Mrs
Mrs. Cage (a play)Thesis Topic: Caged Birds Gone Mad
Women today tend to speak assertively for their rights. However, the social structures in which we live sometimes still make it difficult for us to actualize the full range of our creative abilities. In literature as dated as fairy tales and Greek mythology, writers have used characters who exemplified the caged woman. In the fairy tales, Sleeping Beauty is "caged" behind a wall of briars and Snow White is trapped inside a glass coffin. Ironically, both princesses were caged by a madwoman who was once a caged bird herself. The Greek story of Medea's Revenge, tells of Medea, a woman who feels so rejected by her husband that she kills their children because their features and mannerisms are like those of their father. The forgotten godmother, the jealous stepmother, and Medea all represent caged birds gone mad. In Nancy Barr's play, Mrs. Cage, Lillian Cage is a perfect example of a woman whose mobility has been reduced by mainly her marriage, her social standing and upbringing.
Mrs. Cage was trapped in a stifling marriage where she was simply a status symbol to her husband. She helped him project the type of image he needed as an attorney. Mr. Cage paid her little attention after Elizabeth was born and this caused Lillian's slow but obvious progression from a caged woman to a madwoman. It may have begun with her ironing his shirts.
One of Mrs. Cage's favorite memories is of the times when Mr. Cage had difficult cases and needed her to bring new shirts to the courthouse. It seems her only real connection with him is in his shirts. She had obviously become obsessed even to the point where it was obvious to Elizabeth who tells her to take the shirts to the cleaners. Lillian becomes very upset with this suggestion-a sign to the audience of her rising anxiety.
Lillian is also bound by the conventions of her social standing. One of Mrs. Cage's main concerns is a good appearance. She judges people by their cleanliness and manners for she feels this is what she's judged by. In the screenplay, all of the appliances and walls in the house are white or light pastel colors. These colors tend to be hard to keep clean, however Mrs. Cage not only manages to keep them clean, but gleaming. When she cooks dinner, she prepares a full course meal. When she leaves the house, simply to go to the grocery store, she puts on make-up, pantyhose, and even a slip. This proves that she is not only concerned with what people think about her inside of her home, but she is also concerned with how she presents...
To view the complete essay, you be registered.