Genre
Play
Language
English
Setting and Context
The action of the play takes place in the south part of the country in the middle of the 20th century.
Narrator and Point of View
Because this is a play, there is no point of view and no narrator.
Tone and Mood
Tragic, dramatic, violent
Protagonist and Antagonist
The protagonists are the black community and the antagonists are the racists white community.
Major Conflict
The major conflict is between Lyle and the black people who try to avenge the death of Richard Henry.
Climax
The play reaches its climax when Richard is killed.
Foreshadowing
In the first act, Lyle mentions how he killed another black man and how he was not punished for that murder because he claimed it was self-defense. This foreshadows how Richard’s death will remain unpunished as well.
Understatement
The claim that Richard’s mother felt down the stairs and died is an understatement, as it is later proven she was pushed down the stairs by the white people in the hotel where she was working.
Allusions
One of the major things alluded in the play is the idea that the American justice system will let white men who killed black men go unpunished for the simple fact they are white men.
Imagery
An important imagery is the way in which white men are portrayed. While black men are seen as sexual predators women have to be protected from, the white men are seen as brave knights that have to protect the white women.
Paradox
A paradoxical idea appears in the first act when Richard is described as having a gun and talking about not being afraid to use it to protect himself. Despite his words, when the time came, Richard was unable to protect himself and thus he died as a result.
Parallelism
There are parallelisms in the story.
Personification
No personification found.
Use of Dramatic Devices
The narrator uses flashbacks to present events from the past and also to reveal various information important for understanding the plot.
