A Number

Caryl Churchill, a dramatist from London, is well known for her writing on themes such as gender, sexuality, power, and politics. Churchill received a BA in English from Lady Margaret Hall (College of Oxford) in 1960. During her time at college she also began writing plays for small drama groups including Downstairs (1958), You’ve No Need to be Frightened (1960), and Having a Wonderful Time (1960). She married and had three sons and while staying at home to raise her children she wrote plays for BBC radio and television such as The Ants (1962), Not, Not, Not, Not Enough Oxygen (1971), Schreber's Nervous Illness (1972), The After Dinner Joke (1978) and Crimes (1982). Her 1972 play Owners, which was called her “first major theatrical endeavor”, dealt with socialist themes and critiqued the capitalist mindset. Churchill has worked with several theatres developing plays including the Royal Court Theatre, the Joint Stock Theatre Company and the Monstrous Regiment. Her first play of great success was Cloud Nine in 1979 which she described as a "a farce about sexual politics". Cloud Nine shows gender and interpersonal relationships in a comical and informative light using a Victorian setting and cross-gender casting. Cloud Nine won the 1982 Obie Award for best play of the year. Churchill’s 1982 play Top Girls which also featured feminist themes with its all-female cast later won her another Obie Award for best play. However, in Serious Money (1987) and Ice-cream (1989) she once again criticized the capitalist western society of England and America. In the late 90’s her style became edgier with plays, such as The Skriker (1994) and This Is a Chair (1997), that have been described as surrealist and dream-like. In 2002 she wrote A Number which enjoy wide popularity and her screenplay of the play was aired on BBC TV in 2008. In 2010, Churchill wrote A Ring a Lamp a Thing for Theatre at the Royal Opera House which was preformed the Linbury Studio. Churchill’s newest play, Love and Information, debuted at the Royal Court Theatre in 2012 and was directed by James Macdonald. Love and Information, has 100 characters played by 15 actors in 50 short scenes. The play again questions humanity as well as love and intimacy. Churchill is still living and writing today at the ripe age of 74. It is my opinion and that of many scholars that Caryl Churchill is a living legend and one of the most significant contributors to theatre, feminism, and philosophy of our time.

The recent play A Number is a response to the ethical questions brought up modern technology. The play consists of a father a son and two clones of the son. The sons’ biological mother committed suicide and left the father to raise his son alone. After failing as a parent, he clones his son as to have a second attempt at fatherhood. When the father realizes his son genetic material was used to create many more children his is enraged. His son Bernard (B2) is not sure how to react and we see him try to sort out his feelings as he learns the truth that he is also a clone. Churchill raises many questions in this play. Who does the genetic material belong to? Does it belong to the parent to do what they will with it? Does it belong to the original individual? Does it belong to the cloning company? Who can sue for mishandled genetic information? The play also question what is humanity. Are clones humans? Do clones have the same rights as originals? Are clones property? The concept of parenthood is also questioned. Does biology make someone a parent or does raising someone make you a parent? Do parents have an ownership of their children? Is there a link with one’s biological parents? Churchill also presents the question of nurture verses nature. Does having identical DNA make people similar? How much does our DNA play into our personalities? Are our personalities products of our environment? Churchill seems to answer this question by showing the character Michael Black who is another Bernard clone but has grown up separate and has a different personality and a happy life. Through Michael Black, Churchill asks the most important question of all: How would the clone feel? Bernard (B2) is troubled by his realization that he is a clone, but Michael Black is not bothered by the information. With this play Churchill wants to show us all of the very complicated questions that come with new technology. Though not all the questions are answered in the play Churchill demonstrates the importance of reflecting on them as a society and of finding our answer before we use this technology on humans. In the end, Caryl Churchill shows that clone or not humans are humans and we need to proceed along the path of technology with respect for humanity. It is clear that philosophers, scholars, and theatre lovers will look to A Number as a great reflection of the ethical dilemmas we face today and will continue to face in the future.