In a blog post, fully answer these questions for Bat Boy: The Musical.
1. Identify the MAJOR CONFLICT of the play. This is between two characters or a character and a group of characters or force.
The major conflict in Bat Boy: The Musical is between Bat Boy and the town’s people.
2. Identify what these characters REPRESENT.
Bat Boy, Edgar, represents a desire to be accepted. The town’s people represent prejudice.
3. Identify the TURNING POINT of the major conflict. This is the point of no return. At this point in the story the protagonist and the antagonist are destined to reach the climax of the story.
The turning point is when Dr. Parker kills Ruthie Taylor, the girl that Edgar bit in the beginning of the play, and then blames her death on Edgar at the revival. At the revival, the town’s people were considering accepting Edgar, but when they hear Dr. Parker’s accusation, it reinforces their prejudice against Edgar. They change their minds, and all hope of acceptance is lost.
4. Identify the CLIMAX of the major conflict. This is the height of the conflict. There is no where else for it to go and it breaks open, explodes, or dies. Be as specific as possible. Write the scene number and describe the specific moment.
The climax happens when Edgar kills Gertie, one of the rancher’s cows, after Meredith Parker confesses to him that she is his mother and Shelley Parker is his sister. Shelley is the only person who has truly accepted Edgar and they have fallen in love with each other. The loss of this forbidden love enrages Edgar and when he kills Gertie, this enrages the town’s people. The act of killing the cow reinforces the people’s prejudice that Edgar is less than human.
5. Identify the RESOLUTION of the conflict. The conflict comes to a conclusion. Be as specific as possible. Write the scene number and describe the specific moment.
The resolution comes when Meredith and Dr. Parker reveal the whole story of Edgar’s creation. When Edgar learns that he is half-bat and half-human his only desire is to die, because he now believes that it is impossible to be accepted. The town’s people are still enraged because of their prejudice and want him dead. Now Edgar and the town’s people both want the same thing, Edgar’s death.
6. Identify the FINAL ACTIONS of the two figures involved in the major conflict. Then explain its significance.
The final action of the town’s people was inciting Dr. Parker to kill Edgar. This caused Dr. Parker to cut his own throat to incite Edgar to attack him out of instinct to drink blood. Although this results in Dr. Parker’s own death, it allows him to kill Edgar without guilt, because killing Edgar is in self-defense.
Edgar’s final action was attacking Dr. Parker after the doctor cut his own throat. This resulted in Edgar’s death, because the doctor stabbed him with the knife while he was biting the doctor’s throat. Meredith Parker is also killed, because her love for her son causes her to grab Edgar while Dr. Parker is stabbing him, and she is also stabbed by the knife.
7. Identify each of the characters' (in the major conflict) over all OBJECTIVES. This is a want that drives them all the way through the play. Keep this active and playable for an actor. Think of action verbs.
Edgar wants the acceptance of other people.
The town’s people want to eliminate the thing that they do not understand.
8. Identify the SUBJECT of the play. Force yourself to one word.
The subject of Bat Boy: The Musical is prejudice.
9. Identify the IDEA of the play.
The idea behind Bat Boy: The Musical is that prejudice is a negative reaction to the diversity that surrounds us in this world, and that the results of prejudice are always damaging. In extreme cases, these results include unjustified death.
10. Write a short paragraph, 75 to 100 words that describes what the play is ABOUT to you and what it conveys. This is your interpretation of the over all meaning of the play FOR YOU.
Our world is full of diversity. There are billions of people with a wide variety in appearance, culture, religion, etc. Even today, many people meet this diversity with prejudice and do everything in their power to belittle those who are different. I believe that the message in Bat Boy: The Musical is that we should all rid ourselves of prejudice. We should all learn to accept other people just the way that they are, and even learn to try to understand their differences. If we do this, we might even learn to appreciate some of those differences.
