마리아 아이린 포네즈의『사리타』: 반사실주의적 특성과 사리타의 갈등 간의 연계성 연구

Abstract

This paper aims to explore the connection between anti-realistic characteristics and Sarita’s conflicts in Sarita. These characteristics are songs, dances, letter readings, and a prayer. This paper will prove that Sarita can be viewed in terms of multiculturalism revealing Sarita’s emotional, cultural, and religious conflicts extracted from the analysis of these characteristics. The functions of the 12 songs in the play are as follows: disturbing both the linear movement of the plot and the spectators’ empathy with the main characters; providing the dramatic interest for the spectators; reinforcing the storyline concerning the singing character(s); exposing the character’s inner emotions and values that are not expressed through his/her lines; foreshadowing the character’s future events. And the functions of the dances in the play are to provide the spectators with spectacular scenes and slacken their tension. By the way, the function of letter readings and a prayer is to express directly Sarita’s emotional conflicts to the spectators. If we extract Sarita’s conflicts from the analysis of these characteristics, they are her emotional ones with Julio and Mark and her cultural and religious ones with Mark. As for her emotional ones, she frees herself from Julio by killing him and trying to keep her healthy love for Mark. Although she does not succeed in overcoming her inner disease after the murder, the ending that Mark and Sarita’s hands intertwine forcefully indicates her hopeful relationship with him. As for her cultural ones, it is not probable that it will have a destructive impact on her relationship with Mark. On the contrary, it is uncertain whether she will surmount her religious conflicts with him. Sarita’s Santeria and Mark’s Protestantism can always collide with each other and cause great trouble because of their incompatibility. Though it is centered on the female character, Sarita is not a feministic play in that her emotional conflicts have been overcome to a certain extent, her cultural ones can be overcome, and her religious ones are difficult to overcome. Thus, from the multiculturalistic viewpoint, Sarita’s main conflicts are not completely settled to the end. Therefore, Fornes induces American readers/audiences to seriously reflect on the plans for overcoming the cultural conflicts and religious conflicts in Sarita.