Post 13 Three Viewings

            A common thing I found between the three monologues is the number 13. This may be a little farfetched but at the same time I think that it does have some sort of latent meaning. In the first story, Emil states that he is up to saying “I love you” 12 times. At the end of his monologue he begins saying “I love you” and starts counting again. We can guess that because he ended on twelve times, this one would be thirteen. In the second monologue, Mac’s grandmother is 103 years old. 103 contains the numbers 1 and 3 which together make 13. Again, this maybe a bit farfetched but still it is true. And of course, in the final monologue, the list contains 13 things. The number 13 is often associated with bad luck. These people are indeed haunted by bad luck and bad decisions. I wonder if that is on purpose.

These funerals all seem to take place in the winter. Winter is a literary symbol for death so this isn’t too shocking. However, it is interesting that this was taken into account. It also raises the possibility that these characters probably encountered one another physically. The funerals are taking place in a small town at the same time where everyone seems to know each other. They all probably have met before or have seen each other and are possibly reunited by these occurrences. Also, these characters seem to not know the respectively deceased as well as they think. Emil thinks he has a chance with Tessie when in fact she is in love with someone else. Mac does not know her grandmother because she is holding a grudge from her childhood. Even Virginia is surprised by her husband’s final actions and the secrets he kept. I think this may be a purposeful thing that happens in the play in order to show that we can never truly know anyone. Even when a loved one is dead, there are secrets, big or small, that will be taken to the grave.