We join Doris just after she has fallen from her buffet whilst trying to clean her wedding photo. The wedding photo reminds her of Wilfred and brings back happy memories. It is obvious that she misses him and without him she is lonely. She talks about him as if he is with her but she knows that he is dead:
“Cracked the photo. We’re cracked Wilfred.”
The use of the word cracked is very important in this quotation, it emphasizes that fact the photo is broken, smashed apart like her and Wilfred as well as that she is cracking up. She can’t go on living like this, on her own and lonely for much longer. Through the monologue she keeps the photo close to her because she wants to feel comforted by and close to Wilfred. One of the main reasons she commits suicide is that she misses him and longs for his company.
Zulema is one of the only people Doris has contact with; she only comes into do housework once a week. Doris doesn’t like Zulema, throughout the monologue she is complaining about her and how badly she does her job:
“Zulema should have closed that”, “Zulema won’t touch them” “She’s not half done this place, Zulema”.
Even Zulema’s name doesn’t agree with Doris it is not a traditional name, either modern or foreign. Doris likes older things that she is used to from her past, when she was happiest.
Doris’ dislike for Zulema represents a general dislike she has for younger generations. This is because the happiest part of her life was when she was young; she can never go back to it and feels like she can never be happy again this is another reason contributing to her suicide. She may also feel bitterness towards younger people because her own chills never got to experience it. Doris’ relationship with Zulema represents other people’s relationships with old people, it shows that they can’t be bothered to spend time with them and they are a burden on society. It also shows stereotypical perceptions of the elderly being dependant and not mentally sound which Doris contradicts
Doris resents Zulema for the power she has over her; Zulema reports to Stafford house about Doris’ well being, if they think that she isn’t coping on her own she will be moved into residential care. Doris wants desperately to avoid going to Stafford house because she will lose her independence and because of her own views of older people.
“They all smell of pee. And daft half of them banging tambourines.”
Doris perceptions of elderly people are stereotypical and contradictory. They are not views you would expect from her because she herself is elderly but still sharp and sane. This suggests that she is in denial about her age. This is another reason she decides to take her own life by avoiding help. If she asked the policeman for help she would have received it but almost certainly been moved to Stafford house. She sees there is no way good way out of the situation and would rather die than be moved into a home.
The most talked about subject in the play by Doris is the death her baby, when she gave birth to her stillborn baby the midwife said he “wasn’t fit to be called anything” he was wrapped in newspaper as if he were dirty, nothing but rubbish.
This is probably the most painful memory that Doris had, she never saw her baby, talked about its death or had a funeral, these would have given her closure and helped her to move on and maybe have more children. Doris didn’t think that it affected Wilfred and so she didn’t talk to him about it though he probably was very upset. This is when he began talking about getting a dog as a substitute to child, he also took up various hobbies but none of them lasted including a vegetable patch, fretwork and toys that he would have made with his son had he lived. At some points in the play Doris refers to Wilfred as “dad”, this shows again that she is living in the past or possibly in denial about her baby dying.
Throughout the monologue from the title to the last few lines, Doris is living in the past, she acts as if her husband is still alive, her baby has not been born yet and that she is not old she is in denial about the tragedies in her life. Now that she is old, she has no one to care for her, keep her company or depend on her. She feels as if she has no one or thing left in the world to live for. She has isolated herself from the outside world and has hardly any contact with anyone; she doesn’t even know the names of her neighbours. At the end of the monologue when she decides that she is going to die she begins to sing a song from when she was a young child, it shows that she is tired of life and wants to return to her youth.
It is only in the last page that Doris decides to take her life, before that she is still trying to get help and she eats the cream cracker when she is hungry. When the policeman comes she lies that she is okay and calls after him:
“Thank you.” “Thank you.”
She is not thanking him for his concern but for leaving her on her own, to die in peace. The policeman calls “Hello, hello?” to Doris but he doesn’t know her name. He only asks her once if she is all right, pays no further attention to her then walks away. The policeman shows how people relate with old people, he shows interest in her well being but only because he feels that he should then after talking briefly with her he moves on, he shows no extra personal interest in how she is doing.
In conclusion I have found four main reasons why Doris decides to commit suicide. She is lonely and misses her husband, she has never got over the death of her baby, she is unhappy and sees no way she can be happy again as she was in her youth and she wants to avoid going to Stafford house. All these points are serious reasons for her unhappiness and are out of her control. She sees no reason in living and has nothing left in her life to look forward to. The play is powerful because although it is specifically about Doris it is also more generally about older people, how they are viewed, treated and their place in society today. It also challenges many stereotypes about the elderly voiced through Zulema, the policeman and Doris herself. It highlights the insecurities harboured by old people and looks into the bond between mother and child even before the birth. Doris’ decision to end her life may at first seen unjustifiable, but considering her experiences I can empathise with her resolution of her dilemma.
