Blood Wedding Journal #2: The effect of the setting

The play Blood Wedding is set in Andalusia, which is an autonomous community of Spain. The stories that were set in Andalusia were often uncompromising in their exposure of terrible truths and powerful passions. This aspect and influence of the setting is seen when the bride is discussing her wedding with the maid.

MAID: Child, you're asking for trouble, throwing your crown on the floor! Lift up that head. Don't you want to get married? Say so. You can still change your mind.

(The BRIDE stands up)

BRIDE: They are dark clouds-an ill wind inside me. (41)

This shows how the culture that takes place in Andalusia can influence Lorca's play because the Bride is definitely having second thoughts in regards to her wedding. This idea of dark clouds being inside her gives off an ominous tone that what she is expected to do is interfering with what she actually wants. Another aspect of the setting that influences the story is the fact that the characters' celebrations include music and dance. This also helps to emphasize the BRIDE's hesitance to marry BRIDEGROOM because she says "I want to lie down awhile" (72) instead of joining the dancing going on. By not wanting to be a part of the culture's form of celebration, it again shows how the BRIDE is challenging what is expected of her because she is not only not participating in the festivities, she is also forced to reassess what she wants, even though it may contrast with the society's. There is also a sense of sacrifice that is influenced from the setting seen in the story. This sense of sacrifice is seen when the MOTHER says, "Can anyone bring me back your father? Or your brother? And then there is prison. What is a prison? People eat there, they smoke there, they play their music there. My dead ones, covered with weeds, silent, turned to dust. Two men who were like two geraniums! The killers, in prison, alive and well, gazing at the mountains" (7). The MOTHER is very passionate in expressing the sacrifice of losing her husband and son she had to make. The setting helps to influence the MOTHER's story because it highlights the hardships not only in the play, but also in life in general. She is very angry about the fact that even though the murderers may be in prison, they are still living and breathing and can still appreciate the beautiful parts of life, when her family members are dead, and are never coming back. By using this aspect of the setting, Lorca can reveal how this is something that could happen to anyone as well. It is evident how the setting of Andalusia has greatly influenced the plot of Blood Wedding, because it can also highlight how the emotions the characters feel are emotions that humans also often face.