OVERTONES

Clearly, Harriet and Margaret can always be seen and heard. Maggie and Hetty have different rules; sometimes they can only be heard by Margaret and Hetty respectively, and sometimes they can hear one another. The general rule seems to be that Maggie and Hetty can hear each other when the discussion between Harriet and Margaret omits the desires of Hetty and Maggie. It is difficult to say how an audience would react to this. My instinct is that an audience would pick up on these conventions fairly quickly because people are often in tune to what another person's body language says about their true feelings. This is a familiar situation. These rules are typically consistent throughout, but occasionally, Margaret and Harriet's conversation leads the reader to believe that they are in tune with the other's "inner self." These moments create huge suspense because the reader begins to wonder if and how Maggie and Hetty will almost emerge, in a bigger way, into the world of the play.