Mercy Otis Warren

To begin, I would like to discuss Warren's use of language and metaphor throughout the play The Group. In class on Wednesday we talked about how her writing was so full of metaphors and specific language that it clouded some of the meanings of the text. I can certainly see this as a valid point, but I would like to offer some suggestions to why I think Warren decided to write this play in the obscure way that she did. First of all, if you look at many of the metaphors in the play, they are generally references to things that existed in the classical world. For instance, she refers to Brutus and Caesar in part of play and uses examples from Plato's works in her dialogue between the characters. In fact, most of her metaphors have a lot to do with the Roman Empire in general. We discussed in class that these metaphors were likely to have resonated most profoundly with a highly educated audience, but after reading the play again I think that the metaphors do much more than get the audience she was writing for interested in the play. For me, the metaphors seem to add a sense of opulence to the play in general, but they also add a sense of grandeur to the events contained within the text. By this I mean that is seems that Warren's references to Rome within the context of a bunch of Tories talking about the American colonies and their actions places the events happening in America into a context of greatness. It is like she is almost equating the possible Revolution in America to the power and glory of the classical Roman world. I thought this was an interesting way to give weight to the struggle in America without actually comparing it to Rome directly within the text. I also thought it was interesting because in modern times, America is often compared to the Roman Empire because of our unyielding dominance and power over the rest of the nations of the world.