Post by thedoctororwell on Jun 5, 2007 7:13:25 GMT -5
I haven't the pretention to say that I indeed discovered what the sonnet meant, but I've got a theory wich in my opinion works pretty well. Of course, there are dozens of other interpretations out there wich could work as well, and I am aware that Handler probably wrote this sonnet so it could mean anything and everything. Now, the theory.
It is quite simple, actually : link the infamous representation of "My Silence Knot" with the "Forza del Destino" incident, wich is described in TPP, and things begin to ring a bell.
" My silence knot is tied up in my hair,
as if to keep my love out of my eyes. "
This is supposed to be a secret message to Lemony. The first two lines are supposed to tell him that's the one intended to receive it (Beatrice used the "My silence knot" phrase to alert him) and that he should act as if he and she had never met before (in another letter, Lemony tells Beatrice not to acknowledge him in the theater).
" I cannot speak to one for whom I care. "
Same as above. However here it could depict an accomplice with whom she can't communicate. So she tells Lemony to deliver the message to this accomplice. This accomplice, with the indications of TPP, could be Kit or Bertrand.
" A hatpin serves as part of my disguise. "
What does she want to do with these hatpins ? In another representation, Lemony asked her to drop a hatpin on the stage as a signal. So this could mean that Beatrice can't act for now, and that she needs Lemony to do something before.
" In the play, my role is baticeer,
A word wich here means "person who trains bats." "
This confirms what was said above : Beatrice has to keep playing an act for the moment, and can't do anything if Lemony doesn't do a precise thing. He will have to do it with extreme precaution, like a bat. Bats deliver messages betwenn VFDers, so Lemony's most likely bound to deliver a message to another VFDer (Kit, Bertrand...) as part of his mission. Here, Beatrice is Lemony's baticeer.
" The audience may feel a prick of fear,
As if sharp pins are hidden in their hats. "
Something's going on in the audience. Note that here she's not talking about hatpins, but about "sharp" pins. The sharp pins are actually an understatement... They're supposed to mean "poison darts." A member of the audience is going to be murdered with poison darts during the play, and this is going to cause panic amongst the public.
" My co-star lives on what we call a brae.
His solitude might not be just an act. "
Who's this co-star ? Before his betrayal, it is entirely possible that Olaf was part of a VFD theatrical group... With Beatrice. Why is he going to feel solitude ? Well... Maybe because he's gonna be an orphan in the times to come ?
" A piece of mail fails to arrive one day.
This poignant melodrama is based on fact. "
Something has happened wich obliges Beatrice to delay her plans. One of Lemony's letters in TBL was mistakenly delivered to R... In this letter Lemony said that Beatrice "gathered nearly all the evidence [they] needed." To do what ? Evidences are based "on facts." Beatrice could be saying that she hasn't enough evidence yet to do what she wants, and that her plans are delayed to another occasion.
" The curtain falls just as the knot unties,
The silence broken by the one who dies. "
Again, somebody's bound to die during the play. According to VFD, the world is supposed to be "quiet." "Quiet" can mean "silencious." A murder could break this silence. Maybe Beatrice is saying that she's not anymore sure that murdering these people is the right thing to do. She tells Lemony to keep "quiet" and informs him that they'll talk about this subject later.
In my opinion, the "My Silence Knot" play was the one where Olaf's parents were supposed to be murdered, but Beatrice changed her plans due to the reasons explained above. They were murdered later, during "Verdi's Forza del Destino." Something tells me that it wasn't the first time that Beatrice killed someone during an opera... Maybe they sometimes used the poison darts during the plays to "erase" the people thay thought to be dangerous or evil.
It is quite simple, actually : link the infamous representation of "My Silence Knot" with the "Forza del Destino" incident, wich is described in TPP, and things begin to ring a bell.
" My silence knot is tied up in my hair,
as if to keep my love out of my eyes. "
This is supposed to be a secret message to Lemony. The first two lines are supposed to tell him that's the one intended to receive it (Beatrice used the "My silence knot" phrase to alert him) and that he should act as if he and she had never met before (in another letter, Lemony tells Beatrice not to acknowledge him in the theater).
" I cannot speak to one for whom I care. "
Same as above. However here it could depict an accomplice with whom she can't communicate. So she tells Lemony to deliver the message to this accomplice. This accomplice, with the indications of TPP, could be Kit or Bertrand.
" A hatpin serves as part of my disguise. "
What does she want to do with these hatpins ? In another representation, Lemony asked her to drop a hatpin on the stage as a signal. So this could mean that Beatrice can't act for now, and that she needs Lemony to do something before.
" In the play, my role is baticeer,
A word wich here means "person who trains bats." "
This confirms what was said above : Beatrice has to keep playing an act for the moment, and can't do anything if Lemony doesn't do a precise thing. He will have to do it with extreme precaution, like a bat. Bats deliver messages betwenn VFDers, so Lemony's most likely bound to deliver a message to another VFDer (Kit, Bertrand...) as part of his mission. Here, Beatrice is Lemony's baticeer.
" The audience may feel a prick of fear,
As if sharp pins are hidden in their hats. "
Something's going on in the audience. Note that here she's not talking about hatpins, but about "sharp" pins. The sharp pins are actually an understatement... They're supposed to mean "poison darts." A member of the audience is going to be murdered with poison darts during the play, and this is going to cause panic amongst the public.
" My co-star lives on what we call a brae.
His solitude might not be just an act. "
Who's this co-star ? Before his betrayal, it is entirely possible that Olaf was part of a VFD theatrical group... With Beatrice. Why is he going to feel solitude ? Well... Maybe because he's gonna be an orphan in the times to come ?
" A piece of mail fails to arrive one day.
This poignant melodrama is based on fact. "
Something has happened wich obliges Beatrice to delay her plans. One of Lemony's letters in TBL was mistakenly delivered to R... In this letter Lemony said that Beatrice "gathered nearly all the evidence [they] needed." To do what ? Evidences are based "on facts." Beatrice could be saying that she hasn't enough evidence yet to do what she wants, and that her plans are delayed to another occasion.
" The curtain falls just as the knot unties,
The silence broken by the one who dies. "
Again, somebody's bound to die during the play. According to VFD, the world is supposed to be "quiet." "Quiet" can mean "silencious." A murder could break this silence. Maybe Beatrice is saying that she's not anymore sure that murdering these people is the right thing to do. She tells Lemony to keep "quiet" and informs him that they'll talk about this subject later.
In my opinion, the "My Silence Knot" play was the one where Olaf's parents were supposed to be murdered, but Beatrice changed her plans due to the reasons explained above. They were murdered later, during "Verdi's Forza del Destino." Something tells me that it wasn't the first time that Beatrice killed someone during an opera... Maybe they sometimes used the poison darts during the plays to "erase" the people thay thought to be dangerous or evil.