Our Town By Ernest Hemingway

Life is a Story “Live life to the fullest because you only get to live it once.” This quote provided by Ernest Hemingway perfectly epitomizes the main message in the play Our Town, written by Thornton Wilder. The author makes a point of saying that life is divided into three differential parts: Birth and Daily Life, Love and Marriage, and, of course, Death. Occasionally, this trinity of life may be unappreciated by one until it is too late. That sure seems to be the case in Our Town. Routine is engraved into the minds of people since the day they are born. The date is May 7th, 1901. Twins have been welcomed overnight in Polish Town thanks to the work of Dr. Gibbs. Mrs. Webb and Mrs. Gibbs have come downstairs to prepare breakfast for their
It is learned that George Gibbs and Emily Webb are to be married. Joe Crowell’s younger brother, Si, is upset because now George can not continue to play baseball. It is the morning of the wedding day and Mr. and Mrs. Gibbs are talking in the kitchen and remembering their wedding day. George comes downstairs and proclaims to his parents that he is going to go see Emily. He rushes out the door and over to the Webb family house. Immediately after he asks to see Emily, Mrs. Webb tells him it’s against tradition for a man to see his bride before the wedding and shoos him out of the house. Shortly before the wedding, Emily seems to be having second thoughts about her and George’s impending marriage. She does not think she is ready to be married and attempts to convince her father of that. Mr. Webb doesn’t buy into it and asks George if he is capable of taking care of his daughter. George says that he will try his best and promises to always love Emily and she begins to feel more confident. Not before long, the wedding is taking place. Emily and George exchange vows, as well as rings and their first kiss as a married couple. It’s the start of something new for both of
Thirteen years have passed since Emily and George have been wed. The play opens in the cemetery where the gravestones of a few of the beloved townspeople of Grovers Corners have been laid to rest. Some of the people among the dead include Mrs. Gibbs, Simon Stinson, Joe Crowell, and Mrs. Soames. A new grave plot is being dug up next to Mrs. Gibbs. Suddenly, there is a group of people proceeding up the hill with a casket. The casket belongs to Emily Webb. At first, Emily is a bit confused. She is greeted by the fellow deceased and she takes her place next to Mrs. Gibbs. Emily tells Mrs. Gibbs all about her life and her family as the funeral is taking place. Once the funeral is over, Dr. Gibbs sets down a bouquet of flowers near the front of his wife’s tombstone. Emily then asks if there is any way she can go back and live again. The dead warn her not to go back but she refuses to listen to them. They tell her that if she really is that determined to go back, she should choose an unimportant day of her life. She asks if she can have a birthday and her wish is granted. She goes back to the day of her 12th birthday. She’s happy at first, but when she realizes that there is no way to relive the past, she starts to break down. She states that it seems like the living are “shut up in little boxes” or in other words, they aren’t living their lives to the fullest (89). After a short while, she couldn’t take it anymore and asks to be brought back to the