The greater the Gülleners’ debts, the greater their incentive to accept Claire’s offer and kill Ill for money. With every new purchase, then, the townspeople further commodify Ill, raising the price on his head. The yellow shoes are among the many purchases the townspeople make on credit; some Gülleners opt for expensive chocolate or Schnapps, others for gold teeth and expensive clothing, but all of them sport these yellow clogs. The shoes—bright and ubiquitous—visibly represent Güllen’s decline into frantic, amoral consumerism at the expense of Ill’s life and human dignity.
Yellow Shoes Quotes in The Visit
ILL: You’ve got new shoes. New yellow shoes.
SECOND MAN: So?
ILL: You, too, Hofbauer. You, too, are wearing new shoes. (He looks at the women, walks over to them slowly, horrified.) You too. New yellow shoes. New yellow shoes.
Yellow Shoes Symbol Timeline in The Visit
