SEMANTIČKA INTERPRETACIJA PROSTORA U DRAMI MAČKA NA USIJANOM LIMENOM KROVU TENESIJA VILIJAMSA
SEMANTIC INTERPRETATION OF SPACE IN THE PLAY CAT ON A HOT TIN ROOF BY TENNESSEE WILLIAMS

Summary/Abstract: The aim of this paper is to determine the modelative function of spatial relations in the play Cat on a Hot Tin Roof written by American playwright Tennessee Williams. In accordance with relevant dramatic theories, the hypothesis presented in this paper is as follows: in dramatic genre, space is significant, not only for the scene itself, but as a means of providing the context, as well as the source of semantic meanings of events taking place within it. The analysis of the spatial configuration in the said play was used as a basis for inscribing the space into the story. Additionally, basic spatial relations examined in terms of their semantic properties were: the stage (viewed as a space for presenting the plot visible to the audience), the off-stage space, i.e. the dramatic space considered in terms of the semantic frame of the play. Finally, the metaphorical quality of fictional space was analised. The semiotic analysis of the spatial system in the play indicated that the aforementioned dramatic space is dynamic and that it functions on several levels. In the mentioned play Williams organized the scene in a simple manner and presented the space by a single topos, with a double bed in its centre. The bed not only represents the central part of the scene itself, but also the center of semiological significance of the play. However, the space in this play is far from simple. It is represented by a significantly complex system. The semiotics of the space in Cat on a Hot Tin Roof is additionally complemented by the theater stage lighting and colours, props and costumes, as well as proxemic relations between the characters. Spatial relations in Cat on a Hot Tin Roof determined the sematic interpretation of the play and strongly influenced the characterisation in it.

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