Play Analysis – Sure Thing by David Ivis
The Setting of “Sure Thing” by David Ivis is important in terms of setting the mood as well as the context for the play’s main conflict. “Sure Thing” is set in a café where the the two main characters, Bill and Betty, awkwardly encounter one another. During their encounter, a ring of a bell continues to disrupt their connection. Despite the ringing bell, or because of the ringing bell, the two characters are able to establish a connection. The fact that they are ultimately able to establish a connection suggests many thing about relationships, such as that timing can play a major role in either beginning or not beginning a relationship. For instance, the bell (and the bell’s timing) suggests that …show more content…

Once the bell rings, the changes that “need” to be made are made, and the characters’ destinies are once again altered. The ability to go back into the past and fix something that was said reveals things about the power of language, which is one theme of the play. However, the bell also represents the power to deflect conflicts before they arise. With the bell, the opportunity for a world in which no one is hurt or offended is possible. However, the bell also represents, on a comical level, a sound being made in the place of hypothetical “wrong answers.” When the bell rings, the observer immediately knows that a wrong answer has been offered to either Bill’s or Betty’s question. However, the bell ringing also seems to portray the idea that people often hold too many expectations for others, and do not allow for error. However, the true point of the bell seems to be its way of communicating that there are so many influences at play that can determine whether two people establish a connection. In this sense, the bell is the play’s source of irony. For example, the characters get into a discussion about Bill’s college GPA. First, Betty says that she does not care about labels or other distinctions. However, immediately, the bell rings, which represents Betty’s unhappiness with Bill’s college GPA. Given the order of the events, the ringing of the bell represents the irony of