The Love Scene between George and Maire from Translations Essay

The Love Scene between George and Maire from Translations This scene, in my opinion is the dramatic centre of Translations. The scene displays that George and Maire have fallen in love as they return from the dance together; the pair find it hard to communicate, and exhaust every method of communication before reciting place names to one another. The common language of the place names increases the tension between George and Maire until, finally, they kiss. The kiss is witnessed by Sarah who uses her new found talent of speech to tell Manus. The scene, in my view is very important as it is the catalyst for the disastrous events which follow, it leads to the disappearance of George, the search of Baile Baeg by new English soldiers, Maire’s despair, and the imminent ‘evictions and leveling of every abode’. The stage directions play a prominent part in the scene, they specify darkness and music being played, the music is significant as it is a common form of communication, everybody can relate to it. The ‘music rises to a crescendo’ as Maire and Yolland enter on stage and the audience are involved in the excitement and merriment of the pair. The music also crescendos later after Sarah has seen them which emphasizes the significance of what has just happened. The stage directions also describe their actions towards one another, the gestures and the pause before the kiss; all which would add a lot of drama and pace to the scene. Act 2 Scene 1, which is just before the love scene, is very different. Maire and George at this point are still very shy and use Owen to translate everything between them: Maire: Tell him then Owen: Tell him what? Maire: About the dance. Maire is essentially inviting Ge... ...hows that she has gone to tell him about George and Maire, bring the scene to a climax. It is also poignant that after Sarah has been given the gift of speech, she is now about to use it to tell her teacher and change everything in Baile Baeg, possibly costing George’s life. As the scene acts as a microcosm of the play’s messages, Friel displays the themes of translation, cultural differences and conflict of interests all in one scene. As a result, I think that this is a very important, if not the most important scene of the entire play, as the scenes before all build up to this moment, and the later events preceding it are all results of George and Maire’s union. Brian Friel has also managed to keep the audience interested by using tension, pace, irony and suspense; and successfully brings the end of the act to a climax, keeping the audience engaged.