The Relationship Between Male And Women In 'Poof And Good And Gone'

The relationship between male and females within literary works can be expressed in a variety of different ways. Often times, gender roles are solidified to present the man as a dominant and overpowering figure, where the woman is seen as nurturing and are many times objectified due to this nature. In “Poof”, the reader is presented with an example of a woman who is ‘too accepting’ and ‘too giving’ to her male spouse, where as in “Good and Gone”, a male protagonist shatters the dominating nature of the standardized gender roles by loving a woman based off of common interest, not based off of submissive nature. Comparing these two protagonists of both plays, the writers, EP3C and Lynn Nottage, present a duality of dramatic effects by either

One of the most considerable piece between both plays is characters. In Good and Gone, there are more characters than there are in Poof. In Good and Gone, readers may already assume that the protagonist already has help from the minor characters, especially in scenes where he stands alone. In the Breakup scene, Morrison breaks up with Christina because of the conflict between their priorities of Women’s March and a concert. Shortly after their breakup, Morrison sits in his room with his friends, Ezekiel and Leo, and these minor characters support Morrison by making him sidetrack from his breakup to their group activities. Leo suggests to go to the movies; Morrison, however, “sighs and picks up his guitar, messing around with it”, but the band with Paul, Stef, Janet, and Helen enters with their “acoustic instruments, and take places around MORRISON’s bedroom” (EP3C I.VI pp. 34). EP3C suggests that the setting is filled with optimistic people because the acoustic instruments signifies the band’s tight bond because they are entering into Morrison’s bedroom, his private atmosphere, In other words, these minor characters have simply overturned Morrison’s breakup by encouraging Morrison to enter back into the music realm. In addition, Morrison acknowledges the optimism by stating that “the best music comes from heartbreak” (EP3C I.VI pp. 38). All in all, Good and Gone is filled with names of many characters which intuitively alerts the readers that the protagonist has other relationships or friendships and EP3C suggests that these connections do not repress the protagonist and his personal relationships. Regarding to connections and characters, in Poof there are only two characters excluding the presumed dead husband. These two characters are in an