"The Letterbox" by Anne Marie Di Mambro is a short play set in the west coast of Scotland on the landing of a tenement building. I believe that Di Mambro wrote "The Letterbox" in order to educate the audience on the topic of domestic violence. It has been said that "drama mirrors the society in which it was written," this is certainly the case wit the letter box. At the time "The Letterbox" was written domestic abuse was still considered a taboo subject, by writing the letter box Di Mambro wished to lift the veil of secrecy over domestic abuse. The message within "The Letterbox" is that victims of domestic abuse feel isolated and are ignored by the wider society, even looked down on and blamed for their plight. In "The Letterbox" Di Mambro explores the issue of domestic abuse through the use of many devices, of which include `character`, `relationships` and `set and location`.
To all extents and purposes "The Letterbox" is a monologue, although more than one character have lines the main body of dialogue comes from Martha. Martha is a working class mother who is the victim of domestic abuse. The characters in the letter box show different perspectives of domestic abuse. Martha, of course, is the victim who feels alone and unable to get help. Wendy is an innocent bystander, a child who is caught in the middle of the conflict between her parents and is confused. Finally there is Jack and Jill, an almost fairy tale couple whose relationship is as far removed from that of Marthas as possible. .
The Piece opens with martha sitting in her close, locked outside her front door. She is alone, this literally shows her feeling of isolation from her family, friends and the public. The fact that there is a door between Martha and her family represents a barrier between them preventing Martha communicating her feelings with them effectively. When Jack and Jill enter, Jack hides Jill away from Martha with his arm around her, this show how the public shuns domestic abuse victims (,at the time), and provides a stronger foundation for Martha`s feeling of isolation.
