Shoe Horn Sonata

Images elicit certain emotions within individuals though it is skewered through their interpretation of distinctively visuals. This is a notion greatly emphasised within the play “The Shoe Horn Sonata” composed by John Misto in order to bring forth concepts of truth and the atrocities of war. Misto does this through his manipulation of techniques to put focus on the experiences suffered by women during the periods of war to give us a better understanding of the event. Comparably the composer Kenneth Slessor shares similar themes within Beach Burial although Slessor voices his themes in a visual manner.
The concept of truth has a great importance in the play as it helps cleanses a traumatic experience Bridie and Sheila both share. Within Scene eight, Sheila reveals why she suddenly left Bridie accompanied by Misto’s incorporation of sound, the cricket sounds which follow gradually gets louder building up to Sheila’s reveal, this emphasises the tension between the two. For Sheila to hold onto the Shoe-Horn was symbolic despite the traumatic experiences it reminded her of, it symbolises the friendship they possessed was powerful that’d she would sacrifice her morals to help Bridie. Furthermore Bridie reveals her secret to Sheila in chapter twelve where her fears of the Japanese remained, bringing them closer by displaying her trust in Sheila. “Just hearing the language was enough do it”, the dialogue only was enough to evoke fear within Bridie. In addition it revealed Bridie’s everlasting trauma, as Bridie was situated within David Jones “A load of Japanese tourists arrived. Well in no time at all they had practically surrounded me”, Misto’s use of diction “tourists” convey the Japanese as harmless and bring forth positive connotations associated with being a tourists. This indicates Bridie’s negatively skewered perceptions of the Japanese showcases her vulnerability to the audience. The audience is then left in a sympathetic state as they can acknowledge the