Power, power, and more power. Everywhere you look in Cloud 9, Churchill is trying to question the types of relationships that create inequality among people. Power inequality is usually the main culprit in these relationships.
Whether it's Clive's power over his family, the British Empire's power over colonized peoples, or Gerry's power over Edward, power tends to be the cause of most human misery in this play. But once people start spreading the power around (as we see occur in Act 2), things become a lot cheerier.
Questions About Power
- For Churchill, should any human being ever have power over another? Why or why not?
- Why would power be the cause of so much pain in this play? Isn't power supposed to be one of the things we strive for in life?
- Support your answer with direct evidence from the text.
- For Churchill, are all types of power basically the same, or are some types more legitimate than others? Support your answer with evidence from the text.
Chew on This
For Churchill, no human being should ever tell another what to do, and that includes parent/child relationships.
For Churchill, there is some doubt that the world would be a better place if power just disappeared entirely. Power differentials in some relationships are necessary.