A Sunny Morning
Exercise: Question & Answers
Understanding the text
Answer the following questions.
a. What makes Dona Laura think that Don Gonzalo is an ill-natured man? Why do neither Dona Laura nor Don Gonzalo reveal their true identities?
→ Laura thinks that Gonzalo is an ill natured man as a result of his aggressive behaviour. Gonzalo frightens the birds away from the crumbs that she leaves for them. He even misbehaves with Laura to some extent. He also makes lewd comments about priests who occupy his seat.
Laura and Gonzalo didn’t reveal their identities because they were once a loving couple but had a failure in their relationship due to various reasons. On the other hand, Gonzalo and Laura worry that exposing the truth may ruin their fruitful conversation.
b. At what point of time, do you think Laura and Gonzalo begin to recognise each other?
→ Laura admits to have lived at Maricela near Valencia whereas Gonzalo claims to be from Valencia. This coincidence makes them suspect their truth.
c. When does Dona Laura realise that Don Gonzalo was her former lover?
→ When Dona Laura informs Gonzalo about the mansion in Maricella, Gonzalo starts telling her about the Silver Maiden called Laura Llorente. Dona Laura realizes that Gonzalo was her previous lover.
d. Why do Dona Laura and Don Gonzalo spin fictitious stories about themselves?
→They make up fabricated stories about themselves because they don’t want to disclose their true identities because at that time they were older and wanted to spend the rest of their lives with happy memories and no regrets. They also wanted to know each other and leave a reason or excuse to keep talking everyday by being anonymous.
e. How do Dona Laura and Don Gonzalo feel about each other?
→ Laura and Gonzalo both still love each other. Though they have an unexpected encounter at the park after 22 years, they’re quite happy to see each other. Gonzalo still sees her as a beautiful girl waiting for him outside her window, and she still sees him as the courageous young man who walks by her home every day. They even promised to meet the next day.
Reference to the context
a. Look at the extract below and answer the questions that follow:
“Yes, you are only twenty. (She sits down on the bench.) Oh, I feel more tired
today than usual. (Noticing Petra, who seems impatient.) Go, if you wish to chat with your guard.”
i. Who is the speaker?
→ Dona Laura is the speaker.
ii. Who does ‘you’ refer to?
→ ‘You’ refers to Dona Laura’s maid Petra.
iii. Who is the ‘guard’ the speaker is talking to?
→ The guard’ is the ‘park’s guard’ the speaker is talking to.
c. Who is Dona addressing by saying “Look out’?
→ By saying “Look out”, Dona is addressing Don Gonzalo.
d. What was Dona doing?
→ Dona was in the park feeding breadcrumbs to pigeons.
e. Who scared the birds? Are they pet birds?
→ Don Gonzalo scared the birds. They are not pet birds.
f. Where are the speakers at the time of the conversation?
→ The speakers are in a park at the time of the conversation.
g. What is the effect of flashback in the play when Dona Laura and Don Gonzalo knew that they were lovers in the past?
→ The readers were able to know about both romantic love and unwilled breakup of Laura and Gonzalo by the scenes of the flashbacks in the play.
h. Discuss how the play is built around humour and irony.
→ The play is full of humour and irony which brings unique sensual pleasure to the readers. Even in the opening scene of the play, there is a sense of humour. Don Gonzalo and Dona Laura’s reunion in the park is humorous due to their first dispute. Laura teases Gonzalo about his wish to have an empty seat all to himself in the Garden. In response, he’s furious with her because of what she did. There weren’t any other benches for him, so he had to sit on Laura’s. We couldn’t help but giggle at the ridiculousness of the scenario.
Similarly, irony is a literary device that is not the reality or expected. In their stories, there is an abundance of irony. They spread rumors about their own deaths in order to draw attention to themselves. But they are all aware of each other. Even though we realize it’s all just a deception, we enjoy and believe in the fabrication.
i. How is the title ‘A Sunny Morning’ justifiable? Discuss.
→ The title ‘A Sunny Morning’ is appropriate since it refers to a sunny and pleasant morning, like a fresh start in the lives of former lovers. It’s a new day, and that means new beginnings, new possibilities, and fresh starts. The loving partnership provides us with similar new possibilities. We perceive optimism of a reunion between two lovers, just as a new day offers fresh hope.
They loved each other, but circumstances separated them. They used to be energetic, passionate, and vivacious like the bright morning environment. The beautiful recollection of their young days makes them forget their age, thinking it’s a bright morning. So, the topic A Sunny Morning’ is acceptable for play.
Reference beyond the text
a. What do you predict will happen in the next meeting between Dona Laura and Don Gonzalo? Discuss.
→ I predict that Don Gonzalo will be more frank this time. They both will open up to each other about their innermost feelings. They’ll speak about their reasons for breaking up and how they came to that decision. They won’t be able to keep their distance for long. The result of this is that they’ll begin to show feelings of love and respect for one another. I think they’ll get back together one day.
b. Was it wise for Dona Laura and Don Gonzalo to keep their identities secret? How might their secrets affect future meetings?
→ Dona Laura and Don Gonzalo made the right decision by keeping their identities a secret from one another since it would allow them to freely express their emotions to one another. This is the greatest method to keep the connection going without revealing anyone’s identity. They cannot reveal their identities because they’re now physically weakened and bound by social ideals and obligations. Their existing responsibilities and experiences will restrict them from being open if their identity is revealed. Their mysteries can’t remain forever. If they continue to meet, the secrets will be progressively revealed. If they knew each other, they wouldn’t have any excuse to meet every day.
SUMMARY
The romantic comedy “A Sunny Morning” written by Serafin and Joaquin Alvarez Quintero tells the story of the reunion of two former lovers who are now in their 70s. They had been passionate lovers in their youth but were separated by destiny. A park seat in Madrid, Spain, on a bright morning is the setting for this play.
It’s a beautiful spring day when the play begins, and the action takes place in a park in Madrid. Dona Laura, an elderly woman, appears on the scene. She is accompanied by Petra, her maid, and sits on a bench to feed the birds with breadcrumbs they have collected.
Also arriving in the park is Don Gonzalo, who is accompanied by Juanito , his valet. Don Gonzalo appears to be displeased when he discovers that there isn’t a single empty bench in the park. Three priests have taken up seats in the one he normally uses when visiting the park. He approaches Laura and reluctantly sits near her.
Because the old man was attempting to frighten the pigeons, Laura became enraged. She calls him “an ill-natured man.” It’s just that after a few seconds of disagreeing, they settle their differences by sharing a pinch of snuff.
In response to Gonzalo’s claim that he is from Valencia, Laura reveals that she is from Maricela, where she grew up in a villa. There was a woman named Laura Liorente who lived in a villa there, and she was perhaps the most beautiful woman he had ever seen, according to Gonzalo, who was shocked by the revelation.
The result is that they create fictitious tales in which Laura Liorente claims to be Laura Liorente’s friend, while Don Gonzalo claims to be Don Gonzalo’s cousin. Once they’d talked for a while, it became clear that they knew each other, but they didn’t want to reveal their true identities due to the cruelties of fate.
They try to be ignorant by sharing false tales about their own deaths that serve as a romantic throwback for both. In their youth, they used to exchange flowers whenever he passed by her home on his way to somewhere else. Her parents, on the other hand, wished for her to wed someone else. Gonzalo beat that man very badly and fled. Their love didn’t work out for them romantically. Despite being apart, they still thought about each other often.
Don Gonzalo also made an effort to fabricate a story about his alleged cousin. His story goes like, soon after inflicting serious injury on the merchant, he fled to Seville and Madrid, where he sought refuge from the authorities. All of his letters to her had been seized by her parents. In the absence of a response, he joined the military out of desperation and was sent to Africa, where he died in a war while mumbling Laura’s name.
The real story was that Laura eventually married and had a family after they were apart for two years. After being devastated by the loss of his first love, Gonzalo married a ballet dancer three months later and moved to Paris. Even though they were separated, their desire for romantic love persisted in their minds.
They were able to remember their intense love affair when they reunited in the park almost 50 years after they last saw each other. It didn’t matter how well they knew one other in actuality; they were still reluctant to disclose their connection since they had lost some of their lustrous youth. Even though they know they’re lying, none of them wants to admit it. Finally, they promise that they’ll see each other the next day with a positive attitude.