Poverty
Poverty dominates the Morrisons鈥 lives. We see it reflected in the setting, the stage directions and the dialogues between the characters.
The stage set with its doors, curtains and bed recess gives the impression of a confined space, as if the characters are limited by their circumstances. They even struggle to possess fundamental clothing. Edie wears a miscellaneous collection of cast-off clothing
and Lily realises later that she鈥檚 no got a pair o knickers to her name
.
Lily despairs at Maggie鈥檚 situation and tries to help, bringing medicine and food and also lending money to help Alec. The deprived setting exacerbates Bertie鈥檚 condition and he is not allowed home. Jenny notes in Act III:
It鈥檚 rotten, this hoose. Rotten. Damp. Ye ken yersel. It鈥檚 a midden looking oot on ither middens. It鈥檚 got rats, bugs.
The severity of the conditions is apparent here. While Maggie denies the bugs
, the rest of it cannot be repudiated.
The repetition of rotten
as well as placing it in a minor sentence followed by damp
works to convey the indisputable point that they are living in a slum.
The idea that they are one family in amongst a host of other people in the same position is implied by the expression midden looking oot on ither middens
, as if the only window out of their disintegrating flat looks onto the prospect of more poverty.
As well as damaging health, poverty also damages pride. We are told that Maggie stands outside Jenny鈥檚 work waiting to see if she can get any bruised fruit and vegetables.
Jenny is angered by this, partly because it is degrading 鈥 she says she is sick of her mother disgracin
her afore the hale shop.
The audience sympathises with Maggie here who apologetically tells her daughter she鈥檚 resorted to this because she is just desperate for money.
However, it is John whose pride is most affected by their deprivation. He believes he is the breadwinner and yet he can鈥檛 deliver.
The dirty rotten buggers in Parliament
have left him unable to provide for his family and he feels helpless. He voices the cruel predicament of those in poverty in in Act II, Scene 2, one of the longest speeches in the play:
If I could hae jist- jist done better by ye a. If I could hae鈥(Head in hands, eyes on floor) If! If! Every time I鈥檝e had tae say 鈥榥o鈥 tae yon an the weans it鈥檚 doubled me up like a kick in the stomach. (Lifting his head and crying out) Christ Almighty! A we鈥檝e done wrong is tae be born intae poverty! Whit dae they think this kind o life dis tae a man? Whiles it turns ye intae a wild animal. Whiles ye鈥檙e a human question mark, aye askin why? Why? Why? There鈥檚 nae answer. Ye end up a bent back and a heid hanging in shame for whit ye canna help.
We can see from this that John feels almost beaten by poverty. With his head in hands
he says not being able to provide for his children feels like being punched in the stomach and he has a bent back
and a heid hanging in shame
.
The repeated use of the conditional if
鈥 if only it wasn鈥檛 like this - implies that John feels he has not been given a chance in life.
Living with nothing has turned him into a wild animal
, which perhaps alludes to his primitive surroundings or the uninhibited sexual desire that has given him so many children (this is the one area he has left in which he has not been deemed impotent).
The overall impression here is of a man who is broken and is questioning the justice of his fate. We can empathise with him, as he does endure hardship, but it is interesting to compare his reaction to circumstances with that of the women in the play.
Finally in Act III, John, whose masculinity is threatened by Jenny鈥檚 plans, says he鈥檇 an idea [he] wis the heid o this hoose
.
He is trying to defend his status here, reminding his family that he is charge - however, he fails in this. The very expression he uses an idea
suggests that this power, this control is something that has never been concrete.
He adheres to the traditional male role only in theory because in practice he can鈥檛 deliver. Thus Maggie is able to usurp this flimsy authority.