Sign Scene

These days, we have read about Brecht’s work Caucasian Chalk Circle. It was the most famous play among all the works that have done by him. It was about the political issue to the society and lead people to think deeply. Today, Ms.Guarino let us chose a sign scene among all of the scene that Grusha has faced. And we selected four scene out of a bunch of them. Then, we are just struggling with two scene. One was when Grusha, mother in law and Grusha’s brother. Mother in law only cares about her money than her son, and she just wants to get the money from her brother, and that’s it. Her greediness was filled with her heart that only wanted to have things that benefits her. Another was when Grusha goes to a peasant woman’s house, and decides to left her ‘child’ in the peasant’s woman place. But then, as she sees the iron shirts, she was afraid that the child is going to be killed, so she goes back and begs the peasant woman to protect her ‘child’. At first, the peasant woman was afraid that the Iron Shirts would run through their houses, but as Grusha continued to beg, the peasant woman finally agree to assure the protection. When the soldiers come, the peasant woman seeks for her own benefits, and doesn't help Grusha to hide her child, so that Grusha did what she supposed to do. I think this scene was more convenable because as Grusha travels through, she begins not to trust anyone besides herself. And that’s when the biggest impact on her while she originally thought the peasant woman would look on her as a woman, so she would have some kindness in her heart, then she might helps them to resolve that problem. And this leads Grusha never trusts anyone in the society and thinks deeply. We as a group think this scene might be a great transition where Grusha decides to adopt the helpless child. We also made several signs for that scene. Firstly, there was a sign for Yongchen that gives a brief introduction about the good people. Through this, audiences might misunderstand which think the good people will be the peasant woman because she consents to protect the child, yet people then will realize the good person is Grusha, so there is a little trick which can trick some people and also lead people to think who might be the good person in the play. On the other side of that sign, we made mother that emphasizes Grusha’s kindness because she doesn’t want that child to be killed, so at the back of the good people, to point out mother would be only good people left in the society. Also, we had another called losing the baby that carried by Yongchen. Yongchen was an Iron-shirt that feel strange about Grusha is running away from the bridge, so he follows, and as he is holding the sign, it represents that the approaching toward the baby and Grusha. Losing baby sign can give more pressure and stress to Grusha and the peasant woman to fear and scared about the Iron-shirts. As the approaching of the Iron-shirt, losing the baby become real and frightening. At the back side of the losing baby sign, there is the responsibility, desperation, and courage because when the peasant woman doesn’t help Grusha anymore, Grusha should go up and maybe depend on herself rather than depending on someone else. Her desperation that was getting from the woman give her the ideas to become strong, responsible to the child, so this sign hits the soldier, and it points out the idea of Grusha’s independence and rely on herself. Also, we had Cottage sign, so people would know where does this take place, so they would understand the basis and acknowledge the basic information. Moreover, we had the back side of the cottage which stated that basically what would the woman do, and what is her thinking now? and this gives the audience several think procedure, in which will the peasant woman help the helpless Grusha? Or just seek for her own comfortable. The last sign was truth? or Lie? Grusha goes to the house, and ask the peasant to protect her child, but peasant woman always used excuses to say what if they burn the roof, and the harvest money is in the house...etc, so Grusha is confused that should she believe the peasant woman or not? When the Iron-shirt comes in, she already threw the sign away, so in my opinion that Grusha might already trust the peasant woman that she will help her out. These sign made it more Brechtian because we didn’t have an actual house, and Brecht’s idea was let the audiences to know we are acting, not let the audiences to have a impression about the house or something. Also, my child was a bottle of wine which can also states that we are acting, not letting the audience to put their sympathy for Grusha. Also, the signs had a lot of hints which expose the truth behind the play, also overtly expose the society and humanity. In the society and humanity, people only care about themselves, they don’t care if a poor girl will be punished or not, their greediness and selfishness were part of them. The signs let people to think deeply about the society, in which should we help the poor?