Winter 2020 English 111 Essay: Analyzing On Tidy Endings

This essay provides a detailed analysis of Harvey Fierstein's one-act play, "On Tidy Endings," focusing on the evolving perspective of Marion, the deceased husband's ex-wife, towards homosexuality and the play's overall purpose. The essay examines the characters of Marion, Arthur (the deceased husband's lover), and Jim (Marion and Collin's son), exploring their relationships and the emotional complexities arising from the AIDS crisis and the division of the dead man's belongings. It discusses the play's setting, symbolism, and stylistic devices to understand Fierstein's treatment of the AIDS crisis, the societal taboos surrounding homosexuality, and the characters' journeys towards acceptance and understanding. The essay also considers the significance of the play's characters, particularly Jim and June, and their contribution to the play's overall impact and message, addressing the artistic merit of the play and its ability to challenge societal norms.

Running Head : ENGLISH LITERATURE
In the play of Harvey Fierstein’ “On Tidy Endings”, the ex wife of a dead man and the male
lover are found to be dividing his all belongings and tying up the loose ends. They divide all the
belongings in a businesslike way but they cannot prevent their emotions coming to the surface.
Towards the end of the play, they sympathize with each other and learn to share pain along with
the joys of life of the dead man. It is a one act play and the most touching dramas about life that
is in the cage of AIDS. It can be assumed that the purpose of the play was to address AIDS in an
inventive and poignant manner (Gale, Learning). In this play, the most attractive treatment of
AIDS crisis is provided in literature. It fulfills the challenge of the incorporation of the horrific
events related to AIDS, the plague, the mask of death without the theatrical tricks teaching
people how to feel the new levels of understanding.
In the play a recent widow named as Marion confronts to Arthur who is her deceased
husband's lover in an apartment where Arthur had cared for Collin who died of AIDS related
disease. Marion had sent her son Jim away before she met with Arthur because her son had
blamed him for the death of his father. Marion and Arthur are jealous and wary as evident in the
words of Arthur:” he died in my arms not yours”. They start bickering over the belongings of
Collin such as a teapot which had been given to Colliin and Marion on their wedding where
Arthur claims that it is nothing but the replacement of the burnt-out original one that was bought
by Arthur and Collin. Significantly, Arthur and Marion cannot stand each other and they are so
much savage towards each other that at the end compassion is the only thing left. Arthur tells
about the final moments of Collin to Marion. Marion is shown as covering a journey from a
conventional and agreed wife who stands and understands the death of her husband from his
lover. She is emotionally modified and asks Arthur how he is. Eventually, it is found that Marion

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has AIDS antibodies within her blood and it is proven that no one is free from the infection threat
so they should stand as a family having no other choice and face the threat (O’Leary, Dale, and
Colloquium). Marion then calls her son back to the room and further insists him to reveal what
Collin had told that he had loved Arthur the most after his son and wife and hence Jim should
also love Arthur ensuring that he is not lonely and sad. At the end of the play, it is shown that
Marion and her son are at one side of the door and Arthur on the second side. This is the
separation which acknowledges symbolically about the social diversion between people who
choose homosexual or heterosexual relationships in America. Through this play it is known that
disease knows no barrier and forces the characters to acknowledge the humanity of each other
and accept the love of each other. This is common threats which is caused by AIDS and can
redefine and restore the idea of American family.
As far as the characterization is concerned, the primary characters of the play are Marion,
Collin and Arthur. As an addition to this, another main character is Jim who is the 11 year old
son of Collin and Marion. Through the characters of the play, the playwright has shown that
people who were left alone by the death of a loved person have feelings of contempt with anxiety
because of the fact that they are not aware of what happened in the lives of each other’s when the
person left a died.. It was presented earlier that Marion met with Arthur had feelings of
apprehension and anxiety regarding anticipating the meeting between those two(O'Connell). It
was quite evident that Marion had no such knowledge of Arthur along with his perspective and
feelings. The eventual discussions that happened between Arthur and Marion confirm the fact
that there were many judgmental errors and errors in their perceptions about deciding the
ownership of leftover things in the apartment. They were beaten by the feelings of envy that was
revealed by Arthur and Merlin both because they shared their lives with the common man. The

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communication between the two made everything possible and there was the awareness and
enlightenment. Notably, Jim blamed Arthur for Collin’ death which was natural from the point of
view of a son. There were issues about answering the sympathy cards that were sent by the
relatives and friends. Marion had answered them but when Arthur insisted of responding to them
personally for expressing gratitude, there was a clash. This incident occurred because Arthur and
Marion were extremely envious to each other and could not know anything regarding the
feelings, the stories and the sentiments of each other related to Collin.
Positively, towards the end of the play they truly related their respective life incidents and
Marion and Arthur started knowing each other and became aware of their true identities along
with the condition of their lives after the death of Collin. In the play, both of them came to know
each other and empathized with the pain of each other and decided to stand by one another in this
tough time. The child was also made to understand that Arthur would always stay a as a part of
their lives. They started gaining insightful understanding of one another. Arthur shared his
memories with Collin in front of Marion and showed the little souvenirs they had bought from
various places during travelling. Arthur further tells Marion regarding the way he looked after
Collin and then confessed that he cared for Collin so much that he lived this much long life
(Miller). He then described the last hours of Collin and through the end of the conversation
Marion modified her perceptions about the human sexual relationship between Collin and
Arthur. She then adjusted herself to the reality of the lover of her former husband and then
allowed him to be acquainted with Jim. She accepted her husband's lover Arthur along with his
rights being a person who was loved so much by her husband.
Therefore, it is quite clear that Harvey being a homosexual person who is highly liberated
and open gay character tried a lot to exalt the experience of a gay through writing such a play

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which would investigate and also undermine the previous taboo about this topic. In this play he
tried using the symbolism as a technique. Marion had played a symbol which represents the
heterosexual mentality of the people of the society who is not that liberal and tolerant about the
homosexual associations. She appears to be the most unforgiving and masculine of people
(O'Connell). On the other hand, Arthur is represented as the homosexual part of the society and
has the feminine sensitivity. The playwright further tried to depict the sexual relationship from a
touching, heartfelt and sentimental view. He tried to pursue the public that homosexual people
are equally capable of having long term relationship that is founded on pure love. Harvey then
used the care of Arthur for Collin in the form of an argument. Then he created an image of a
perfect homosexual lover who is caring, loyal and compassionate towards the dying partner
(DePalma),.
Hence, it can be claimed that the primary purpose of the play of Harvey is to elaborate to
the audience that most of the homosexual people can lead long lasting relationships also. They
are equally able to love and further supposed to be loved back like other heterosexual people. It
is fair and the Harvey has demonstrated through his work about the one side of the sexual type of
relationship. He has developed an Illusion of the stability in the relationship which he being a
homosexual person himself was longing for. As per the statistics of Australia, it is found that
people are engaged in some homosexual relationships and are not more likely to leave the
partner. The latest reports of Australia shows that 30% of people are declared to be homosexual
who were properly living with the partner as compared to the other 60% of the heterosexual
people (Boucher, Leigh, and Reynolds).. In this regard the statement of Gabriel Rotello can be
mentioned who is a famous American musician and writer who said that there are higher rates of
sexual promiscuity which is among the sexual population and the percentages of the long

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relationship is lower? (O’Leary, Dale, and Colloquium). In the interview in the New York Times
Harvey had confessed of having been promiscuous as he took part in a group sex in a backroom
bar. Hence one cannot blame him for not taking the relationship of Collin seriously with Arthur.
On the other hand Frank Rich who is a famous critic of art called the play “ Safe Sex” a “ lumpy
trilogy of the one act plays about the AIDS crisis which is presented with a soppy, overblown
staging to match the more treacly and self-indulgent excesses of the text” (Rich). Harvey being a
playwright and the actor is looking for adoption and adoration from the audience. He promotes in
this play the love for himself and undoubtedly for the entire humanity.
Hence as a writer Harvey has created in his play a type of illusion of an unrealistic world
where people lived with harmony and mutual understanding with each other. The play shows a
story of an abandoned and infected wife by her husband who deceived her and left alone with the
child and lived with a man (O'Connell). The wife got on well with the lover of the husband
eventually and decided to provide him half of the money by selling the apartment. In this way he
tries to provide a touch to the sentiments and the primary characters of the play are the most
loving and generous along with being sensitive.
On a concluding note it can be said that it is easy to say that Harvey’ drama is a new
wave in the experiences and visions of his own life. The play is highly expressive and a way of
deforming the reality for presenting the truth. The homosexual people are also part of the
contemporary modern society and they are equal to the heterosexual people having the rights
along with the obligations of living as per the norms of a country. The homosexual people
further should be treated in the same way as the heterosexual people are treated. It is quite
natural to have an independent sexual orientation and people should accept that and appreciate
the inner qualities with the moral principles.

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References
Boucher, Leigh, and Robert Reynolds. "Thinking Transnationally About Sexuality:
Homosexuality in Australia or Australian Homosexualities?." Transnationalism,
nationalism and Australian history. Palgrave Macmillan, Singapore, 2017. 149-165.
DePalma, Renée. "Gay penguins, sissy ducklings… and beyond? Exploring gender and sexuality
diversity through children's literature." Discourse: Studies in the cultural politics of
education 37.6 (2016): 828-845.
Gale, Cengage Learning. A Study Guide for Harvey Fierstein's" Torch Song Trilogy". Gale,
Cengage Learning, 2016.
Miller, D., 2020. FIERSTEIN'S `ON TIDY ENDINGS' TOUCHING BUT NOT FAR-
REACHING. Chicago Tribune,.
O’Leary, Dale, and C-Fam Colloquium. "The History of the Syndemic of AIDS among Gay Men
in the United States and the Failure of the Risk Reduction Strategy." (2016).
O'Connell, S., 2020. The Big One: Literature Discovers AIDS. New England Journal of Public
Policy, 4(1).
Rich, F., 1987. STAGE: HARVEY FIERSTEIN'S 'SAFE SEX'. The New York Times,.
Ries, Brett V. "The Relationship Between LGBTQ+ Representation on the Political and
Theatrical Stages." (2020).