Cloud Nine (play)

Cloud 9 is a 1979 play by Caryl Churchill. It is an issue packed play dealing with issues like feminism, gender roles, social roles, race, time, etc. For example, the first act takes place in 1880 in Africa, and the young boy is played by a woman, the mother is played by a man, the black servent is played by a white man and the baby is played by a doll. Then in Act II they are in London, but the characters have only aged 25 years and the mother is now played by a woman, the daughter is played by a woman, the boy by a man, etc.

~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~

The following is an excerpt from this play. It is Betty's final monologue of her rediscovering herself through masturbation, after a lifetime of living for everyone but herself.

~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~

"I used to think that Clive was the only one who liked sex. But then I found I missed it. I used to touch myself when I was very little, I thought that I had invented something wonderful. I used to do it to go to sleep with or to cheer myself up, and one day it was raining and I was under the kitchen table, and my mother saw me with my hand under my dress rubbing away, and she dragged me out so quickly I hit my head and it bled and I was sick, and nothing was said, and I never did it again till this year. I thought if Clive wasn't looking at me there wasn't a person there. And one night in bed in my flat I was frightened I started touching myself. I thought that my hand might go through into space. I touched my face, it was there, my arm, my breast, and my hand went down where I thought it shouldn?t, and I thought well there is somebody there. It felt very sweet, it was a feeling from very long ago, it was very soft, just barely touching and I felt myself gathering together more and more and I felt angry with Clive and angry with my mother and I went on and on defying them, and there was this vast feeling growing in me and all round me and they couldn?t stop me and no one could stop me and I was there and coming and coming! Afterwards I thought I?d betrayed Clive. My mother would kill me. But I felt triumphant because I was a separate person from them. And I cried because I didn?t want to be. But I don?t cry about it any more. Sometimes I do it three times in one night and it really is great fun."

~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~