At a Second Glance

The play “M. Butterfly” leads the reader through a life they would not normally imagine. This life is full of twists and turns, some expected but others unfold right before their eyes. As each event occurs, the reader watches how the characters react and the steps they take. From the very start of the play, the reader is aware that the lead character Rene Gallimard, “fell in love” (Hwang, 580) with Butterfly/Song “whom he believed for twenty years to be a women” (Hwang, 580). The fact that the reader knows this prior to reading or viewing the play gives them insight into the character’s minds that allows them to be knowledge about the characters of the play as well as the situation on which the play is based. They are then able to fully take in the characters and their feelings. Each character, specifically Gallimard and Song, whom resembles Butterfly from the opera Madame Butterfly, take on definite meaning and importance throughout the play. Although, near the end of the play there is a role reversal in which Gallimard himself believes that he has become Butterfly. Both share a strong sense of self although who they appear to be is not who each truly is. Gallimard struggles with illusions and beliefs, leading himself to believe only in what he wishes and not anything near reality. Song too takes on themes of illusion as well as identity, struggling to present himself as a woman when he is truly a man. Within the gender roles of the plays characters, Song and Gallimard, themes of identity and illusion are vastly portrayed.

Within the era that the play occurs, it was not proper to engage in any homosexuality, especially within China. Song is reminded this when her associate, Chin, says to her, “Don’t forget: There is no homosexuality in China!” (Hwang, 606). After Chin reminds Song of this; Song replies with a simple “Yes, I’ve heard” (Hwang, 606). Since the reader is aware of the fact that Song is a man disguising himself as a woman, this is almost ironic. Although part of songs reasoning for portraying himself as a woman is to gain governmental information from Gallimard this does not alter the fact that he is engaging in a homosexual relationship being disguised as a heterosexual one. It seems as though Song is doing this to himself because it is not acceptable to be openly homosexual. Unable to be who be who he truly is, Song portrays himself as a woman – giving Gallimard the illusion that he is his perfect woman – in order to get what he wants.

During a visit between Gallimard and Song, Gallimard begins to undress Song but he pushes Gallimard away saying “no… let me… keep my clothes … please… this all frightens me. I’m a modest Chinese girl.” (Hwang, 602). Song refers to himself as a woman, almost as though he is not just convincing Gallimard of his sexuality and gender but himself as well. Identity is a theme that is ever present within the play of M. Butterfly. Both Song and Gallimard individually have problems addressing and accepting their own identity. When the pair are first introduced in the first scene of the play, Gallimard hears and sees Song singing a part from his favorite opera; “Madame Butterfly”. To Gallimard, the Butterfly is “a feminine ideal, beautiful and brave. And it’s hero, the man for whom she gives up everything” (Hwang, 583). This is exactly what Gallimard leads himself to believe the identity of Song is; he makes Song his “Butterfly” and in turn takes on the role of Songs “hero”. Although Song does not believe himself to be Butterfly, Gallimard truly does. Song identifies himself as a woman, which helps Gallimard to identify Song as “Butterfly”. Both of these identities are not Song truly is, but what he becomes in the eyes of Gallimard. Song is able to take on his new identity by disguising and acting “modestly …[and] timidity” (Kondo, 16) all signs of “her inner, essential ‘Oriental’ female self” (Kondo, 16). Song’s disguise worked exactly the way he had planned for, only people aside from the readers that are aware of Song’s true identity are Song himself and Song’s associate, Chin. Because of this, Song’s character within the play literally becomes a woman. His chosen identity complicates the play in many different ways, all-coming back to the love affair between himself and Gallimard. The pair has a love affair and engages in a sort of sexual interaction but throughout this affair Gallimard is not aware of the fact that his lover is also of the male gender.

The identities that the characters identify themselves and each other with also illustrate the themes of illusion and deception. Illusion is defined as “a misleading image presented to the vision [or] something that deceives or misleads intellectuality” (Webster). This is presented in many different situations within the play and is quite similar to how the theme of identity is expressed in the play. The identity that Song earns through Gallimard, of Butterfly, becomes an illusion within itself. Song is portraying himself as a woman, creating the illusion that that is who he truly is. Gallimard too takes part in this illusion choosing to never question Songs identity. As Hwang states in an interview; “sometimes when you have the desire to fall in love or you desire to have someone to be some kind of ideal, you can make that person ideal in your mind whether or not the actual facts correspond to the reality” (DiGaetani, 143). This is exactly what happens in the case of Gallimard and song. Gallimard has many opportunities to explore what Songs true identity was but instead, he chooses to believe the illusion that he was presented with. It is much easier for Gallimard to believe his fantasy to be true then to search for the truth. Sometimes, “fantasy isn't always [as] distinguishable from reality” (Rich) as one may think.

By the end of the play, Song’s true identity is revealed and Gallimard is faced with the fact that it all truly was an illusion. At this point he states that his

“mistakes were simple and absolute – the man I loved was a cad, a bounder. He deserved nothing but a kick in the behind and instead I gave him… all my love. Yes – love. Why not admit it all? That was my undoing, wasn’t it? Love warmed my judgment, blinded my eyes, rearranged the very lines on my face … until I could look in the mirror and see nothing but … a women” (Hwang, 630).

Within this one statement, it becomes clear that Gallimard truly did fall for an illusion and he is completely aware of this fact. The entire time, his one true love was complete illusion, a fantasy that he created. The illusion became so strong that he was not able to believe the truth, that Song was really a man, not his Butterfly. Sometimes in love the “reality is … radically different from fantasy” (DiGaetani, 143). This is exactly what happened to Gallimard, he let his fantasy create an illusion in his mind. He allowed himself to believe that he was living out his fantasy of loving his “Butterfly”, blocking his mind from acknowledging the fact that Song was really a man. Throughout the play, characters identify themselves and each other in a fashion different to who they actually are. Within these identifications many illusions are formed. Song identifies himself as a woman when he really is a man; a man that Gallimard has an affair and falls in love with. Throughout this affair, Gallimard chooses to believe the illusion of Song as a woman and to never question Songs motives. Gallimard also chooses to believe that he is heterosexual and not engaging in any homosexual behaviors. Song maintains this illusion for twenty years, never allowing Gallimard enough opportunity to have to question himself. Each character portrays a given identity and with each identity came an illusion, both being carried out throughout the entirety of the play.