The Rose Tattoo | Themes

The Rose Tattoo Themes

Pride

One of Serafina's defining characteristics is her pride. She is excessively proud of her husband, Rosario, and seems to think that his glory reflects on her. This is shown in her boasting. She boasts about Rosario's beauty, virility, and family. She claims, for example, that he was a baron in Sicily, though few believe her.

While on one level, Serafina's boastful pride is ridiculous and humorous, on another, it constitutes the play's nod at classical Greek tragedy. In classical tragedy, the hero always has a significant tragic flaw, and hubris, or pride, is often that flaw. However, while in ancient drama the flaw is a factor contributing to the play's tragic events, in Williams's play, Serafina overcomes her weakness. Her change of heart comes about partly because she accepts that her husband was not perfect after all. Further, she signals, in her love for Alvaro, that she is not...
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