Death and the Maiden Response

Death and the Maiden is a play written by Ariel Dorfman about a woman Paulina’s encounter with the man Dr.Miranda who allegedly raped and tortured her. The title is a reference to Schuberts piece “Death and the Maiden” which had been playing when Paulina was raped, showing us how even music became an agent of pain. This play is a great example of how psychological torture can outlast and be worse than physical pain. Though it has been many years since her captivity, Paulina lives her life in constant paranoia in an isolated country house.
I find this work a very interesting read, with a lot of factors that set it apart from the other readings we have had so far. In the play we see how Paulina (previously the tortured) becomes the person who holds her torturer Dr.Miranda in captivity and interrogates him, and this kind of role reversal is not seen in any of the other works. She even appoints her own husband as his lawyer, records their conversation and even wants him to sign his confession.The play ends without telling the reader if the Doctor was actually guilty, or if Paulina had succumbed to insanity and all her allegations were false, and this ambiguity is prevalent throughout the book.