“Life is partly what we make it, and partly what it is made by the friends we choose”

THEMES: 

1,Manliness vs homosexuality

ManXGay 

Brick, he is strong, perfect man. He is married to CAT, the symbol of "broken manliness". He is the favourite son, the muscular guy, sportman. Why do the author choose the name Brick? "brick"-is strong building material, is that a symbol for his character? Brick is an alcoholic who cannot avow the desire in his relationship with his best frind Skipper. Because of it, he keep distanced from the world around him and his best friend became alcohol. For Maggie it is hard, because she cannot speak about Skipper. The only person who force him to talk about the real truth about Skipper is Big Daddy. THIS IS THE RESPECT!

2,THE LIE

The total play is about lying, about mendacity, about vileness. The doctors are lying about the health of Big Daddy. Brick is using the "lies and liars" for the society he lives in. The idyllic fantasy of lovely family restored in the end of the book, however it is another lie, because Maggie invention of a coming baby is a LIE! Brick and Big Daddy are same, both of them pretend their love to their wifes! 

'Man's Fate': that he has it still in his power not to squeal like a pig but to keep a tight mouth about it."

3, THE CAT ON A HOT TIN ROOF

The cat is a symbol for mendacity women, for women with two faces, but it is also the feminine desire. T. Williams uses typical hysterical, dissatisfies woman in his plays to prostrate themselves with typical "women" style. Maggie is the cat because she feel lonely and this made her bitter and anxious. T.Williams makes the audience think about each character, but Maggie creat mysterious atmosphere. I see all women who are in the same situation like she is thinking and wondering about the life. 

.....need to finish it ! 

What's going on?

What happened in the first act? 

"Maggie trying to force Brick" 

The best new! Big Daddy is not dying! That's the most significant event! Everybody is happy. So far Maggie and Brick are talking in their room (about Brick's brother and Mae). Maggie is the one who hates children and she manifests it very often. While talking with Brick, he is drinking alcohol and answering her with arrogance and ignorance. Their talk is interrupted with children, Mae or Big Mamma. Brick has some mental problem with Maggie, because he does not trust her and doesn't care about her, it has to do with his best friend Skipper ( by the way he is dead). Maggie is trying to convince Brick to be happy, celebrate Big Daddy B-day and to not drink! Once Maggie mention Skipper, Brick gets angry, nervous and drinks more and more! He expleins his problem with alcohol:  "The click I get in my head when I've had enough of this stuff to make me peaceful", this is symbol of psychological/menat balance. After time of useless conversation between those two, Maggie tries to force him to sign the card for Big Daddy.

Soooooo sad:( Maggie: "I'm not living with you. We occupy the same cage." Brick: "You've got to remember the conditons agreed on"

At that time Mae enters the room. Mae is provoking Maggie with childrens which she cannot have. Than the conversation between Maggie and Brick continues. ( I'm not going to tell you all details, because you should read the book). Than here we are Big Mamma comes to the room. She is annoying with her "mummy" question to her lovely son Brick. But the main reason why she came to the room is the health new about Big Daddy. She  is a gossip, because she calls it to everybody. Big Mamma is the mother-in-law nobody wants to have, because  questions like "D'you make Brick happy in bed?" is not the question I would like to hear from her.

At the end of the act one, Maggie says the truth about the healt to Brick. He is surprised and shocked. The conversation between M+B gets to the boiling point, because Maggie again talks about Skipper. Brick starts to yell "shut up"!. IS HE A GAY OR WHAT ?  I don't want to show you only the first theme in the play, so as you know "money, money, money" it is the reason why the whole family met in the house. They all want the property of dying Big Daddy!

ACT TWO- I've already started to read it, but I will tell you more this week. That means I know what is going on, but I've question for you. What do you expect to happen next?

Cat on a Hot Tin Roof- story of today's world?

To understand the plot, you should know about the time period. As I mentioned in my first contribution the play takes place in a Mississippi Delta (USA). The rich Big Daddy owns the fertiliest soil/land and he is an millionare. As you know the whole play is set in in the bed-sitting room of a plantation home" where Brick, Gooper, Big Mamma and May are those who were rich from the beggining. The only two who grow up with no money and were poor are Maggie and Big Daddy. Big Daddy was a guy working at plantation many years ago and because he was hard-working he become rich. BUT, what about Maggie? She is from poor family, she has never ever had money to buy nice clothes, delicious food....WHY? Because she was from "South". As everybody knows from czech lessons or history classess, NORTHxSOUTH=RICHxPOOR.

There are several motifs: social mores, greed, mendacity, sexual desire, death, superficiality

As I'm reading the book I'm surprised with the language which is used "goddam, 'em, wint=went). I was wondering when were those words used and it is connected with South, because the whole language which is used in the book is an accent.

It is fact that they have "Negroes" as employees, which we can connect with the situation/period the play is set in. " Negroes in white jackets enter with an enormous birthday cake ablaze with candles and carrying buckets of champagne...." From this it is obvious that in 1955 "Negroes" were those who do not have that much right still. 

IS THAT POSSIBLE TO HAPPEN IN 21ST CENTURY? 

Rich "dad" is dying of a cancer and what do you think deceitful children will do? They will want his property! In my opinion it is very possible this has happend somewhere in the wordl. 

"My dad died and he gave me all his money" 

The play by T.Williams is relevant in any time! 

In the 21st century we can see many weddings just because of money/property which means there is no any love in a relationship. What is interesting about the play COAHTF? Even in the 1955 T.Williams was living in a period where two-faced people lived in a family. Money change character! 

Really, I've started to read the book!

Today I was just in a bed mood, but I was surprised when a book which I ordered from UK arrived. To lazy to do something I opened the first page and I couldn't stop!

So far I find out that the play is devided into ACT ONE,TWO and THREE.
Right now I should tell you something about the main characters! And you will not believe me, but I enjoyed reading the book.

Let's start with my favourite character and it is:


Margaret (by the way I call her Maggie)
She is that cat! She is a gorgeous and bright cat. Maggie is the woman who is missing love. How can a "hot" lady like her miss a love? Her husband Brick's refuse her, because of his best friends Skipper. (I'm sorry, but I can't tell you more about him right now...or little I can....he thinks she cheated him with Skipper). Maggie is the character who transfixed everybody! With all her effort to love her, to listen to her or just to amaze she creates perfect atmoshpere in the play. She is a desperate women in her sense of loneliness for sex, friends, children which is creating with intense envy, longing and possession. Maggie hates Mae+ Gooper+ 5 children because they are insincere ($$$$$$$). She call Mae's children "NO-NECK MONSTERS", which makes me laugh all the time I read it! In the Act One, Maggie is trying to seduce her husband with all ladies power.                                                                                                                    

"What is the victory of cat on a hot tin roof?--I wish I knew...
Just staying on it, I guess,as long as she can"

Brick: 


The favorite son, alcoholic and stubborn man. He is a perfect guy with muscles and strong body. By the time  I read the first act, I'm confused with his orientation, because he is not inlove with his beautiful wife. Is he really a gay? No he is not! But you ladies know that men are stubborns, which means they believe their best friends instead of their wife, but I'm not telling all do! How is he like? He is ignoring Maggie and he shows it with clear short answers. In my eyes he is missing something from the childhood, because he doesn't even want to celebrate Big Daddy birthday or sign into his greeting card. Sometimes it does look like he wants Maggie to leave him. But what surprise me is that is the only one with no interest of money!

Maybe that's why he doesn't like Maggie...

                                                    

Mae:

Even thoug I haven't watch the movie yet, I imagine Mae as ugly, squeal woman. She is a robot ("monster of fertility") who wants with her husband Gooper all property of Big Daddy! She is annoying with false love to her children. The only thing she wants is money, money, money! 

BIG MAMMA

She is Brick's mother. So far she is a old, fat, earnes, sincere lady who loves her husbnad and children. She is irritating person with huge worry of her lovely son Brick. She feels like a queen in her house and she doesn't like to change her routine. She is inlove with Big Daddy and with the new from the "Ochsner Clinic" that Big Daddy is not dying she is the happiest person ever. ( Poor she, she doesn't know the truth) 

So far there are no more characters you should know about. Wait, wait you will hear more about Gooper, Big Daddy and maybe anyone else. 

My favourite part (this make me laught for a while)

......Annoying Mae comes to Brick's room and starts to talk with her whistling voice.

Mae:

Oh, my! Brick---Brick, you should've been downstairs after supper! Kiddies put on a show. Polly played the piano, Buster an' Soony drums, an' then they turned out the lights an' Dixie an' Trixie puhfawmed a toe dance in a fairy costume with spabklubs! Big Daddy just beamed! He just beamed!

Margaret: (IRONY)

Oh, I bet. It breakes my heart that we missed it!

But Mae? Why did y'give dawgs' names to all your kiddies?

Mae:

Dog's names? 

Margaret:

Dixie, Trixie, Buster, Sonny, Polly!--Sounds like four dogs and a parrot.....

Thomas Lanier Williams = "TENNESSEE WILLIAMS" 

SMILE

In the small town of Colombus (Mississippi), talented boy was born. 
Cat on the Hot Tin Roof is about rich family. Big Daddy is the boss, but his son Brick thinks he does not have any feeling and never ever love him. 
But how can a writer as T.Williams write this play? Who influenced him? HIS LIFE,HIS FAMILY! His father was an international shoe salesman, but also heavy drinker and smoker. Because of that he spends lot of his time with his sister and grandmother. He misses the strong "father hand".
Tennessee studied at different universities, but all he wanted to do there was writing. It was the escape from the outside world for him. At University of Iowa he received his nickname "Tennessee", because everybody knows that he is from south."It's better than being called Mississippi," he joked. His plays follow what he calls the "memory play" format.


" He spent most of his time closing his eyes. He could see wonderful, magnificent scenes in his mind." Anonymous critic.


Do you know that he wrote 38 plays, 9 fiction, 3 poetry and 8 other works? Let me think, you don't know any of his plays, but that's why I'm here!