SCENE 8 - AN UNHOLY PARTNERSHIP

SCENE 8 

AN UNHOLY PARTNERSHIP

This scene starts with Fastow delivering a monologue from his lair, it is very similar to those that others such the analyst delivers in that it's mostly factual but in this case there is a greater showing of character. The speech takes something as seemingly boring as hedging and blows it up through Fastows investment and belief in this system giving it stakes, highs and lows as if it were something personal rather than business finance tactics.

i broke the speech into three sections 

1- Here he is trying to find a way into the topic of hedging, knowing that it's too complex for the audience but assuming that they care and are as interested in it as he is, like an excited child. 

2- Here he dives into his well planned and thought through hedging anecdote about cars and planes, once again spotlighting his child-like nature.

3- The anecdote deviates from childishness to a cold and morbid fantasization of a plane crash, especially chilling as it foreshadows 9/11 which essentially changed the audiences perception of a "plane crash"

4- He then goes back to the anecdote an explains the car rental side of the metaphor/example this section i chose to perform practically cold allowing the language to speak for itself revealing the callous capitalisation on fear, tragedy and humanity for the sake of financial gain.

5- the end section is almost floaty, he closes his eyes talking about the importance of imagination and control ending with "when i write down everything that can possibly go wrong as a formula. A formula that i control. Nothing seems scary anymore." The speech starts in a condescending teacher like manner and ends in a naive childlike way perfectly displaying the duality to this character.

Words that stand out 

Hedging

Risk

Money 

Investment

Airlines/airplane crash

Control

Lose

Imagination

Formula

The speech runs straight into the scene with Skilling walking in on him and completely throwing him off leaving him unsettles awkward and edgy, more so than he was before. 

My scene objective for Fastow is TO IMPRESS Jefferey Skilling, his first tactic is to socialise, find unity and talk about their children but he knows this isn't his strong suit and therefore swiftly changes tactic to finance and his business model.

I believe that Fastow has two modes one being social and the other being business. Fastow's social skills are so bad that he has to use business talk as crutch and this switch is seen in this scene where Skilling mentions his daughters birth and and his deal to work at Enron to which Fastow responds with "did you get a good deal?" When Fastow switches to this business mindset his vocabulary widens, his speech quickens, his sentences become well rounded, he is in his comfort zone.

Fastow says "A theoretical car company hedges your airline investment just as good as a real one does. On the books." here is the first time Fastow hints at breaking or bending rules for financial gain which is essentially the heart of the play or at least what sets the tragedy in motion.

In this scene we are also first introduced to the raptors however at this stage they are simply figments of Andys childish imagination hence them being dinosaurs however there is a twisted nature to the them representing his duality. He likens the naming of his creations to that of the film Jurassic Park, only adding to the ever expanding list of "times Fastow said/did something a child would do"