Review of “Two Can Play”

            “Two Can Play” is a type of bitter humor. Although the reading goes easy and is funny, the message transmitted is quite strong. This play reflects the reality of Jamaica more than thirty years ago, a country doomed in the riot of an internal war. One of the themes seemed so far is how external issues can affect people who are not involved in the confrontations. This point is clearly seemed when Pops died; he died, because the doctor was afraid to get into that part of the city at that hour, and they could not get to the doctor’s house to pick up the tablets. An innocent person died for nothing. Besides, the familiar separation is also seemed, because Jim and Gloria’s sons had to leave Jamaica to emigrate to the United States in order to get a future farther than being a robber or a prostitute. Another noticeable aspect is the fact that in this play, Jim fights to get into his role of being the man of the house, but he can’t. The real leader of the situation is Gloria in every aspect. Jim is so coward, he is afraid to everything, he locks the house completely because he is afraid to the sound of shots, he wants to go from Jamaica, but then he is afraid to the people that might take him out of there; he is a real coward. The only part of the male role he occupies well is being requesting his wife to everything in the house, he does not cook, he does not buy food, he does not wash the dishes, he just leave everything as it is because it is not his duty. At the end of page 30 it is partly said that Jim is cheating on his wife, this arouses another important point, how the relationships deteriorate because of the tension of the environment. The play is just starting yet, and it promises to give a lot to count.