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20 pages 40 minutes read

Beth Henley

Crimes of the Heart

Fiction | Play | Adult | Published in 1982

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Character Analysis

Lenora Magrath

“Lenny” Magrath is the oldest sister. She is insecure about her fertility, her appearance, her age, and her role in caring for her grandfather. She is resentful of Meg, whom she sees as always having been the favorite, despite all of the mistakes Meg has made. Lenny hides in her caregiving, which gives her an excuse to stay home, or go to the hospital, rather than date men like Charlie, who was good to her for the brief time they were together.  

Chick Boyle

Chick lives next door and is first cousin to the Magrath sisters. Her role in the play is to judge the sisters and give them one of several common enemies to fight against. She acts as if she is friendly, but she is only family by blood. She is the foil that allows Lenny to finally stand up for herself when, after Chick insults their family one too many times, Lenny chases Chick out of the house with a broom. 

Meg Magrath

Meg is the middle sister. She has had a promiscuous past and thinks very little of herself, despite telling bold lies about her desirability, her singing career, and her potential to act in movies. Meg found her mother’s body after her suicide, an event that affected her profoundly. The rest of Meg’s life since has been an attempt to prove that she is strong, which she does by placing herself in risky, sometimes dangerous situations, and then surviving them. By the end of the play, she has learned how to think better of herself, and has realized the motivations for some of her self-sabotaging behaviors.  

Doc Porter

Doc was in love with Meg before she left for Los Angeles to pursue her music and acting career. His leg was injured during a hurricane in which he stayed with Meg—who refused to evacuate—in order to protect her. His healing process was so arduous that he abandoned his dreams of medical school and a career as a doctor. His role in the play is to help Meg see that, even though he married and moved on when she left him, this doesn’t mean that he doesn’t love her. Meg realizes that she cares for him in a way that is more significant than how he makes her feel about herself. For the first time, she realizes she can postpone or forgo her own gratification to keep someone else happy.  

Babe Botrelle

Babe is the youngest sister. She is married to Zackery, whom she has shot in the stomach shortly before the play begins. Babe is as unstable and erratic as her sisters, but in a different way. While Meg and Lenny were both affected by their mother’s suicide, Babe internalized it through blaming their father—who abandoned their mother—for their mother’s death. When she shoots her husband, she is trying to get back at their father. In the events leading up to the shooting, she has begun having an affair with Willie Jay, a fifteen-year-old African American boy. When Zackery strikes Willie Jay, she shoots him. By the end of the play, Babe has realized that she would rather live than die. She can make a different choice than her mother did, and be there for her sisters.  

 

 

 

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