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Definition of Motif
A motif is an element or idea that recurs throughout a work of literature. Motifs, which are often collections of related symbols, help develop the central themes of a book... read full definition
A motif is an element or idea that recurs throughout a work of literature. Motifs, which are often collections of related symbols, help develop the... read full definition
A motif is an element or idea that recurs throughout a work of literature. Motifs, which are often collections of... read full definition
Act 1, Scene 2
Explanation and Analysis—Carrying the Past:
Throughout the play, the motif of the burden or weight of the past recurs, specifically the idea that one carries the past with them. In Act 1, Scene 2, Wining Boy talks about the difficulties of being known as a performer and why he gave up playing piano:
I give that piano up. That was the best thing that ever happened to me, getting rid of that piano. That piano got so big and I'm carrying it around on my back. I don't wish that on nobody...Got to carrying that piano around and man did I get slow. Got just like molasses.
When he was only known as a piano player, Wining Boy felt limited in life. The burden of expectation and a repetitive lifestyle weighed him down and ultimately made life less livable. Since he is not literally carrying a piano on his back, this motif also functions as a metaphor.
Later, in Act 2, Scene 2, Avery detects a similar burden in Berniece. He tells her she needs to shake off the ghost of her dead husband, Crawley, and start living again:
How long you gonna carry Crawley with you, Berniece? It's been over three years. At some point you got to let go and go on...You can't go through life carrying Crawley's ghost with you.
While it's okay to mourn, Avery is worried that Berniece is trapped by the past, that it physically and emotionally prevents her from going anywhere and doing anything with her life.
Explanation and Analysis—Music:
Music is a central motif in the play. Not only do the events of the play revolve around the piano (and who gets to use, own, or sell it), but music appears in the play more directly many times.
Characters like Doaker, Boy Willie, and Wining Boy break out into song, usually singing old work songs that deal with the ups and downs of Black life in America and the role of religion and spirituality in that life.
Music also brings the characters together, despite their clashing personalities:
BOY WILLIE: They had Lymon down there singing:
O Lord Berta Berta O Lord gal oh-ah
O Lord Berta Berta O Lord gal well
(LYMON and WINING BOY join in.)
Go 'head marry don't you wait on me oh-ah
Go 'head marry don't you wait on me well
Might not want you when I go free oh-ah
Might not want you when I go free well
BOY WILLIE: Come on, Doaker. Doaker know this one.
(As DOAKER joins in the men stamp and clap to keep time. They sing in harmony with great fervor in style.)
The men have been discussing difficult topics like racism and imprisonment, but this musical interlude temporarily eases the tension. Each time a character joins the song, it becomes more powerful and unified.
At the end of the play, Berniece finally participates in the music, which resolves the central conflict between her and Boy Willie. As long as she and Maretha keep playing, Boy Willie agrees to stay out of their business.
Act 2, Scene 2
Explanation and Analysis—Carrying the Past:
Throughout the play, the motif of the burden or weight of the past recurs, specifically the idea that one carries the past with them. In Act 1, Scene 2, Wining Boy talks about the difficulties of being known as a performer and why he gave up playing piano:
I give that piano up. That was the best thing that ever happened to me, getting rid of that piano. That piano got so big and I'm carrying it around on my back. I don't wish that on nobody...Got to carrying that piano around and man did I get slow. Got just like molasses.
When he was only known as a piano player, Wining Boy felt limited in life. The burden of expectation and a repetitive lifestyle weighed him down and ultimately made life less livable. Since he is not literally carrying a piano on his back, this motif also functions as a metaphor.
Later, in Act 2, Scene 2, Avery detects a similar burden in Berniece. He tells her she needs to shake off the ghost of her dead husband, Crawley, and start living again:
How long you gonna carry Crawley with you, Berniece? It's been over three years. At some point you got to let go and go on...You can't go through life carrying Crawley's ghost with you.
While it's okay to mourn, Avery is worried that Berniece is trapped by the past, that it physically and emotionally prevents her from going anywhere and doing anything with her life.
