Cloud Nine (Masterplots II: Women’s Literature Series)
At a glance:
- Author: Caryl Churchill
- First Published: 1979
- Type of Work: Drama
- Type of Plot: Comedy
- Time of Work: Victorian times and 1979
- Setting: A British colony in Africa and London
- Principal Characters: Clive, Betty, Joshua, Edward, Victoria, Ellen, Harry Bagley, Mrs. Saunders, Martin, Lin, Cathy, Gerry
- Genres: Drama, Comedy, Comedy of manners
- Subjects: Values, 1970’s, Self-discovery, Africa or Africans, Colonialism, Colonies or colonization, Homosexuality or homosexuals, Sex or sexuality, Gender roles, Nineteenth century, Marriage, Obsession, England or English people, Lesbianism or lesbians, London, Servants
- Locales: Africa, London, England
Form and Content
The central focus of Cloud Nine is sexual politics, an admittedly general topic that Caryl Churchill suggested to a Joint Stock Theater Group workshop, which became the inspiration for her play. The work is divided into two very different acts. The first is set in Africa in Victorian times, with the patriarch Clive trying to maintain control of his section of the British Empire and of his family, the members of which demonstrate difficulty staying within the boundaries of accepted gender roles. Clive introduces them: himself as father to both the African...
[The entire page is 2315 words long]
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