Getting Out is Marsha Norman's 1978 play about a recently released female prisoner adjusting to life "on the outside."

The principal character and protagonist is Arlene, a woman who has just finished an eight-year stint for murder. Arlene moves into an apartment in Louisville, Kentucky, seeking a fresh start and hoping to land a good-paying job. She has a son, Joey.

However, Arlene views her life in the form of two separate characters: one good and one bad. The version of herself that ended up in prison she calls "Arlie," and she is emphatic about separating the two. When Bennie implies she is unable to care for herself as "you landed yourself in prison doing it, Arlie girl," Arlene recoils and exclaims that she is Arlene; "Arlie girl landed herself in prison."

Bennie is Arlene's former jail guard, who develops an an attachment to her outside prison. Arlene rejects this, as it is a reminder of her incarceration.

Carl is another visitor from Arlene's (or "Arlie's") former life. He is a small-time criminal, and Williams describes him as someone whose "walk and manner are imitative of black pimps but he can't quite carry it off."

Other characters include Ruby, Ronnie, and the Warden.