Revision Carmen

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Often times in tragedies, the protagonist is fixed on or infatuated
with a person whom they declare their loved one. This lover plays a
major role in the story because he/she affects the protagonist in
every way. The relationship the two characters carry out can even
help foreshadow the outcome of the tragedy. Bizet’s Carmen is a
perfect example. In this libretto her first lover, Don José,
primarily influences the tragedy of Carmen’s death. Her death brings
forth an important theme of love which is, love should not be treated
as a game because playing with love is like playing with fire, its
warmth and glow can bring joy but when abused one is bound to get
burned. Carmen should be considered the tragic heroine whose flaw was
falling in love with Don José.
In Act I of the play Carmen attempts to seduce José. Although he
tries very hard to resist, José’s feeble mind gives in to the thought
of being with such a “beautiful” woman. As time passes by she makes
sure he falls more in love with her. However, because of the fact
that Carmen is a gypsy and because of her reputation with men in the
past, one can assume that her affair with José may not last very
long. The first example that shows that Carmen is playing with “love”
is in Act I when she has been arrested by Zuniga for mal-conduct and
has to be escorted by José. He calls her a gypsy and she responds,
“...You will do no less than what I ask of you because you love
me...” Her presumption that José loves her is a selfish act of
interest because she hopes that by seducing him and making him believe
they can begin a relationship he will help her escape her troubled
situation. Again before giving into her seduction José says, “...if I
give in, if I surrender, your promise, will you keep it? ...will you
love me?” , and she responds yes. However, her promise to love José
is the mistake, which leads to her tragic death in the end of the
libretto when he kills her for loving Escamillo and moving past him,
making her the tragic heroine and José her antagonist.
In the beginning of Act II Carmen for the first time expresses that
she is in “love” but by this time José has been demoted and done jail
time for allowing Carmen to escape, demonstrating through sacrifice
that he truly loves her. In return for his loyalty to her, José is
humiliated and mocked by Carmen when he tells her that he must return
to the retreat. “(In rage throwing his casque at him)... go away, my
boy; go away! Return to your barracks!” says Carmen to José. Feeling
that he has no choice but to submit to Carmen’s pressure to stay with
her José leaves everything behind and flees with her. In retrospect,
José has done a lot to prove his love for Carmen but she has not even
come close to expressing nearly as much all of that “love” she felt
for him.
By Act III it is official. Carmen has gotten tired of José and cares
less for him. José: “You don’t love me anymore...” Carmen: “I love
you less... I want to do what pleases me.” These are words that could
have been predicted since Carmen is recognized as a gypsy with a
reputation of a liberal-rebel. It was almost obvious that Carmen’s
love for José was not equal to that of his love her, yet she kept him
around.
When José confronts Escamillo, his competition for Carmen’s heart,
Escamillo reminds him that, “Carmen’s love affairs don’t last six
months.” By the end of Act III it is noticeable that she now cares
more for the toreador Escamillo and less for José. If Carmen had not
fallen in love with José or seduced him for that matter, she could
have avoided future hardships and even death. However, the flame
Carmen has played with has grown dangerously with time and now
threatens her life. This may sound like an attentively composed
metaphor but it has a literal meaning because José’s infatuation with
Carmen thrives him kill her in Act IV. After a long time of arguing
in the attempt to convince José to let her be, “Carmen throws the ring
[he once gave her] at him.” José repays her for the humiliation by
stabbing her to death.
Carmen took love for granted and as a result he took her life. The
libretto sends an important message through Carmen’s mistakes.
Although she was the one who played with love, Carmen is the tragic
heroine in this play. She is a victim of her own games and her major
flaw was falling for Don José or better yet making him fall for her.