The old lady says "no": the language of denial in Brian Friel's The Loves of Cass McGuire

Abstract

In Brian Friel's The Loves of Cass McGuire the presence of negative expressions both in stage directions and dialogue acts as a structuring principle and emphasizes the metadramatic construction of the play. Negative forms underlie Cass's growing awareness of disappointment and hopelessness, denying the "loves" ironically mentioned in the title. Only the alternative imaginary recreation of her own life - her "rhapsody" - is significantly marked by the absence of negative forms. The language of denial is thus both subject and object in the play.