Scene 4
from And the Girls in their Sunday Dresses
Published online by Cambridge University Press: 31 May 2019
Summary
It is dawn. The two women are still in the queue. THE WOMAN is sleeping on the chair. THE LADY stands hovering over her.
LADY: Sister woman.
WOMAN: What is it?
LADY: Are you awake?
WOMAN: NO, I am asleep.
LADY: It's a new day today.
WOMAN: Every day is a new day.
LADY: I feel something very important is going to happen today.
WOMAN: Congratulations.
LADY: For what?
WOMAN: For feeling something important is going to happen today. Now let me sleep, okay?
THE LADY walks around for a few paces, then goes back to THE WOMAN.
LADY: Sister woman.
WOMAN: What now?
LADY: I am sorry I attacked you yesterday.
WOMAN: I understand.
LADY: What do you understand?
WOMAN: Well, I think you were under some kind of pressure.
LADY: You know, one other thing I hate about you, sister woman, is that you always pretend to be some kind of saint. You are a hypocrite. I hate hypocrites, sister woman.
WOMAN: Thank you.
THE LADY wakes THE WOMAN up violently.
LADY: Don't thank me, dammit. Listen, I attacked you. I attacked you for no apparent reason. And all you can say is: T understand’ and ‘Thank you'.
WOMAN: What do you want me to do then?
LADY: Slap me! Kick me! Whatever!
WOMAN: Listen I am tired, and I am not at all prepared to argue with you. Especially at this ungodly hour.
LADY: You are a hypocrite, that's what you are. You are a wishy-washy liberal. And I hate liberals. Come here! [The two women stand facing each other.] Slap me.
WOMAN: What for?
LADY: TO defend yourself.
WOMAN: Against what?
LADY: Against me. I attacked you last night, remember?
WOMAN: That was last night.
LADY: And what did you do about it?
WOMAN: I could have beaten sense into you if I wanted to. In fact the way you have been carrying on, I should have done that a long time ago. But what would be the point?
LADY: There you start patronising me again.
WOMAN: You talk about defending oneself. You don't know a thing about that. Otherwise you'd not be carrying your chair with you everywhere you go.
LADY: What's my chair got to do with it?
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- Information
- And the Girls in their Sunday DressesFour Works, pp. 31 - 37Publisher: Wits University PressPrint publication year: 1993