Journal #5- Blood Wedding

I feel that Lorca does use many archetypes in seemingly conventional ways. First off, let's look at metals. With reference to Leonardo and his family, there is mention of copper and other common, industrial metals. This is in contrast to the Bridegroom's home where he wears a gold chain. Lorca contrasts these two to show the difference in wealth of the 2 families- which is also clearly shown in the way Leonardo's Mother-In-Law talks about how the Bridegroom has lots to spend. Also, Lorca conventionally uses flowers in these scenes as well. The rose is often used as a a symbol of beauty in both scenes. But what's more interesting is the use of this flower in the song versus when the mother talks about the child. She sings to him as 'my rose', but then she tells her husband he's been a bit more of a dahlia that day. Dahlia flowers were introduced to Spain because of the conquistadors who discovered them in the new world. I am guessing that Lorca is using this reference that the child seems foreign or distant- because he is also sick. Also, flowers are used in a somewhat non-traditional way in differentiating class. The Bridegroom's house has 'large pink flowers', whereas Leonardo has 'everyday flowers'. I think that this key difference shows how the two contrast financially. Finally, there is this idea of presents in Scene 3. Usually, getting a present is a good thing. However, for the Bride the presents of her coming marriage bother her. Here, Lorca uses the twist of an archetype in a conventional way. The presents act as a Trojan Horse in her case, because they seem to bring good pleasure, but on this inside they bring nothing but trouble for her because they do not give her what truly makes her happy. (Which would be Leonardo's touch in this case.) Overall, the symbols are generally used in a conventional matter, just in different ways in this section.

EDIT: So I didn't understand exactly what Mrs. Wecker meant by 'archetype' specifically for this journal. So, now that I understand this is, let's look at the characters' archetypes.

As far as the archetypes in Act 1 Scene 2, the Wife and Mother-In-Law closely follow what is usually described as being a caring mom or grandmother. Also, Leonardo seems to be a regular man taking care of his family. I feel that Lorca uses this simplicity to make the Wife and Mother-In-Law feel comfortable with their position in the family. It is so then they do not expect Leonardo to run off with the Bride at the wedding, so they suspect nothing of going to the wedding. In Scene 3, The Bride definitely does not follow the archetype of a bride- being blushing, beautiful and ready for marriage. Instead, she seems timid then tied-down by this institution. This definitely hints towards her escape with Leonardo and the rationale behind her runaway bride attitude. The way the Mother and Father act is also very stereotypical of parents who treat marriage like a business transaction. For this reason, it is understandable as to why they get frustrated when the bride runs away. Also, the Father seems to be one of those dads who always believes the best in his daughter. However, this archetype shows how he is blinded by his delusion of his daughter's loyalty.