In a Tortoiseshell
The piece is an analysis of how Lorca and the 1994 cinematic adaptation of The House of Bernarda Alba employ the use of the color white throughout the narrative. In particular, it mobilizes the aesthetic dimension of the works in order to discuss how the color relates to the atmosphere of surveillance that exists within the domestic space.
Excerpt
…In fact, through most of the play, the color black works as a symbol of control over female bodies. The women in the play are all wearing black to express the grief for the loss of their father, as indicated in the stage direction “Por el fondo, de dos en dos empiezan a entrar mujeres de luto con pañuelos grandes, faldas y abanicos negros” (Lorca 16)/ “Upstage, female mourners enter in pairs, wearing skirts, big shawls, and holding black fans” (my translation). Other moments also contribute to the association of black with grief, such as when the family matriarch, Bernarda, chides her daughter for not giving her a black hand fan, which would indicate, according to the widow, a lack of respect for the grief she was experiencing (23). Black, therefore, functions as an essential part of the public performance of mourning. However, the central issue in relation to the color is that instead of being solely used as an expression of sorrow for the death of a loved one, it is also employed as a form of control over the daughters, whom Bernarda prohibits from leaving the house for eight years as an expression of mourning (23). Due to the power of the matriarch, they are unable to exercise their freedom to circulate in public spaces. In this sense, the use of black functions as a marker of their mourning and, consequently, a constant reminder of their prison.
Similarly to how the symbolic force of black goes beyond the dimension of protection, the color white is not solely employed to signify systems of surveillance. This is particularly seen through Camus’s 1987 adaptation of Lorca’s play. In the cinematic piece, the grandmother, Maria Josefa, only appears in white. There is, consequently, a rupture with the strict mourning that Bernarda imposed upon those who lived under her house. White as a costume choice further reinforces the character’s state of separation from Bernarda’s strict system of control, complicating a monolithic interpretation of white as a sign.
Still, the relationship between white and surveillance is reinforced in Lorca’s set description in the second and third acts of the play. Notably, during the play’s second act, the playwright slightly modifies how he characterizes the environment. The color white is still present, but instead of repeating the term “blanquíssima”/ “very white,” Lorca employs the word “blanca” (49)/ “white”, writing: “Habitación blanca del interior de la casa de Bernarda” (49)/ “White room inside Bernarda’s house.” Through this, there seems to be a change in the intensity of luminosity in the environment, indicating a shift in the degree of vigilance that exists within the house.
In the second act, the daughters of Bernarda still seem to surveil each other. Martirio’s line “(Con intención.) ¿Es que no has dormido bien esta noche?” (57)/ “(Maliciously) Is it because you haven’t slept last night?” demonstrates this. The stage direction “con intención” indicates that she suspects Adela’s involvement with Pepe El Romano, probably as a result of observing her sister’s behavior. The movie reinforces the idea of surveillance between the two characters by placing them in the middle of an artificial white light —an element that amplifies what is able to be seen—during this confrontation (44:00-44:17). La Poncia, the family’s maid, also seems to suspect Adela’s affair. This is suggested when she says “De Pepe el Romano, ¿no es eso?” (59)/ “Of Pepe el Romano, isn’t it?” after Adela asserts that her body will belong to whoever she desires (59). In later moments, the audience discovers that La Poncia’s inference is a result of the surveillance she admits having engaged in through the lines “Las viejas vemos a través de las paredes. ¿Dónde vas de noche cuando te levantas?”(59)/ “Old women see through the walls. Where are you going when you get up in the night?”
The episodes above demonstrate the continuous existence of surveillance. Nevertheless, the second act marks an important shift in the narrative: Bernarda, the source of authority of the home, is no longer aware of the relevant matters that are happening. In fact, she was consciously attempting to avoid facing the intricacies of the conflict between her daughters. When La Poncia tries to discuss with Bernarda the conflict between the daughters, she promptly rejects the opportunity to reflect on the quarrel by saying, “No creo que ésta sea la ‘cosa muy grande’ que aquí pasa. Aquí no pasa nada” (81)/ “I don’t think that this is the ‘really big thing’ that is happening here. Nothing is happening here.” The line reveals the degree of ignorance of Bernarda, who experiences a reduction, through denial, of her control over the activities that occurred within her daughters’ lives and, consequently, in her house.
Author Commentary / Louise Sanches Barbosa
This paper discusses the use of the color white as an element that signifies surveillance in The House of Bernarda Alba, a play written by Federico García Lorca. When I decided to focus on this work for my final paper in COM 318 (The Modern Period), I delved into secondary literature centered around the play. This quickly made me realize that many of the points I initially considered focusing on had been discussed, particularly the themes of motherhood and oppression. When reflecting on how I could find gaps in the scholarly work that had been produced until then, I noticed that little attention had been given to the significance of the colors Lorca employs in the play. This aesthetic dimension is central in theater, as it allows a piece to continuously create meaning beyond the words in a script. Additionally, Lorca is well-known for exploring the symbolic dimension of colors in his poetic work, notably the color green in the poem Romance Sonámbulo. By noticing a pattern of repetition surrounding the color white, I conducted a textual analysis that allowed me to uncover that white is frequently used as an element that exposes the deep politics of surveillance that occurs within the house of the matriarch, Bernarda Alba.
I also desired to incorporate a visual primary source, as this would contribute towards bringing a certain stillness of the script to life, materializing Lorca’s written descriptions. For that, I selected the cinematic adaptation of the play, produced by Mario Camus in 1987. Once I had finalized my selection of primary sources, I conducted a comparative analysis of Lorca’s explicit references to white, particularly in his set descriptions, and its presence in the movie, being particularly attentive to how shifts in the characterization of the color also signified shifts in Bernarda’s surveillance.
In the process of adapting my piece to Tortoise, I have included additional context surrounding the play’s characters, as well as translations. I decided to select this particular excerpt precisely because of its capacity to display the shifts in Bernarda’s system of control, as well as the nuances that need to be taken into account when analyzing symbolic elements, as demonstrated by my comments on Maria Josefa and her white dress. The fragment also displays how aesthetic elements can reinforce the content of the discussed works. This is particularly important in the field of theatrical studies, as it functions as a reminder that elements of design can produce effects that can reinforce or subvert elements of a text.
One of the first steps in writing is identifying a clear motive. Louise’s piece offers a compelling example of how a seemingly small detail in a primary source can be meticulously picked apart to reveal its greater significance in the text—empirical motive. It follows that through this Louise quickly identified a scholarly motive, that the conversation had not previously considered the way color had been utilized in adaptations of the text. In particular, this excerpt focuses on the use of color—mostly white—as a narrative and thematic device, alongside showing how to comment on both stage and film adaptations of a text. The beginning of this excerpt demonstrates how Louise complicates white beyond a tempting binary interpretation of the color representing only surveillance, or black only protection from it. Louise analyzes a funeral scene and the visual appearance of the family grandmother, Maria Josefa, in order to show how the variation in the use of these colors reflects the complexity in the primary source’s themes.
This exploration continues through Louise’s attention to white’s intensity in luminosity, specifically when she pays attention to subtle shifts in description of the setting: from a “blanquíssima”/“very white” to “blanca”/white room. Once again, Louise goes further than discussing the recurrence of a symbol within the text, she closely reads to identify why these small choices are being made in primary source. By examining subtle shifts and variations, the writer uncovers complexity that might otherwise go unnoticed, like a detective piecing together clues. This careful, deliberate attention to detail exemplifies how strong analytical writing can emerge from engagement with even the smallest elements of a text.
Editor Commentary / Natalia Murillo
One of the first steps in writing is identifying a clear motive. Louise’s piece offers a compelling example of how a seemingly small detail in a primary source can be meticulously picked apart to reveal its greater significance in the text—empirical motive. It follows that through this Louise quickly identified a scholarly motive, that the conversation had not previously considered the way color had been utilized in adaptations of the text. In particular, this excerpt focuses on the use of color—mostly white—as a narrative and thematic device, alongside showing how to comment on both stage and film adaptations of a text. The beginning of this excerpt demonstrates how Louise complicates white beyond a tempting binary interpretation of the color representing only surveillance, or black only protection from it. Louise analyzes a funeral scene and the visual appearance of the family grandmother, Maria Josefa, in order to show how the variation in the use of these colors reflects the complexity in the primary source’s themes.
This exploration continues through Louise’s attention to white’s intensity in luminosity, specifically when she pays attention to subtle shifts in description of the setting: from a “blanquíssima”/“very white” to “blanca”/white room. Once again, Louise goes further than discussing the recurrence of a symbol within the text, she closely reads to identify why these small choices are being made in primary source. By examining subtle shifts and variations, the writer uncovers complexity that might otherwise go unnoticed, like a detective piecing together clues. This careful, deliberate attention to detail exemplifies how strong analytical writing can emerge from engagement with even the smallest elements of a text.
Editor
Natalia Murillo ‘28 is a sophomore majoring in Sociology and minoring in Statistics and Machine Learning. On campus, she works as a Writing Center Fellow, is an undergraduate researcher at the Eviction Lab, and a member of Tigressions acapella.
Author
Louise Sanches Barbosa ’27 is a third-year comparative literature student pursuing minors in theater and Spanish. She focuses on Brazilian and Hispanic literature, and her research interests include literary expressions within authoritarian regimes, historical memory, gender and sexuality in literature, and theater and performance as tools of political change. Louise’s work in theater primarily lies in writing, lighting design, and stage management. She also works as a student archivist at Special Collections and is an editor at the Nassau Weekly.