The Theme Of Love In The Play, Anna In The Tropics Book Review Samples

The play Anna in the tropics is written by Cuban – American writer Nilo Cruz. The action in the play revolves around an ageing cigar factory owned by Santiago a man in his late fifties of Cuban origin. The workers in the factory are majorly relatives of Santiago with Cheche, the supervisor being Santiago’s half brother. The lives of the characters in the play are intertwined with the action in the story Anna Karelina and most characters find their mirror in the story. The plot kicks off with the arrival of a new lector in the factory welcomed by Ofelia, Santiago’s wife and her daughters Conchita and Marela. The arrival of the lector coincides a cock fight gambling game to which Cheche and Santiago are. In the game, Cheche lends some money to Santiago and gains a promise of more shares in the factory in the event that Santiago does not pay him back. Cheche utilizes this chance to assert his authority in the firm with his specific disaffection with Lectors being one of the driving subplots in the play. His desire to change things for the improvement of the company’s profits antagonizes with almost everyone in the factory. He resents Juan Julian from the time he arrives at the factory informing him that he is not welcome. The play advances from scene to scene with the advancements and developments in each character’s love life changing owing to the circumstances of each depiction. This paper analyses the theme of love present in the play ‘Anna in the Tropics’. There are various romantic interests in the play brought to the fore by the romantic interest between Conchita and Palomo as wife and husband, Santiago and Ofelia as husband and wife, the inferred relationship between Cheche and his departed wife and the blossoming of Marela as a romantic prospect.
The marriage between Conchita and Palomo is a difficult one. Conchita is the loving subservient woman at the beginning of the play. She respects her husband despite his infidelity to their marriage. In a conversation between Palomo and Conchita, Palomo asks her what she is frightened of to which she replies, ‘Frightened of something I have never felt of done before.’ His insistence on that the relationship is what Conchita wanted in the first place shows that he does not appreciate with the fact that, in relationships, people have to make sacrifices for the people they love, and subdue their desires for the benefit of their loved ones. Her response, But sometimes I can’t help the guilt, reveals that Conchita is in love with Palomo,, but he is never willing to appreciate, nor reciprocate that love. Her remark on what holds her down in her affair with Julian is revealing of this fact.
As the play advances, Palomo is revealed as a gay man and is cheating on Palomo with other men. This inference arises out of the sustained interest that he has in hearing the love making antics of the lector on his wife. His interest does not excite a jealousy in him as would be expected of any ordinary man. In contrast, he seems to enjoy the stories for their erotic value in light of his gay manners. He encourages his wife to make love to her lover in strange and unorthodox ways that give him away as differently oriented. The involvement of Palomo with the lector, Julian leads to her unhappiness. She enters into a relationship as a way of gaining happiness and avenging against her husband’s adulterous ways. In spite of being in the relationship, she still loves Palomo and feels guilty in having to cheat on him. Palomo is the contrast of Conchita and he does not betray any interest in his wife as a romantic interest which he would consider protecting. Save for the few looks he throws in the direction of Julian any time he speaks he does not seem interested in Conchita and the prospect that she would be taken away from him by Julian. The introduction of the lector to the factory works to divide the couple further with Conchita failing to find the happiness she seeks in this relationship. Palomo on the other hand takes Julian as a romantic object owing to his gay nature and uses him to fantasize about all the erotic escaped he has with his wife. The ending romantic story ends tragically for Conchita with the death of Julian. Her involvement with Julian leads to her sadness at the end of the play. Palomo is likely to go on with his life as he used to, uninterested in his wife and cheating on him as he used to. The failure of Palomo and Conchita to resolve the root of their romantic problems and the implied continuity of their cohabitation indicates the conservativeness of the society in which they lived in. Palomo indicates that divorce would be out of the question in their case, not because they held any concern for each other, rather, their parents would not approve of their divorce.
Santiago and Ofelia have an unhappy relationship at the beginning of the play. Santiago is gambling away all their money, and is losing increased control of the factory to Cheche. Ofelia on the other hand takes increasing decision making roles and seeks to spend her money in ways which she sees suitable such as hiring the lector. She reckons she can do with her money whatever she wants since her husband is losing all his money on gambling. The lack of a united decision making front in financial issues in the marriage indicates that the couple is not well with each other. The introduction of the lector to the factory, and the narration of the story of Anna to the workers work in a different direction for this couple however. Santiago, in his isolation upstairs, gets the time to reflect on his life and his gambling ways. The story of Levin in the play impacts on him by making him reflect on his earlier days of his youth. The hard work put by Levin in taking care of his farm remind him of his own efforts in maintaining the company. Another aspect of Levin that impacts on him is the fact that Levin was interested in only one woman, in this reflection; he indicates his own interest in one woman, in the form of Ofelia. The episode where Santiago recounts these reflections to his wife works in mending their relationship. This recollection of the play together revives their love for each other as indicated by their conversation, But for Levin For Levin, there’s only one woman; Yes, for him there’s only one woman. (Full of love, he looks at her.) Ofelia. Yes. (Santiago swallows the gulp of love.) The antagonistic manner in which they had been addressing each other in the presence of their daughter Marela changes once Santiago and his wife share their shared interest in the story of Anna.
The change in the behavior of Santiago also helps in mending the relationship between him and his wife. His failure to show up at work dissatisfies her and she voices these concerns to him. Santiago responds to her concerns by showing up at work and calming down the rattled workers owing to Cheche’s drive to introduce machines into the factory. The story of Anna also provides an incentive for Santiago to succeed in his cigar factory without having to sacrifice the workers. The creation of a new brand of cigarettes named Anna provides a revival in the factory. This renewed hope in the factory mirrors a revival in the love life of Santiago and Ofelia.
Cheche is the tragic antihero of the play. His love interests are revealed to be behind his nature. His resentment of Julian arises out of his being robbed of his wife by lector, similar to Julian. This act done on him does not leave him and he lives in hatred of all lectors as the main causes of trouble in the factory. He immediately rejects Juan Julian on his arrival after learning that he was a lector. The story impacts him by arousing a romantic interest in Marela, the 21 year old daughter to Santiago. His advances are rejected, and he does not take this lightly. From the way he is observing all the moves Julian makes, especially when he observes him as he kisses Marela, his resentment of him as just an ordinary Lector changes to a vengeful jealousy that consumes him. That Julian can get the affection of any woman and more so that of Marela his intended romantic interest infuriates him. He sees Julian and all the lectors as people predestined to rob him of all the women he ever shows interest. His action at the end of the movie is the ultimate culmination of his frustrations. He kills Julian for no known reason, but in an inference, as revenge for the disappearance of his wife with a previous lector, and as an act in deterrence from losing his current subject of his desires, Marela.