David Henry Hwang's play M. Butterfly assesses the role love plays in relationships and how that love interacts with gender and culture. Love is a powerful force that can lead to obliviousness of one's surroundings. The protagonist Rene Gallimard is a Frenchman residing in China and falls in love with a Chinese actor, abusing Rene as a spy. In the same respect, Rene sexually and emotionally abuses Song, the actor. The irony of Hwang's play is that both parties are extremely selfish and get nothing in the end.
The perceived gender roles in the play were actually reversed. When the reader wi…
