Essay 3: W;t Essay 3: Drama The Assignment: Write an essay on Margaret Edson's W;t. The paper must be 1000 words minimum, double-spaced with standard font (12, Times New Roman) and margins. ...

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ASSIGNMENT
One of the major themes in the drama by Margaret Edson is the slow occurring inevitable death of the main character and her distressing personal problems. Vivian has been healthy for all her life, the combination of exhaustion and abdominal cramps were bothering her a little too much as she decides to visit her gynaecologist who suspected that she has a tumour and then referred to Dr. Harvey Kelekian who is the chief of medical Oncology at a hospital. Dr. Harvey diagnosed Vivian with a type of cancer, saying her best hope of Survival will be and eight month experimental treatment. The play revolves around conversations between the dying protagonist and her family members and reaches universality in the hospital bed. The cancer of Vivian bearing can also be suggested as the most idiosyncratic character in the play where death is also a major theme. It is in this part one can find heroism in the heart of the protagonist, as she opted for this treatment knowing that it might not save her life but it will contribute to the development of scientific research. The writer uses foreshadowing from the beginning of the play and builds up anticipation in the minds of the audience about the end result of Vivian's illness. The cancer here has a significant role in slowly developing Vivian's personality through her last stages.
During the treatment she sinks into a flashback from her college days. This was about an encounter with a college professor, Dr. E. M. Ashford. “The attention was flattering. For the first five minutes. Now I know how poems feel.” (Edson, 12). Professor Ashford also encouraged Vivian to live a life outside of her studies to get to know other important things. Even though Vivian took the former advice of her professor she did not think about the latter one. Due to this after Graduate School she had become one of the four Scholars of Donne’s poetry. The past and...