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Foreshadowing
Frame Story
Explanation and Analysis—Foregone Conclusion:
Scene 1 and Scene 8 are framing devices for the remainder of the internal structure of The Emperor Jones. The play begins by introducing Jones as an unreliable narrator, an emperor fleeing in the midst of an uprising—and it ends with Jones's death at the hands of Lem and his men. This context of Jones’s conflict with the native inhabitants of the island colors the sequence of flashbacks and hallucinations that occur in Scenes 2 through 7. The world outside the forest frames the one within, contributing to the nightmarish slippage of time that occurs as Jones falls further into his memories.
Related Themes:
