The Cuban Swimmer - Book Report/Review Example

Plot of “The Cuban Swimmer” Plot is the soul of a play which presents the incidents in such a way that the attention of the audience is pinned to the performance till the last scene. The plot of the play depicts a crisis and in the end shows the solution or resolution of that crisis or conflict. A traditional arrangement of the plot goes like this: Exposition, Rising action, Climax, Falling action, Dénouement. The play start with an exposition in which background information about the oncoming crisis or conflict is provided and then there is rising action which is a series of incidents that “ complicate” the plot and culminate into a crisis situation or turning point.

This part is called climax. After this the play moves towards the resolution of the crisis and ends. “The Cuban Swimmer” is the story of a Cuban-American family whose daughter is taking part in a swimming competition. The family is going with the girl on boat where Eudoardo the father is instructing the girl on megaphone, the brother is sailing the boat and mother and grandmother are praying for the success of the daughter. The girl shows strength of character by winning the competition even after so many odds.

The plot of the play presents a crisis and its resolution. This is a one act play and does not conform to the traditional structural boundaries of five act plays. The plot of the play constituted exposition son, Crisis and dénouement. In the exposition part, the playwright introduces the characters to the reader. All the five characters, father, mother, brother, daughter, grandmother have been introduced in this part. There is also the introduction of press people who are covering this swimming competition.

The remarks of the pressmen hurt their feelings as Abuela and Aida show resentment. Simon, the brother, is unconcerned while Eduardo is pre-occupied with his daughter’s activity. In this part, it is evident that the family is involved in this competition and they are fighting for their identity. The crisis comes when Margarita shows her inability to complete the swim and the family is engaged in a heated debate over the issue. The culmination of the crisis reaches at the climax point when the family thinks that their daughter is drowned.

They presume that their quest for identity is also drowned with that. In the end, the resolution of the crisis takes place when the pressmen see that Margarita is alive and is able to reach her target.