Robert never loved Stephen however Stephen continued trying to change his father’s opinion. The only way Robert could react to this was to hit Stephen.
Robert: “I couldn’t give a tuppenny damn whether you forgave me or
not…”
Stephen: “all I wanted from him…I wanted him to love me…”
Robert: “ …I don’t like you”
Robert’s only problem with his son was that he had been born. However he didn’t love Stephen because he could not love any one. It was just simply because he did not like him.
Robert: “its temporary, Elaine knows I love her.”
These words emphasise even more that it was just his son he had a problem with and that he was devoted to his daughter.
Stephen is not the only one in conflict with Robert. Elaine is also in conflict with Robert because when she was young, Robert killed her puppy.
Robert: “ … dead something. Puppy maybe.”
Elaine reacts to this by (stage directions) hitting the coal-shed door, which demonstrates that she has never forgiven her father for what he did and still feels strongly about the issue. She is also in conflict with her father because he hit her mother and brother and buried their mother without even informing them of her death.
Elaine: “ you didn’t even give her a proper funeral”
Elaine: “ you never told anybody she was dead”
This emphasises how she felt about her mother and how much hate she has for her father because of how he mistreated her mother.
Robert is not only in conflict with Elaine and Stephen, he is also in conflict with his dead wife, or rather himself, because he loved her enough to marry her but beat her mentally and was constantly putting her down. He didn’t even bury her right.
Robert: “ … they don’t cost nothing these cardboard coffins”
Robert: “… your mother was petty”
Robert: “ when I first met her she was … a wee cracker. God she was
brilliant.”
These words illustrate just how torn he was between his emotions. He knew deep down that he loved her but had trouble conveying this to the outside world.
This issue of their mother’s death and their father’s emotion towards this event was the main reason which drove Elaine and Stephen to be in conflict near the end of the play.
Robert has pushed Stephen so far that he finaly admits his fear of becoming like his dad.
Stephen: “ I know why I haven’t got any. Because I’m too scared. Too scared that I’ll turn out like him…”
This shows that he is too traumatised to have kids because his dad has been the only role model in his life. His life has become over run with the desire to be different from his dad.
It is these emotions which drive Stephen and Elaine to conflict. Elaine feels guilty because she knows that all Stephen’s problems with his dad are because of her.
Robert: “but she’ll leave you to carry the can. Always did”
Stephen: “how come you never saw that before? How come I always got belted while she got a hug?
Here we see that Robert always blamed Stephen even though he knew Elaine had caused the trouble.
This demonstrates further how it was all Elaine’s fault that Stephen was abused when he was a child and shows the reason why their relationship throughout their lives has not been as good as it should have been.
The play does not only explore the issue of conflict between different generations, but also the balance and change of power and status between the three characters.
At the beginning of the play we are led to believe that the children have the power over their father.
Elaine: “ I want to hit him”
Stephen: “ me too”
Robert: “ don’t hit me. Please don’t hit me”
But the power quickly moves to Robert when Stephen leaves the coal shed.
Elaine: “ you know what he did? Soon as you were out of there? He winked at me.
This statement angers Stephen and the power changes to him but not for long because soon after he tries to confront his father, Elaine orders him to make tea and the power switches to her. However as soon as Stephen leaves, Robert gets the power back by confronting Elaine.
Robert: “ it looks like revenge”
Elaine: “ its not revenge”
Robert: “ revenge for the times YOU sat here”
Stephen returns to hear Robert bad mouthing his mother and so he marches into the coal shed and confronts his father with questions about what he did wrong and the reason for him living, which means the power, has shifted to him. However this isn’t the case for long as Robert tells him that he never loved him and the power turns to Robert, where it stays till the very end of the play because he forces his son to leave and tricks his daughter into forgiving him for all that he has done.
In conclusion, Linda McLean’s “ one good beating” does not only explore the issue of conflict between different generations but also explores the issue of constant power and status change which is attached to these conflicts.