World Literature Essay Number Two: -- English Literature

World Literature Essay Number Two: The symbolism of Blood and Water in the play â€Å"Blood Wedding† The two word title of the play â€Å"Blood Wedding† by Frederico Garcia Lorca presents both a contradiction and a concurrence. These themes continue throughout the play, and the two words of the title are used to capture the essence of the contrasting movements of its action. The wedding symbolises the harmony of man and woman, and the continuation of life. Blood too symbolises these things, however it also evokes contrasting feelings of violence, death and destruction. Blood represents the strength of the blood ties in families, and promotes the sense of repeating history which is evident throughout the play, as well as fertility and the cyclical nature of life. Used in another way, the literary references to blood create a sense of destiny, the blood choosing the path of the characters. Blood also represents and is used to express extreme passion in the characters. It also reinforces the violence to which the characters in the play are exposed and take part in. The strongest symbolic use of blood, which is carried throughout the play, is the link it creates between the characters and their ancestors, and the sense of history being repeated. This is evident from the very beginning of the play, when the mother speaks about the death of her husband and her son. She asks herself why a man would be killed just because he â€Å"goes out to his vines or his olives †¦ because they are his passed down to him from his fathers†[1]. The mother is talking to her son, the bridegroom, and so from the beginning we know that his father and brother were both murdered, and thus he is immediately linked by his blood to violence and k... ... It is also introduced in order to provide the light by which the bridegroom and the townspeople may hunt for the bride and Leonardo. The light of the moon is cold, and this light is the mechanism by which the blood is able to be spilled. The moon brings in a surreal aspect to the play in that it is represented by a woodcutter, and has its own purpose and desires. Blood represents three recurring themes in the play â€Å"Blood Wedding†. It creates a strong sense of inevitability of events by symbolising links to the past by family and blood line. It also enforces the idea of the inescapability of fate and the cyclical nature of life and recurring events across generations. It is also used to represent the extreme emotions felt by the characters, and to show the depth of their passion. The final theme is that of violence, which is present throughout the play.