alexandria granda february 3, 2010 the 2000

8/14/2019 Alexandria Granda February 3, 2010 the 2000

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Alexandria Granda

February 3, 2010

THE 2000

“A Song Worth the Wait”

Productions, such as plays, require thought and understanding. Symbolisms, for instance,

are a very significant part of the “Joe Turner’s Come and Gone” play. Play writer, August

Wilson, incorporates short significant “songs” into this play. Each person has their own song,

signifying their freedom, self-importance, and self-reliance. The significance of this particular

symbolism, I believe, gives meaning and importance to the play. For many years slaves held in

captivity had lost their identity and the meaning of life. The Joe Turner play revolves around a

character named Herald Loomis and his road to finding his “song.” He was taken into captivity

and later released, then on a search to find his wife, Martha. Each part of Loomis’ conquest will

lead him to finding his “song,” a song that is a symbol of newly found freedom.

Representation of a “song” is first thought upon when Loomis becomes a slave; this helps

the reader indentify the magnitude of what each person’s song signifies. Held captive and taken

away from his family, Loomis had lost his world. Isolated from the real world into becoming a

slave, nothing began to have meaning. Loomis went from a strong prideful deacon to loosing the

memory of his “song,” which in the play symbolizes his self-worth and freedom. After seven

years of imprisonment, Loomis was released back into the world. Though released, he was still

lost; needing to see his wife again to make sure that his world was still in existence. Returning

home, Loomis, only found his daughter Zonia, his wife was gone.

Loomis and Zonia traveled searching for Martha. As their search continued into

Pittsburgh, Loomis felt completely lost. He just needed to see Martha one more time to say



goodbye and start a new life. The play now creates symbolism and powerful meaning to self-

sufficiency, which gives meaning to every character ’s individual “song.” Loomis’ objective is to

find his wife, and then to be able to find his own freedom, and to create a new life. Not being

able to find Martha, Loomis resorts to outside help by paying a man named Rutherford Selig.

Rutherford Selig plays as a character who acts as a people finder. Waiting for Selig to bring

Martha to him, Loomis becomes angry and goes through hardships. He speaks about an

experience he once had while on the search to find Martha, where he saw bones walking on top

of water. As these bones came to shore they had flesh on them and looked like actual people.

Speaking about his experience for the first time overwhelmed Loomis, as he then collapsed to the

floor, screaming out “My legs won’t stand up! My legs won’t stand up!”

Selig finds Martha and brings her to Loomis. When Loomis greets his wife he’s clearly

upset that she had left. He tells her that when he was released from slavery all he wanted was to

see her face, to receive acknowledgement of his own life, but she had left. This is the final

illustration of symbolism, showing the significance of each character ’s “song” and what it

represents. At this point he doesn’t care to reconcile with Martha, his only wish is to give

Martha their daughter and to then say goodbye. Loomis and Martha go back and forth arguing.

Loomis then takes out a knife and slashes himself across his chest, releasing himself into his new

found world. Loomis then screams out his own song “I’m standing! I’m standing. My legs stood

up! I’m standing now!”

As I was reading this play I immediately saw importance in the writer’s symbolisms. The

most particular representation was the characters’ individual “songs” which were demonstrated

throughout this play. This demonstration of symbolism influenced these characters’ lives. An

illustration such as a “song” represented freedom, self-importance, self-reliance, and new life.



Herald Loomis was a character that once had a song and lost it. Through his conquest, his song

that he had once forgotten, he remembered, now he is “Standing” as a free man.

alexandria granda february 3, 2010 the 2000

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