Answer to Question 1
- Like Japanese etiquette, the action of Hwangs play is understated; the real drama is implied mostly in the details. Both the man and the woman understand from the opening scene that they are locked in a potentially mortal combat, but neither of them directly admits that knowledge. Everything concerning the central conflict emerges slowlyand often indirectly at least insofar as the audience is concerned. But Hwangs deliberately low-key style eventually intensifies the dramatic tension as it creates a heavy sense of mystery we become anxious to resolve. The central dramatic conflict is the symbolic battle that the man and woman play out. The woman seems to win by removing the mans fears and arousing love in him. Ironically, however, the man, who could not defeat her by force, manages to destroy her by love. His decision to abandon her after their professions of devotion drives her to suicide.
Answer to Question 2We never know
exactly why he visits, but we gradually learn that he came on a quest or dare to kill her. The woman tells of other men who arrived because great glory was to be had by killing the witch in the woods. He initially believes (as do the nearby villagers) that she is a witch who enchants and destroys the men who visit her home. He even imagines (scene 7) that her flowers contain the trapped spirits of her previous lovers. As the man falls in love with her, his desire to kill her disappears, but he is nonetheless plagued by guilt at his failure to keep to his quest.
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