Beethoven And Katherine Comparison

At the onset of 33 Variations, it is evident that there are many parallels between the lives of both Beethoven and Katherine. The reasoning behind these parallels, however, is not revealed until Katherine delivers her final lecture. As Katherine begins her lecture, she starts by explaining the purpose of a hypothesis before then providing the audience with her own. “My hypothesis was that Beethoven wanted to use Diabelli’s waltz to show Vienna what a great masterwork he could create out of a grain of sand,” (Kaufman 101) in many ways this same hypothesis can be applied to Katherine. As a matter of fact, when the play first begins Clara, Katherine’s daughter, believes that her mother is merely attempting to prove her abilities despite her condition. Despite the fact that Katherine’s hypothesis is thought provoking and well-founded, she continues her lecture by admitting that her hypothesis is incorrect. Not only is Katherine’s hypothesis
Katherine’s final lecture provides the audience with the closure needed to understand the various different pieces of the play. Similar to the understanding of Diabelli’s waltz, one must examine the pieces of the play in order to fully comprehend the parallels. Both Beethoven and Katherine had to examine each individual piece of what they were studying in order to complete their work. Additionally, the two understood how to make the most of every moment, for Beethoven it was the measures in the waltz and for Katherine it was the trials of life. Finally, the symmetry within each of their stories is impeccable. Beethoven ending a dance with and dance and Katherine closing her lecture with her first lines, great beauty lies the in symmetry. The parallels between the two character’s lives in magnificent, however, they cannot be fully appreciated without the closure of Katherine’s final