In Translations Friel explores the power of words and the fragile nature of communication. Do you agree?
...lling in love. Amusingly, during the first four lines of this scene in which Yolland tells Maire how he ‘could scarcely keep up’ with her, one almost forgets that they are communicating in a different language. As soon as the pair realise that they are ‘alone’ and that the other cannot understand them, they immediately ‘disengage’ with their hand holding. They then embark on simple physical forms of communication in a desperate attempt to interact with one another, and to convey what they truly mean. The audience also experience the ‘futility’ that the characters feel during this scene, the characters cannot truly convey to each other what the really feel. In an attempt to form some sort of communicatory bridge, Maire recalls a text-book phrase that she has been taught by her Aunt. Latching to the remote possibility of communication between the pair, Yolland becomes excited and gives a length, over the top reply. In the romantic scene following this extract, Yolland attempts to find a sort of communication with Maire by speaking the place names that he knows in Gaelic. This form of communication is on a very simple level, but Friel uses Maire's reaction to construct a romantic, poetic aura to the scene – the strength of words creating a rich harmony. This scene seems to be most constructive for both Maire and Yolland and the couple are soon professing how ‘beautiful’ the other is and how they wish to ‘always’ live their lives with each other. At the end of this scene, a majority of the audience would feel that Yolland and Maire are now at one with each other, and that the barriers that language cause are overcome by the strength of other forms of communication. On first glance, the scene seems to very much agree with this sentiment, after all, the scene has closed with the couple kissing and claiming that they will ‘always’ be together. Friel has placed an insidious pitfall in the relationship betwe...