Tag Archives: De Flores

Or can you? What’s the price than that you have to pay? Is it worth it? These are the questions that came to my mind after reading The Changeling. De Flores was able to achieve what seemed to be impossible at the beginning of the play. He was disrespected and despised by the woman that he was so obsessed with. The likelihood of his ever getting Beatrice’s attention was equal to zero at the time when the plot started. From this perspective the play is De Flores’ success story where the unlikely hero realizes his dream.

De Flores knew right away that his time had come when Beatrice asked him to get rid of Alonzo, and he grabbed the opportunity. He was so obsessed with her that he didn’t think a moment about the evil deed of stabbing her suitor to death. He knew his goal and he did everything to realize it. He succeeded; he got what he wanted, but the cost was tremendous. He committed two homicides and also the young and innocent Beatrice whom he was madly in love with has changed beyond recognition. All of this happened for the opportunity of having one sexual act with her. De Flores was a smart guy; if he wasn’t so obsessed he must have realized that at the end they will not live “happily ever after.” Instead of this they both end up dead. De Flores was so blinded by his goal to pursue Beatrice that he did not realize that this end is inevitable.

You can’t always get what you want – it is better this way. In order to be successful the advice is to set a goal and work your way toward it. It is something that is worth to take into consideration, but first, one should realize that there are things that not worth to pursue, and that another saying,“the end justifies the means” is also not an absolute one.