Fuch’s Questions:

– What is the space like?

Mostly interior, at Lemon’s home. Sometime is public space. But it should be changed based on the times change.

– How does time behave?

In the play, the time doesn’t stand still. It’s marked with Lemon’s memories from childhood to adult. It’s nonlinear time.

– How about the climate?

It is seasonal. But the feeling is like wintry or autumnal, because the depression of mood.

– What is the mood?

Ironic sepulchral. The dark room in the first scene, the character’s disease and the political background is the foreshadow of the mood.

– How do the characteristics relate to the represented world?

Like many stories happened in the real world at that time, but it smacks of exaggeration.

– Is this a public world, or private? 

It represents the public world, but the story happens in a private world.

– In what kinds of patterns do the figures arrange themselves?

There are two central figures surrounded by a group, from families to friends.

– How do figures appear on this planet?

There are two typical kinds of figures. One group are wealthy and seemingly well-mannered people, but saying and doing outrageous things.

The other group are like Lemon’s parents, described by Lemon as ”kind of a caged animal”, who are just too normal and socialized.

The two figures interact by fighting reasoned discussion.

– Who has power?

Aunt Dan was the principal influence on Lemon. So she has the power.

– What are the language habits?

Mostly radical dialogue and full of metaphorical language. Some of Lemon’s tone would sounds innocent.

– What changes?

It changes in time, through the stages of a human life.

– What doesn’t change?

Aunt Dan and Lemon’s shared values.

– What has this stage demanded of me?

Mr. Shawn didn’t blame on Lemon’s callous political ideology she inherits from Aunt Dan, which makes the audience very uncomfortable. But opening to debate is the stimulating feature of this play.

 

Sentences of the story:

– One Simple Sentence

It’s about Aunt Dan and Lemon’s distorted morality.

 

– One Complex Sentence

It’s about under the influence of Aunt Dan, how Lemmon’s morality was distorted since childhood.

 

– Three to Five Sentence version of the story

It’s about how young Lemmon’s morality was distorted under the guidance of Aunt Dan’s moral education, and the impact was life long. It’s not only showing that how easily to put an innocent child under bad influence and create worship towards that bad model, but also a metaphor about how literate, civilized societies can drift into ruthless and commit the most obscene acts of history. Mr. Shawn put forward the doubt and challenge to the society’s common values.

 

 “Cornell Box”

This play makes people feel dark and bleak, so I chosen black box and black and white pictures. It’s also about Lemon’s memory, so black and white scene makes more sense.

The background picture is a man holding a poster. The positive words on that is the opposite of the dialogue in the play, but I thought it’s kind of indicating what the writer wanted to say but refused to say.

The window on the top layer makes the box look like a private room. Opening the window, you can see the innocent face of Lemon and her aunt Dan.

By putting fallen leaves before Lemon’s eye, I wanted to make a metaphor that her view of the truth was overshadowed by the callous stuff. Although the stuff still looks alive, it’s going to die.