Collective Rage: A Play of 5 Betties by Jen Silverman challenges the preconceptions of lesbianism and varying personalities. This play does this by introducing five women who all have different styles of sexuality, thus introducing the viewer to these different worlds that they may not be familiar with. This play, however, gave a quite different tone when reading rather than viewing.
I would say the biggest difference from reading the play to watching it is the use of the word “pussy”. It is a constant occurrence in the writing and the word appears in every scene. My initial reaction was met with confusion and awkwardness. This is a word that I’ve always heard is dirty and represents bad class. So while reading, my own preconceptions of this word distorted the atmosphere surrounding the play. But this word didn’t seem that bad when I actually watched the performance. The actors said it so casually and normally that it diluted the meaning of the word. Pussy was as normal as the word “the”. I would say this gave me a much better picture of the meaning of behind the play as it axed my own interpretation of the word.
Repeated usage of the word pussy is not the only affect that this play portrays. It includes several elements that can be described using Elinor Fuchs “A Visit to a Small Planet”. One big factor in the play is time. There is no specific magnitude of time here, every scene just represents a different portion of the Betties lives. From the time of the first dinner party to the opening night of Betty 3’s play, there is a strict linear movement of time where each scene is a significant part in a Betty’s life. Another aspect of the play is the social structure. Every Betty is able to get along with each other to some extent, even though there are significant differences in the wealth and personalities of each Betty. This reflects the modern day world surrounding the play to an extent, that some people are starting to open their eyes more, some are willing to understand more, such as Betty 1.
Silverman’s play is an interesting take on modern day sexuality and I believe it brings to light the differences among people now in a swift manner. It helps reduce stereotypes in an entertaining fashion.
I completely agree with your perspective of the play. Whenever the word “pussy” was used in the written play, I would cringe a bit inside because the word itself sounded so overused in the play(it was used about 49 times in total). I initially felt that the play didn’t need to rely on constantly using such a crude word to create an impact on the reader’s interpretation of the play. However, later in the live play, as you said, the word felt much more familiar, all while keeping its impactfulness. I discovered that it is essential to the play because, in the live play, the whole reason why all the Betties become attached to each other was that of pussy in some way or form. This play definitely fights against stereotypes of the LGBT community by familiarizing its readers with being gay and all the forms it could come in.
It is interesting how you describe the normalization of the word “pussy” that the play brings about and the effect it has on the audience. Similarly, I also felt awkward reading the word in the play, and also consider it something sort of trashy to say. This caused me to feel removed from the play, and made me dislike it. This closed my mind, and prevented me from seeing the point of the play In a bigger perspective. However, upon seeing the play, the word did not seem as taboo. This may have been by how nonchalantly characters would say the word, causing me to lower my guard about it. Also, through them saying the word so much, I became desensitized to “pussy” and it allowed me to be more open minded about the play. Not only was I able to enjoy the play, but I was able to see the play as a way to as Kareem said to reduce stereotypes.