Susan Sontag：Alice in Bed.doc

Alice in Bed Characters Alice James Nurse Young Man Visions of family Father Henry (Harry), her brother Mother At the tea party Margaret Fuller Emily Dickinson Kundry Myrtha, Queen of the Wilis Mattress team M I (man) M II (woman) TIME: 1890 PLACE: London (Scene 3 is a flashback or memory, and takes place two decades earlier in Cambridge, Massachusetts.) SCENE 1 Blackout. (ALICEs bedroom.) NURSE? Of course you can get up. ALICE JAMES? I cant. NURSE? Wont. ALICE JAMES? Cant. NURSE? Wont. ALICE JAMES? Cant. Oh. All right. NURSE? Want to. Want to get up. ALICE JAMES? First turn on the light. SCENE 2 ALICEs bedroom. Victorian, overfurnished. French doors in the rear. Chaise longue, piano. ALICE -- around forty, long hair, childlike -- in a large brass bed, under a stack (ten?) of thin mattresses; her head, shoulders, and arms are free. NURSE, who is very tall and wears a uniform of striped mattress ticking, is perched cross-legged on top. NURSE? Are you going to get up. Its only a question of will power. ALICE JAMES? I think its time for my injection. NURSE? Dont change the subject. ALICE JAMES? Im not. My legs dont work. NURSE? I know the time. Hes coming at four. You like to please him. Hed be so happy to see you sitting up, in a chair. ALICE JAMES? I wonder. I think he likes to see me in bed. NURSE? Whatever for. (She jumps or climbs down.) ALICE JAMES? That way he knows where I am. Im in my place. NURSE? They visit. Your brother. Your friends. ALICE JAMES? Friends who are curious. They want to see if Im still alive. Theyre waiting. Im disappointing them. -- 4 -- NURSE? Wouldnt you care to visit them, lazybones. Arent you in the least bit curious. Havent you had enough of this room. ALICE JAMES? Go out. See, as they say, the world. NURSE? Yes. ALICE JAMES? I see better from here. (The light flickers.) NURSE? Dont tempt fate. ALICE JAMES? Thats exactly what I want to do. Tempt fate. Can you expl