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The Use Of Mendacity In Cat On A Hot Tin Roof

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Cat on a Hot Tin Roof
In Cat on a Hot Tin Roof Tennessee Williams scrutinizes the concept on marriage, relationships, and how they closely tie with ones happiness. Williams characters use the term "mendacity" as an explanation on how they reconcile with the issues in their personal lives. To be mendacious is to lack honesty and be untruthful. Big Daddy, the foundation of this whole entire family, is the main user of term and uses it to explain his feelings towards his marriage and his relationship with his eldest son, Gooper, and his wife, Mae. This trickles down to Brick and how he addresses personal issues of his own such as his marriage and his relationship with his deceased friend Skipper. Mendacity is significant in Cat on a Hot Tin Roof …show more content…
Big Daddy is also questioning Brick in why he is unable to live with mendacity in his life just like he has. Big Daddy tells Brick "I've lived with mendacity! Why cant you live with it? Hell, you got to live with it, there's nothing else to live with except mendacity, is there?"(Act 2, pg 111) Mendacity has become so accustomed to Big Daddy's life that he feels it is impossible to live without. Brick is mendacious without even directly knowing so, the main reason the audience is lead to believe that there is mendacity in Brick's life is that he drinks to not have to deal with or cope with it. Brick fails to actually face the truth or tell the truth about the homosexual nature of Skipper and his relationship. Brick says "Mendacity is a system that we live. Liquor is one way out an' death the other." He is talking to Big Daddy about him actually having cancer and that everyone has lied to him about his true diagnosis. Mendacity has a trickle down effect from Big Daddy to Brick and the readers can see how Big Daddy has passed his feelings about mendacity onto

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