Before Breakfast Symbolism

When two people marry, they come together as one. They are entering and agreeing to a relationship to love each other, be compassionate, and honest. They have agreed to endure the hardships to come, but still remain a faithful and understanding lover to one another. Eugene O’neill uses symbolism in the dramatic play Before Breakfast to enlighten how hardships can destroy marriages if the relationship lacks effective communication, intimacy, and trust. O’neill places “several potted plants (that) are dying of neglect” (O’neill) in the window seal of Mr. and Mrs. Rowland’s home. The plants represent the neglect of love and nourishment between Mr. and Mrs. Rowland. Like the plants, their marriage is withering away due to the lack of intimacy …show more content…
Rowland became a lazy, cheating alcoholic. He lacked a true job and he had no interest of maintaining a hard working job. He wrote literature for work and his work was not selling at the time. He began to pawn their belongings to have money, yet he spent it all on alcohol. Mr. Rowland was not being the man of the relationship, he was merely shoving it out of his way. He found things to keep him distracted from fixing his marriage. He created secrets and always had “lame excuses about spending the time at the library” (O’neill) instead of being home with Mrs. Rowland when she was home. Since “isolation and secrecy are the key ingredients in affairs” (Susman) he began cheating on Mrs. Rowland. According to Carolyn Susman “in early marriages, men who had affairs were significantly less happy” (Susman). Mrs. Rowland taunts Mr. Rowland, as he’s shaving, by saying, “You’d better give up drinking. You can’t stand it. It’s just your kind to get the D.T.’s.” (O’neill) DTs or delirium tremens are severe alcohol withdraw symptoms, they cause: shaking, hallucinations, and extreme confusion. One should understand people who go through DTs are heavy alcoholics, they drink around the clock. Mr. Rowland needed a drink of alcohol to calm his shaking since he had just woke up. Mrs. Rowland had lost her compassion for her husband. She only bore hatred and vengeance toward him. “One of the secrets to a happy marriage is to follow the Golden Rule—treat your spouse exactly the way you would …show more content…
In any relationship one must be able to communicate therapeutically in order to address/fix all situations. Communication is key for a relationship to continue. Mr. and Mrs. Rowland had lost all means of communicating effectively towards one another. In the play Mr. Rowland never said a word, he only made noises which aids in communication. Mrs. Rowland did all the talking and she did not talk highly of her husband, she trashed him. “You don’t deserve any better” are the words spoken by Mrs. Rowland to her husband when she is mentioning the bread is stale. No spouse deserves to be treated in that manner. Mr. Rowland’s actions lead to the actions of Mrs. Rowland just because he did not show respect to her. If he had any respect for his wife he would have never cheated on her and he would have never made her be the sole provider for their household when he is well able to get a job. “There must be the feeling of being respected and cherished” in a healthy marriage. Neither spouse respected one another or made each other feel special and loved causing a major decline in their