Christopher Booker is a scholar who wrote that every story falls into one of seven basic plot structures: Overcoming the Monster, Rags to Riches, the Quest, Voyage and Return, Comedy, Tragedy, and Rebirth. Shmoop explores which of these structures fits this story like Cinderella’s slipper.
Plot Type : Voyage and Return
It's not easy to find a clear category for what Churchill is doing with Cloud 9, because the project of this play is to explode normal categories. This play rails against the oppression of categories (gay, straight, man, woman, etc.) and, because of this, it's difficult to categorize.
But if Cloud 9 is anything, it's a comedy (the Aristotelian type, not something that's funny ha-ha all the time). Here's why:
Shadow of Darkness
In any classic comedy, you're going start out with things being not so good. Characters feel confused and frustrated and they have a tough time getting along. Well, from the start of Cloud 9, it's easy to see how a super traditional, patriarchal British family is going to have a tough time when all of its members are either gay or having affairs.
On top of that, they're stationed in colonial Africa, and none of the people living in the surrounding villages want them around—with good reason. To be sure, there are a few issues that will need to be cleaned up if this play is going to have a happy resolution. And that brings us to stage two…
Pressure of Darkness
Did you really think things were going to get better that quickly? That's a shame: things are only getting worse. Little Edward decides that he's not going to stop playing with a doll, so his dad and mom decide that the only answer is to beat some manliness into him. Meanwhile, the governess Ellen is madly in love with Betty; but the only way Ellen can fit into society and have a future is to marry a man. So she marries Harry Bagley. Turns out that Harry Bagley is also gay and likes to have sex with young boys. The marriage definitely doesn't sound like it's going to lead to a ton of future happiness.
Fast-forward to Act 2, where we're suddenly placed in a more modern world. Women have the right to leave their husbands, but England is still a colonial force (in Northern Ireland) and there are still some big relationship issues facing the main characters. For example, a grown-up Edward has been living with a dude named Gerry who cheats on him and treats him like dirt. Meanwhile, a woman named Lin is in love with Victoria, who has trouble deciding if she wants to leave her husband Martin.
And to top it all off, grandma Betty has finally left her husband Clive. But now she has no clue what to do with herself because she's spent her whole life trying to please others (mostly men). People are trying their best to make the most of their lives, but it doesn't seem to be working because everyone's still miserable.
Everything Comes to Light
Just when it seems like nothing's going to get better, things totally do. People find happiness by making some pretty out-of-the-box decisions.
First off, Victoria, Lin, and Edward all decide to have an orgy in the park and to live together afterwards. Yup, we're talking incest. Also, Gerry has decided to give things another shot with Edward, which makes Edward happy. Hopefully Gerry will treat him better this time around… but no promises.
And finally, grandma Betty finally finds the courage to live for herself and to do things that she likes instead of trying to just make men happy with her. She discovers this when she gives us a nice long speech about how much she likes sex and how much she likes to masturbate. At the end of the play, we have this totally sweet moment where Act 1 Betty (played by a man) walks out and hugs Act 2 Betty (played by a woman). The gesture shows us that Betty has finally accepted herself and that she can now move forward and live the remaining years of her life as her own person.
Yeah, it took an orgy, some incest, and embracing the idea of masturbation; but it looks like everything really wraps up nicely for the characters of Cloud 9. And that's the most basic definition of a comedy: a work of literature with a happy ending.