Similar, But Not Quite: Comparative Study of Churchill’s Cloud Nine and a Korean Play, Soup to Relieve the Hangover Cooked from Dried Pollack

초록

Similar, But Not Quite: Comparative study of Churchill’s Cloud Nine and a Korean Play, Soup to Relieve the hangover Cooked from Dried Pollack Lee, Yonghee (Kangwon National University) I have explored the comparative space that Cloud Nine and Soup created through Jill Dolan’s different feminisms. Caryl Churchill and Woogumchi illustrate women’s images prescribed by social norms. These two plays seem to struggle with similar issues such as inequalities in a patriarchically familial and social structures, pre-destined binary role-playing between man and woman, and ultimately female’s liberation. However, these plays demonstrate big differences as the stories unfold. Soup, reflecting Confucianistic Korean society, ends with an emphasis on the harmony between man and woman whereas Cloud Nine concludes with a self-“embrace” or self-acceptance by taking her/himself as who s/he is. Dolan’s liberal feminism, shown in Soup, attempts to achieve equality between men and women. That is to say, liberal feminism accepts the binary premise that society has established and does not consider further about the construction of gender and sex. The other hand, Cloud Nine, by using cross-gender casting, discloses the construction and performance of gender and sex. This aspect resounds Dolan’s materialistic feminism. Materialistic feminism endeavors to deconstruct all the hierarchical social norms that restrain women as well as men. Although these two plays address their respective stories from different feminist perspectives, it is clear and significant that Cloud Nine and Soup effectively deliver feminist messages to their audience and readers.

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