Dramatic Devices
Cokes' monologue at the end of the play brings the room and the horror of the murders just prior to a deafening silence as he speaks about the power that each individual is given to take life from another human being.
