Another example of Eddie’s feelings of jealousy is when Catherine asks Rodolfo to sing. Eddie interrupts him because he knows that Catherine is in awe of Rodolfo. In this way Eddie tries to diminish Rodolfo’s singing ability and distract Catherine. A jealous person is usually ready to do anything to prove the inability of his competitor and to show off his own superiority in order to regain the attention of their loved one. Later Eddie sternly tells Rodolfo and Marco about the risk of being caught by immigration. The sharp tone is caused by the sharp feeling of jealousy. This is another way to fight back the competitor by trying to scare them. Eddie subsequently gets Catherine out of the room and tells her to take her heels off, indicating that he does not want Catherine to look her best for Rodolfo. Further evidence of this is how Eddie tries to keep Rodolfo out of the conversation. He only addresses Marco when speaking about things that affect both brothers.
Eddie tries to cover his feelings of jealousy by expressing his concern for Catherine. For example, Eddie says “I just don’t want her hangin’ around Times Square, see? It’s full of tramps over there.” However, his real concern is that Catherine wants to go out late at night with Rodolfo. Such intentions are deeply hurting for Eddie because he would like to be the one going out with Catherine. Being driven by his feelings of jealousy, Eddie wants to keep Catherine and Rodolfo as close to home as possible so he can casually keep an eye on them, disturb them as much as possible and not allow them to be on their own. Intrusive behaviour is often an expression of jealousy.
Another comment that hints Eddie’s deep feelings of jealousy is “Katie, he’s only bowin’ to his passport.” The author points out how Eddie is trying to dissuade Catherine from going out with Rodolfo by showing him up and humiliating him. This is a typical jealous reaction by someone experiencing strong feelings of love.
Eddie’s jealousy of Catherine and Rodolfo’s relationship is demonstrated once again when Eddie says “I don’t see you no more. I come home, you’re runnin’ around someplace“. The author suggests that Eddie feels rejected and ignored by Catherine. These feelings are often associated with jealousy. It would only be normal for an 18-year old girl to distance herself from the father figure; however Eddie’s feelings of love for Catherine make him blind for the reality. His jealousy keeps growing and hurting rather than helping him solve the issues.
In Act two, Eddie shows his jealousy of Catherine's relationship with Rodolfo when he kisses Catherine. In this way he wants to show he can control them. It is another typical expression of jealousy when the character tries to establish his dominance.
These examples prove that Eddie covers his feelings of jealousy. He tries to make his feelings seem like natural concern for Catherine. His method of dealing with his feelings indirectly, by trying to find excuses and to intervene with Catherine’s life, as opposed to openly confronting the issue and sharing his feelings with Catherine, or talking to someone about his feelings shows Eddie’s insecurity. The author proves his inability to deal with and express his feelings. It ultimately leads to his downfall.
Beatrice deals with her feelings in a completely different way. She is jealous of Eddie’s love for Catherine and the attention he gives her. However, she doesn’t show her feelings immediately, she makes ambiguous comments such as “Who’s mad? I’m not mad. You’re the one is mad.” When the problem gets worse, Beatrice faces it head on. She confronts Eddie directly and shows him clearly that there is a serious problem in their relationship. “When am I gonna be a wife again, Eddie?” This expresses Beatrice’s resilience and strength. The author presents a different way of expressing jealousy. However, he immediately opposes Beatrice to Eddie who doesn’t want to face his problems by saying “I don’t want to talk about it.”
I think Beatrice has the better way of dealing with her emotions, because she aims to resolve the problem and confronts it directly. This shows her inner strength. I think her method of dealing with problems makes her such a strong and necessary character. She controls and mediates most of the heated situations in the play. That is mainly down to her way of dealing with her feelings and emotions.
On the other hand Eddie puts off resolving the problem and avoids confrontation, and only takes little measures to hold off the problem. It reminds me of having a leaky pipe. Beatrice would go straight to the problem and fix it once and for all, regardless of the cost, but Eddie would use duck tape to hold off the flood, maybe put a bucket underneath, and avoid discussing the issue because the price of his reputation is too high for him. But at some point, the duck tape loses its stickiness, the bucket eventually overflows and that is when Eddie’s feelings lead to a disastrous flood. Eddie gets caught up in his own web of emotions and he eventually breaks down.
The author presents the different characters dealing with their feelings of jealousy in a different way. It shows how deep and serious emotion it is, how easily it can affect and change a person. This is presented through the protagonist Eddie, and how it literally destroys him. I think the theme of jealousy adds a depth to the play; it makes it moving, memorable and very effective.
