Lies
This is a play that I wrote.
Lies Ingmar
The Characters
Ingimar (brother, 8 years old)
Thorey (sister, 16 years old)
Magnus (brother, 14 years old)
Yrsa (24 years old)
Yrsa and Ingimar are sitting on the grass in the garden of a house.
Ingimar dressed in a black Nirvana T-shirt and Yrsa in a plain white
T-shirt. They are sunbathing. It is sunny outside and you can hear
the birds singing. There is no sound of other people, only birds.
Yrsa: Do you lie?
Ingimar: Yes.
Yrsa: Why?
Ingimar: (trying to look quite cool) Because I want to.
Yrsa: What do you get out of lying?
Ingimar: Everything.
Yrsa: Whom to you lie to?
Ingimar: Dad, mum, Yrsa, Thorey, Magnus.
Yrsa: What do you lie to me?
Ingimar: (Looks at Yrsa, straight into her eyes) Yes.
Yrsa: About what?
Ingimar: A lot.
Yrsa: (Looks confused) Like what?
Ingimar: Don’t know.
Yrsa: Don’t know?
Don’t you think it’s horrible to lie?
Ingimar: No it’s not horrible.
Yrsa: Are you not embarrassed?
Ingimar: No no.
Yrsa: Do you think God wants you to lie?
Ingimar: Yes.
Yrsa: Don’t you think you can go to hell
if you lie?
Ingimar: NO, that doesn’t happen.
Yrsa: To heaven?
Ingimar: Yes.
Yrsa: Are you not embarrassed?
Ingimar: No, for the second time. (Obviously annoyed)
Yrsa: Well, are you going to continue to lying?
Ingimar: Yes.
Yrsa: Why?
Ingimar: Because I want to.
Yrsa: Do you think you can earn money lying?
Ingimar: Yes.
Yrsa: Have you lied to Vidar?
Ingimar: Yes, often.
Yrsa: Are you lying to me now?
Ingimar: No, I am going to later.
Yrsa: (Very worried) When?
Ingimar: Today
Yrsa: Ok.
Ingimar: Yes, I am going to lie to you, mum or dad.
Lies Vidar
The Characters
Vidar (brother, 7 years old)
Yrsa (24 years old)
Living room, Vidar is sitting on a brown leather sofa eating an ice
cream, and Yrsa on the coffee table in front of him, the TV is on
showing one of those talk shows. Behind Vidar there is a window,
leading to a balcony, and there is sunshine outside. Still some of the lights inside are on.
Yrsa: Vidar do you lie sometimes?
Vidar: Sometimes.
Yrsa: Why?
(No Reply)
Vidar Why?
Vidar: I don’t know why.
Yrsa: Do you enjoy lying?
Vidar: No.
(Vidar continues looking at the TV. Not very interested in the
conversation)
Yrsa: Is it ugly to lie?
Vidar: Yes.
Yrsa: Do you sometimes lie to Nanna?
(No reply)
Vidar: To whom do you lie?
Vidar: I don’t know why I lie.
Yrsa: Do you lie to dad?
Vidar: Yes, about sweets and things like that.
(Vidar smiles but looks embarrassed)
Yrsa: Do you lie to mum?
Vidar: Just a little bit.
(Yrsa getting more and more into the conversation)
Yrsa: Do you think you can end up in prison if you lie?
Vidar: No no no.
Yrsa: Do you think you can end up in hell if you lie?
Vidar: No.
Yrsa: What does god say about lying?
Vidar: That you can.
Yrsa: Is it good to lie?
Vidar: (starting to be even more embarrassed)
No.
Yrsa: Are you proud that you lie?
Vidar: No.
Yrsa: Are you embarrassed?
Vidar: Yes.
Yrsa: Are you going to stop lying?
Vidar: Yes
Yrsa: Do you promise?
Vidar: Yes.
(Vidar continues watching the TV and yrsa walks out of the room)
Lies Nanna
The Characters
Nanna: (sister, 5 years old)
Vidar: (brother, 7 years old)
Rikard: (brother’s friend, about 7 years old)
Yrsa: (24 years old)
Emelie: (friend, 24 years old)
A big house made of red bricks with a big garden with lots of
old trees. The front door of the house is made of heavy wood and
surrounded by windows, quite small windows.
The front door opens:
Nanna: (dressed in a red pyjamas on the way to bed after a bath):
Oh it’s them…
(Bong, Nanna is playing with the door. There is sound of people
talking inside the house)
Yrsa: Nanna, do you lie?
Nanna: What is a lie?
Yrsa: Do you always tell the truth?
Nanna: Yepps!
Yrsa: Always?
Nanna: Mmm.
Yrsa: Are you always nice to Vidar?
Nanna: Are you?
(Emelie and Yrsa whisper)
Yrsa: Do you sometimes take his things?
Nanna: Mmm. NO it is him that takes mine.
(Nanna makes a sound of knocking on the window)
Emelie: What happened to that hat?
Nanna: Which hat?
Emelie: That Champions hat.
Yrsa: That was Rikards, Vidars friend.
What happened to that hat?
Nanna: Oh, that hat.
(Nanna gets a smile on her face and then suddenly turns serious
again)
Yrsa: Did you hide it in the chest of drawers?
Nanna: Oh no no.
Yrsa: What!
Nanna: No it was him who was in the chest of drawers
and the hat fell off.
Emelie: Are you lying now?
Nanna: NO.
Yrsa: Well I think so.
Emelie: Why do you lie, Nanna?
Nanna: I don’t lie silly cow.
I have to go.
(The front door closes)
Note -
Recently I have been going through my old work, I found this. I created this play out of a video, kind of much more interesting. The photographs are part of an ongoing thing I was doing. I think I was obsessed with social realism and surrealism. I think I forbade them to smile in front of the camera. On occasions I would kind of dress them up and take them for a walk. To industrious sites. Result? I guess that is not for me to judge.
posted by Yrsa Roca Fannberg @ Tuesday, November 20, 2007
4 Comments:
two small thoughts..
I read that somewhere, forgot where, but apparently lies are evolutionary caused and we use lies as a way of protection and it helps us keep our fitness at maximum. funny thing, altruism is also a way for a maximum in fitness, altruistic societies tend to do better, but also lieing is a good means of protection, so we haven't got lost of it through time.
second thought, i just read today in a german article on football in iceland something about a phenomena in evolution they call in german "inselphänomen" (isle phenomena)[and please, don't ask me how I come from football to this..] which says that species on isles or coming from difficult circumstances have a higher fitness in general and can adapt better to lifes circumstances. iceland with all the weather, climate and everything troubles has apparently caused a pretty fit society in terms of evolution, which also means that despite it's relative size, you see a lot of succesful icelandic enterprises, lots of poets, lots of good athletes, lots of music, etc., specially relatively speaking for a country of 300000 inhabitants, which is the same as e.g. Bonn and they also can adapt pretty easily to difficult circumstances and as an example live easier abroad. So, I don't know what we can learn from this, but I guess everyone can lead to his own conclusions.
Oh no, I had written a long comment but it seems to have been lost.
I guess it will be shorter.
Lies - I guess lies are a form of protection and perhaps white lies is to protect the other while "black" lies is to protect oneself.
Iceland -
I said that I think people from Iceland are really strong minded and they will have to be pretty stubborn in order to stay there. So many of the Icelandic people actually return, even many many years later. Strange how this boundary is almost impossible to cut. I also think that the long winters invite to this reflective, introvert mood. At least I turn into it, I love to use the winter for nothing else. I guess I work better in the dark and somehow the lack of distraction as the wind will take you when you go out, brings stuff out.
Or kills you I suppose. It is interesting to see how low the suicuide rate is in Iceland, compared to some of their nordic neighbours. There are a lot of things coming out there and the country being relatively new might give people a certain freedom - that will say it makes it easier to create (be it business or artsy fartsy stuff). They are also really stubborn, I mean really stubborn and don't give up. DIY, Do It Yourself, Thetta Reddast. Typical of an Icelandic person. It will all work out. If you need this, you just get along and do it. I also believe that people are a reflection of that society, this bio polarness - dark/light, working until you die, never giving up is a reflection of having survived something quite severe.
That could well be the reason why Eidur stayed. It is no time to go until the job is done or at least you have tried and with tried I mean REALLY tried.
I guess my comment was too long, and no it was not much shorter, even if I think my explanation was better before.
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