The exchange between Lucy and Brazil mirrors one the Foundling Father has with himself, in which he discusses his physical similarities with Abraham Lincoln. However, in Act II, the commonalities are no longer shared between two strangers, but by a father and a son. The use of the word "foe-father" adds an element of wordplay, which, on the surface level, is referring to forefather, like Brazil's father before him. But as written, foe-father implies an enemy of sorts, or one at odd with another. Even further, the Foundling father could be described as a faux-father, as he left his family decades earlier to pursue a goal of impersonating Lincoln. This moment is particularly heartbreaking, as Brazil and Lucy try to contend with the trauma of being left behind, not only by their father and husband respectively, but also by a country. Brazil's hopefulness in "following in thuh footsteps" is a continuation of the Foundling Father's goal of following in Lincoln's footsteps, and is a comment on generational trauma in Black communities. Despite acknowledging the Foundling Father as a faux-father and a foe-father, he is still Brazil's father.

As Sue imagines what the ice cubes with wooden sticks are meant to be, her final thought lands on "frozen caterpillar". She does so after playing with the object and laughing with Paula, getting close to Paula and wrestling. Sue's next comment regards celibacy, and mentions that after "seven years you can keep all your sequences straight." In this context, the frozen caterpillar represents a stunted transformation, stopped in time and left to be nothing more than a caterpillar. Aside from just symbolizing the restricted opportunities for women's growth during this time, it also represents a limitation in the kinds of relationships one can have. As stated earlier, after fooling around with Paula, Sue mentions how the ice tray with sticks "can keep all your sequences straight." I took this to also reference gay vs. straight relationships, and by sucking on the ice cube attached to a stick (a phallic object?) into her mouth, she is able to remain straight. Shortly thereafter, a possible romantic relationship between Cecilia and Paula is hinted at, furthering the idea that Sue might have feelings for Paula and feel that they are not reciprocated and/or that society would never allow those feelings to be reciprocated, hence a frozen caterpillar.

Here Agnes is referring to two things in balance. The first is the expectations of the sexes and their roles, which are out of balance according to this new book. The use of the word "reversing" along with "resembling" seems almost contradictory. Reversing in this context can simultaneously mean the roles of the sexes are reverting to a previous state or, more explicitly, the roles are being changed to the other. Yet "resembling" implies an equality of the roles, which would undermine the second claim and further the first claim. The second balancing act is one's sense of well-being, which is disturbed by the book itself. However, Agnes acknowledges that she believes the book is right, despite claiming that it will not be believed. This is a comment on the continued need to conform and go along with the status quo, even if the revolution would lead to greater equality. Agnes believes that our sense of well-being should define truth, rather than the other way around.

So much of the action of the play is in hidden spaces to the audience, including the kitchen and bathroom, but it's especially interesting to have a hidden space that is also hidden to the characters. Although Gus acknowledges the ridiculousness of the situation, he doesn't linger on it. Instead, it's almost like a momentary lapse in judgement to question the system. His initial reaction is to question Ben's decision to send up the food before he realizes that he was a part of that decision as well, which points to the idea that power structures are easier to critique when one is not aware of their own participation. Additionally, the audience starts to question this decision as well. If Gus never questioned it, the audience would be left feeling as though they were watching a comedy in which two characters scramble to fulfill a task they didn't knowingly sign up for. With this line and others throughout the play, there is an acknowledgement of hidden spaces holding power over the characters and the absurdity of such a thing.

The Judge starts to see himself in the Executioner after the Executioner defers to the Judge's decision in regards to beating the Thief. Once he was positioned with "real" power, he begins to "look at himself in the Executioner". Rather than looking to an actual mirror, he forces the audience to try to recognize the physical similarities between the two characters. Of course, as the audience knows, it is truly the Thief and the Executioner who hold the real power. However, the Judge points out specifically the Executioner's arm, a connection to law enforcement or the military as an arm of justice. He refers to the Executioner has "my huge arm", and questions his reality. Thus, the Judge sees a reflection of what he wants to see: the arm of justice under his own control. The arm itself he describes as "too fat for my shoulder" and gives excuses for why he can't hold it himself. Instead, to him the arm is a disembodied part of himself, without any recognition of Executioner himself. The audience, however, can see the limits of the Judge's power, specifically in the brothel. What is shown as his power is controlled, ultimately, as the Executioner's and, in some cases, the Thief's. His statement, "without you I'd be nothing", illustrates this perfectly. The Judge is only as in control as the Executioner allows him to be. It is all a mirage in order to satisfy a customer, rather than a reality.

The use of the rhinoceros heads secures their place in reality for the audience. Rather than being a disembodied noise, the characters of the rhinos are now visible. This could be because people can recognize them now. As we've talked about in class, this play is supposed to illustrate the rise of fascism in Romania, and the gradual appearance of rhinos (first as noise, then as horns, now as heads) shows the population's gradual realization that fascism is upon them. There is also an aspect of making the play easier to put on, as having giant rhinoceros puppets is not cheap nor accessible for all theaters. However I think it also matters in what order the parts of the rhinoceros appear. When the rhinos is initially just noise, it represents the spreading of fascism without the same ramifications; no one is hurt in the first rhinoceros appearance. However, the amount of damage quickly escalates, and the next phase of the appearance of rhinos is their horns. Their horns symbolize weaponry and violence and power, and show the lengths fascists will go to in order to rise to power. It's also a more extreme representation; a horn is on the extremity of a rhinoceros, but it's a defining feature. Finally, they are represented as rhinoceros heads. To me this illustrates the full conversion from average citizen to full-fledged fascist, in which it's a transformation not just of body but also of mind. We see this as Jean transforms: he is not fighting against the change, but thinking through it and egging it on as he dismisses the human race.

Despite the obviousness to the audience that something is going on, the characters themselves are not aware of the rhino's presence until it is upon them. In many ways Jean chooses to notice the rhino in this moment, when he's trying to explain a way a reasoning (other than not being invited) for not going to a birthday party of a mutual friend. After the rhinoceros is identified, the birthday nor Auguste is brought up again, at least in Act One. Thus, the rhinoceros is only acknowledged when Jean no longer wants to focus on the conversation at hand, a kind of distraction from the current moment rather than a truly notable action. This might also be a nod to the idea that people are not aware of fascism or other government overreaches until it is upon them. For example, although the audience can hear the rhinoceros coming, the characters react only once they've seen the large mammal run through their town. It is not until they have "seen" the rhino that they believe it exists, and even then Berenger dismisses it as not existing once it has left.

I found this moment to be particularly jarring. As an audience member, hearing rather than seeing the double suicide makes the act seem more real and more terrifying. We are a part of the audience of empty chairs onstage, witnessing the end of the Old Man's and the Old Woman's lives simultaneously. Also, the description of the noise as "sea-green" struck me as odd, particularly because I could visualize (audiolize?) what the sound would be. I imagined the audience would either gasp or remain eerily quiet in this moment, watching the light fade as the party ends abruptly. A "weak light" replaces it, mirroring the beginning of the play, adding an element of cyclicality. This moment is tragic for the audience and, in a play full of absurdity and laughter, incredibly sullen. However, it is made ironic by the Orator, who shows the audience both onstage and off that he is both deaf and dumb, assumably unable to spread the Old Man's message.

This dialogue struck me as particularly tragic because it is a moment in which Vladimir recognizes what he has given up to serve Godot. It's also tragic in another sense because Estragon is so unaware, whereas Vladimir is the opposite. Also, the idea of rights is so vague in the given context. What rights were given away? Why did they get rid of said rights? By willingly giving up their rights, Estragon and Vladimir are acting in faith of Godot. This disclosure by Vladimir is not said with certainty, but rather (based on the context) with regret. His awareness of his and Estragon's situation is tragic.

The notion that anyone can be a part of the play alludes to the idea of "theatrum mundi". Although they are brought out as volunteers, the action of introducing them as regular people illustrates how everyone has the ability to act, and that we are all actors in some form or another. Without much guidance at all, the volunteers are able to repeat the lines without any difficulty. Although when this is performed the volunteers might be told to speak more clumsily, they are still completing their role as actors even if poorly. It also reminds the audience that behind each role is a person still managing to fool the audience into believing they are someone else. It forces the audience to adjust their expectation of theater that there is a 1:1 ratio of actor:role... instead, some actors are dudes playing dudes playing the role of other dudes (that was a Tropic Thunder reference, forgive me).

This line, especially framed by the previous scene showing the parade of prisoners and Joan and Todd's budding romance, outlines the political reality of the world illustrated in "Far Away". The connection between sadness and the burning of hats rather than the connection between sadness and the burning of people illustrates the tone of the play and its comment on the world Churchill created. This comment subverts the audience's expectation and creates a different understanding of what is acceptable and/or expected in this world.