Land has been a major theme in many of the novels we have read this semester. But this was the first time where we see an object standing in the way of getting land. In the play The Piano Lesson, Boy WIllie and his sister Berniece fight over what to do with the treasured Piano that was left to them by their late ancestors. Boy WIllie wants to sell the piano in order to buy Sutter's land. Berniece, on the other hand, is horrified at the idea of selling the piano because of it's importance to her family and her heritage. Wilson uses the land and the piano as a way to look back on the Charles's past and a source of conflict in his play The Piano Lesson. The piano is more than "a piece of wood" (50) to Berniece. The piano symbolizes her family's
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When his family was still enslaved, Sutter was their owner. Now that Sutter has passed away, "Sutter's brother [is] selling the land" (9) and Boy Willie wants to buy it. To Boy Willie, buying this land would be a new start. It's "got a hundred acres" (10) and he thinks that by "next year, [he] might even plant some tobacco or some oats" (11). The land not only would represent Boy Willie's new start, but his past as well. He would own the land that his family worked on for so many years. To Boy WIllie, the land means so much more to his family's history than the piano. This results in conflict because Boy Willie's approach to getting the piano isn't the best strategy. He doesn't listen to the reasons why Berniece wants to keep the piano and doesn't see any problem with taking the piano even if it means he has to "cut it in half" (28) to get his share. Wilson uses the land as the more practical option of what to do with the piano. He wants his readers to see that Boy Willie has a plan for his future and selling the piano would help achieve that plan. Even if the readers don't agree with Boy Willie's tactics on how to achieve the piano, the relate to him because deep down everyone wants to follow their dreams and have a stable
When his family was still enslaved, Sutter was their owner. Now that Sutter has passed away, "Sutter's brother [is] selling the land" (9) and Boy Willie wants to buy it. To Boy Willie, buying this land would be a new start. It's "got a hundred acres" (10) and he thinks that by "next year, [he] might even plant some tobacco or some oats" (11). The land not only would represent Boy Willie's new start, but his past as well. He would own the land that his family worked on for so many years. To Boy WIllie, the land means so much more to his family's history than the piano. This results in conflict because Boy Willie's approach to getting the piano isn't the best strategy. He doesn't listen to the reasons why Berniece wants to keep the piano and doesn't see any problem with taking the piano even if it means he has to "cut it in half" (28) to get his share. Wilson uses the land as the more practical option of what to do with the piano. He wants his readers to see that Boy Willie has a plan for his future and selling the piano would help achieve that plan. Even if the readers don't agree with Boy Willie's tactics on how to achieve the piano, the relate to him because deep down everyone wants to follow their dreams and have a stable